What are Ping Pong Rules?
|
|
The official rules to Ping Pong, otherwise known as table tennis, are internationally recognized and easy to learn. Rules of play rely on standard equipment, serving, scoring, and illegal moves. The basic equipment is two paddles, a smooth netted table, and regulation Ping Pong balls.
Ping Pong rules begin with having a level table equipped with a short net across the center. For singles games, the white lines on the table do not mean anything. In doubles, one must serve diagonally from right to left. Paddles have rubber mats; sandpaper surfaces are not permitted. A game is won when one player reaches 11 points, as long as they are ahead by two points. Several games in a row can create a match, such that the champion wins the most out of an odd number of games, such as 4 out of 7. You switch sides between each game of a match.
Which player gets the first serve is determined by the flip of a coin. A serve is comprised of throwing the ball in the air and hitting it on its way down such that it bounces once on your side of the net, then bounces over the net to land anywhere on your opponent's side. The first player serves two points, then the serve is traded off so your opponent serves for two points, and so on. It is all right for the ball to hit the net initially, as long as it continues and lands on the opponent's side thereafter. This is called a "let" serve and the server is allowed to reserve the ball.
When the ball is in play, it's called a rally in Ping Pong rules. The ball may be rallied many times back and forth. If the server misses the ball, hits the ball twice in a row, or hits the ball somewhere off the table, the server loses their point. If your opponent has served, and you miss the ball, your opponent wins their point. A game must be won by two points, therefore at a score of 10-10, Ping Pong rules dictate you trade off every serve until someone gets ahead by two.
Other Ping Pong rules include allowing a player to hold the paddle in either hand, or switch between hands, or even use both hands at once. However, you are not allowed to move or bump the table, nor have any part of your body or clothing to touch the table while the ball is in play. The ball is no longer in play if it touches a wall, ceiling, or another person's body. It is officially out of bounds and someone has just won or lost a point.
|
Related wiseGEEK articles
Category
Other Links
|
Discuss this Article
According to the ITTF: During play, If the ball has already cleared the end of the table...(ie: it's long)...the point has already been lost by the person that hit it. You can't get a cheap point by hitting the ball straight into the paddle of your opponent unless their paddle is above the playing surface or you can argue that the ball was headed to the playing surface when it was intercepted. Also there is no perpetual 'serve over' on game point rule. If you fault, you lose. However, I was surprised to discover no '2 lets equals a fault' stipulation. I guess that means you can have perpetual lets?
- anon34961
Reading some of these posts I'm either appalled or entirely ignorant about ping pong -
As I understand the rules, a legal hit must land on the opponent's side of the table before being hit - hence that is why volleying is illegal. Therefore, if a ball is struck but does not land on the opponents side of the table it's a point for the opponent, even if it accidentally hits their paddle. This is because the first rule of order - that a ball *must* hit the other side before being struck, is not met. However, I believe there is a little wrinkle to this. If a person attempts to volley a ball while still above the playing service, the point *automaticlly* goes to the person who initially hit the ball before the volley - because you are not allowed to volley. On game point, when the person behind is serving, if he faults - e.g., fails to clear net, or does not land on opponents side, he loses - period. There is no provision that I've ever read that provides for a perpetual serve until a legal serve is completed. That action may be allowable in beer pong, or backyard ping pong, but not what I call real ping pong. Ok, I'll step down from my soapbox. - anon29856
I heard that in a tournament that a valid serve is defined as one in which the server throws the ball up or shows the the ball in the palm of his hand so the receiver can see it. Is this accurate I am more concerned about the showing the the ball in the palm of your hands so the receiver can see it.
- anon23484
On game point, can the server lose at all on serves or can he/she continuously serve until it a good serve? no matter how many times they let or dont even hit the opponents side?
- anon22418
A volley in ping pong is when a ball is returned without first hitting the returning player's side of the table, and results in a point for the other person.
In answer to the question asked about when a ball is going off of the table, without hitting the other player's side, and the ball accidentally hits the other players paddle. The person who hit the ball gets the point. If the ball is going off the table and it strikes the opposing player's paddle, even accidentally, it counts against the player whose paddle was struck. The best way to deal with that is to stand back and make sure the ball isn't going to hit, and get your paddle out of the way. - anon18443
In the very end of a match when your opponent has 20 and you have 19, when you serve insent it true that you can't lose if your serve goes off the table, like you can't lose on your serve or is that just a rumor that has been spread.
- anon16323
In a ping pong tournament are you allowed to have a sandpaper paddle?
- anon15686
It's been a long time since I played ping pong, so please forgive my elementary questions. When someone serves the ball, it first bounces as it should on the server's side, but fails to bounce on the opponent's side going past the edge of the table (not the sides, I know that's a foul)...is that a foul also, or does the server get the point if the opponent does NOT hit the ball?
- cmay65
Dayton, If the ball is headed away and down from the table without bouncing on your side, you still win the point if you accidentally volley it. In addition, a "volley" is the act of hitting a ball before it has bounced on your side. Hitting a ball served or otherwise sent towards your table is known as a "return."
- anon6483
If the ball never hits your opponent's side of the table and still strikes the paddle off the table, the point goes to the person whose paddle the ball hit because the ball was not returned legally.
- anon6207
when a player serves in singles, does the ball have to go straight back enough to travel in between imaginary lines that are extensions of the edges of the table? Or can the ball be served to go anywhere on the table, even if it never reaches the back edge?
- jamesbenton
what if the ball hits the player when it isn't going to hit the table? is that considered going for it?
- anon4675
I'm not an expert or anything, but I'm pretty sure if the ball hits the paddle at all, even if it's an accident, it's considered a hit. When I've played before, it's always been considered a great victory if you can hit the ball into the other player's paddle, in a way that they can't control. :)
- Dayton
If a player returns a ball and it is going off of the table, without hitting the other player's side,and the ball accidentally hits the other players paddle. What happens?
- anon3896
|
Written by
S. Mithra
copyright © 2003 - 2009
conjecture corporation
