The rotation speed of the service ball delivered by world-class table tennis players

Abstract

The rotation speed of the ball spin has been considered a key factor in winning table tennis matches. This study quantiˆed the rotation speed (rotations per second: rps) of service balls delivered by quarter-ˆnalists in the 2009 World Table Tennis Championships. Ball services were recorded during the quarter-ˆnals of both the men's and women's singles, involving 4 matches and 8 players per gender, using a high-speed video camera (1000 fps) for calculation of the rotation speed, and a standard video camera (30 fps) for distinguishing players and aces (including those touched by the receiver). Eventually, the rotation speeds of 329 services were calculated, and these ranged from 13.7 to 62.5 rps. For men, 50 60 rps was the most frequent (40.0) range of the rotation speeds, while for women, the corresponding range was 40 50 rps (43.8); the average (±SD) rotation speed was signiˆcantly greater for men than for women (46.0±9.0 vs. 39.2±9.3 rps, p＜0.001). The fastest rotation speed was 62.5 rps for both genders. Chinese men produced a slower rotation speed than did other men (43.5±8.9 vs. 51.0±6.8 rps, p＜0.001). For women, however, the rotation speed was similar between Chinese players and the others (39.9±10.2 vs. 38.5±8.2 rps). The rotation speeds of aces were scattered over a wide range of 37.0 58.8 rps for men and 27.8 62.5 rps for women, implying a weak association between aces and fast rotation. These pioneering data may help clarify some of the technical and tactical aspects of table tennis, and can be used to develop training and game strategies for successful performance.

Effect of Changing Table Tennis Ball Material from Celluloid to Plastic on the Post-Collision Ball Trajectory

“…The post-collision trajectories of balls of a different type having the same initial conditions were compared. To simulate a service, the initial conditions were set as follows: v h_before = 21.0 km/h, v z_before = −8.0 km/h, and spin rate = 60 rps (backspin) according to Yoshida (2014) . The computed conditions of the ball after collision for celluloid and plastic balls were as follows: v h_after = 17.2 km/h, v z_after = 7.7 km/h, and spin rate = 47 rps (backspin) for the celluloid ball, and v h_after = 16.3 km/h, v z_after = 7.7 km/h, and spin rate = 44 rps (backspin) for the plastic ball.…”

Spin measurement system for table tennis balls based on asynchronous non-high-speed cameras

“…However, the lack of high-speed cameras rendered the determination of the direction (clockwise or counterclockwise) and number of rotations between two different frames challenging (Figure 5). Based on previous studies (Huan et al, 1992;Iizuka et al, 2010;Lee & Xie, 2004;Yoshida et al, 2014), the maximum spin rate of a table tennis ball is approximately 150 rps and is unlikely to exceed 200 rps. If the time between frames where the rotation angle is measured is set to ✂✞, the maximum candidate value for the number of rotations between consecutive frames is ✄ ✁ ✂✞.…”

“…However, these studies evaluated the spin characteristics of balls launched in controlled laboratory settings devoid of opponents rather than during live gameplay. Yoshida, Yamada, Tamaki, Naito, and Kaga (2014) measured the spin ✎✆✁✄ ✑☛ ✞✄✎✗✟☞✄ ☎✆✝✝✞ ✟✡ ✄✟✠✂✁ ✒✄✡✖✞ ✆✡✔ ✄✟✠✂✁ ✑✒✄✡✖✞ ✞✟✡✠✝✄✞ ✒✆✁☞✂✄✞✁ ✂✂✄ ✎✄✞✍✝✁✞ ✟✡✔✟☞✆✁✄✔ ✁✂✆✁ ✁✂✄ ✒✑✞✁ ☛✎✄✄✍✄✡✁ ✞✕✟✡ ✎✆✁✄ ☛✑✎ ✒✄✡✖✞ ✞✄✎✗✟☞✄✞ ✆✞ ☎✄✁ ✄✄✡ ☎✆ ✆✡✔ ✝✆ ✎✕✞✓ ✂✄✎✄✆✞ ✁✂✆✁ ☛✑✎ ✑✒✄✡✖✞ ✞✄✎✗✟☞✄✞ ✎✆✡✠✄✔ ☛✎✑✒ ✞✆ ✁✑ ☎✆ ✎✕✞. They focused on measuring the spin of the ball during a match, specifically the spin rate, without considering the spin axis, imaginary line around which the ball rotates.…”

“…To the best of our knowledge, no studies have reported instances of ball spin measurements during a game of table tennis because of the challenges involved. The simplest method involves manual measurement, as reported by Yoshida et al (2014). The surface of a table tennis ball bears an imprint of the manufacturer and/or professional league logo (Figure 1).…”

Assessment of the intensity and attractiveness of physical exercise while playing table tennis in an immersive virtual environment depending on the game mode

“…The high speed of the ball and its rotation is also a challenge for beginner tennis players. For example, in the case of fast spin shots, the speed at which the ball spins is between 3,000 and 5,000 rpm in amateurs, while it can exceed 8,000 rpm during professional matches [ 23 ]. Therefore, the use of VR technology in TT training enables a range of solutions to potentially facilitate the teaching of technical skills and game play.…”