Equipment

The international rules specify that it is played with a light (2.7 gram), 40 mm diameter high-bouncing hollow celluloid ball, on a table 2.74 m (9 feet) long, 1.525 m (5 feet) wide, and 76 cm (30 inches) high with a masonite or similarly manufactured timber, coated with a low-friction, smooth coating. The table or playing surface is divided into two halves by a 15.25 cm (6 inch) high net.

Players are equipped with a wooden racket (also called bat or paddle) covered with rubber. Table tennis is the only racquet sport that allows different surfaces on each side of the racket. Most serious tournament players purchase the blade (wood part) separately from the two individual sheets of rubber. There are many types of rubber available which differ in terms of their ability to put 'spin' on the ball, their 'speed' and their thickness. According to the international rules, one side must have red rubber while the other side must have black rubber, even if both sides have the same type of rubber installed on both sides. Without the different colours it would be harder for an opponent to know which side of the paddle his opponent was using at any moment. Players are allowed to inspect their opponent's racket before playing.