Ping Pong Vs. Table Tennis: Where They Do Differ?

The words “ping pong” and “table tennis” are used interchangeably. But are they the same thing?

Table tennis and ping pong are the same game, and there are no significant differences between them. The real difference is actually perception. Ping Pong Beast reviews will make you even more clear.

Table tennis is the serious and competitive aspect of the sport, in which players compete in championships and cups from around the world, as well as at international championships.

The ping pong belonged to a sports club formed by John Jacques and his son, who encouraged the use of the name of ping pong, which led to the creation of the ping pong association a few days after the creation of the table tennis association.

In 1926, the name table tennis was registered by the International Table Tennis Association . Although the modern name is table tennis, the name ping pong is widely used in the United States, where it is highly promoted.

Why Is Table Tennis Called Ping Pong?

Table tennis was invented in 1885 and manufactured in London since 1891 under the name Gossima by Jaques game company. They tried rubber balls and cork, but the game did not meet the expectations and sold poorly.

Finally, in 1900, members of a London club introduced a celluloid ball to gossima and found it very useful. Using long-handled racquets, with striking sheepskin surfaces, the sound of the wild ball in this “drumhead” sounded like a ping pong, depending on the tension of the sheepskin.

Jaques quickly renamed their game to “Gossima or Ping pong.” In a few months, they changed their name to “ping pong or Gossima,” and immediately after, they were satisfied with ping pong.

Distinctive Nuances

Table tennis and ping pong are almost the same game. There are no major difference that you can spot.

Perhaps, it is more appropriate to say that the term table tennis is commonly used in competitive games, while ping pong is a term for recreational purposes only.

However, keep the following things in mind:

When playing table tennis, the ball is thrown with open hands over 6 inches upward. However, in less formal ping pong games, the ball can be struck directly from the hand or after a bounce on the table tennis table.

In terms of score, table tennis games reach 11 points, and players serve twice in a row. In ping pong games, they follow the traditional 21-point format, and each player serves five times in a turn.

In table tennis, various equipment such as rubber inlet and outlet pipes are used. However, in ping pong, only one type of equipment is used: the blue sandpaper bats. In other words, all ping pong players use similar equipment.

In official table tennis games, standard-size tables are used. For recreational ping pong, a portable ping pong table is already enough.

Make sure that you have a space where you can place your ping pong table. Otherwise, you might to build a recreational space.

Some Ping Pong Rules

The international rules of ping pong are quite simple, which allows beginners to play more seriously and more competitively. The basic rule of the game is that players must not allow the ball to bounce twice on their side and must return it after a single jump on their side.

If a player cannot defend against a smash or hit on their side of the table, he loses that unique point of the game. When you start a game or a point, the service must first jump to the server-side before jumping to the opposite side.

As for the scoring in the game, the matches are the top three of the five games. A player wins when he reaches 11 points; the winner must earn 2 points to finish the game. The score is known as the rally score. This means that anyone can score at any time, regardless of who has served.

Notable Ping Pong Strategies

The ping pong strategy is primarily based on the idea of table tennis, hence the “table tennis” alias of ping pong. Players use offensive shots to try to move their opponent from left to right.

Players will hit the ball to force the players to move away from the back of the table.

The game can be more enjoyable when both table tennis players are far from the table. The game also relies on the spin when the player tries to place different levels of spin on the ball.

Too much spin can be counter-productive, but the accurately calculated spin can surprise the other player. Players who try to play without spinning are sometimes overwhelmed by their opponent’s game style.