Ping pong, formally called table tennis, is a racket sport for two players (singles) or two pairs (doubles). Players use small rackets to hit a 40 mm ball over a low net on a hard table, scoring points whenever the opponent fails to make a legal return. It is fast, low-equipment, and played everywhere from basements to the Olympic Games.

How to Play Ping Pong (Table Tennis)

What you need

• A table tennis table: 2.74 m long, 1.525 m wide, and 76 cm high, divided by a net 15.25 cm high.

• Two rackets (also called paddles or bats).

• A 40 mm lightweight ball (about 2.7 g).

The basic rally

Players stand at opposite ends of the table. A point begins with a serve and continues as a rally until one side fails to make a legal return. Unlike tennis, you must let the ball bounce once on your side before returning it — you cannot volley.

Serving

• The server tosses the ball up from an open palm and strikes it so it bounces once on their own side, then once on the opponent's side.

• In singles, the serve may land anywhere on the opponent's side.

• In doubles, the serve must travel diagonally, from the server's right half-court to the receiver's right half-court.

• If a legal serve clips the net and still lands correctly, it is a let and is replayed (no point lost). There are no second serves for a fault — an illegal serve simply loses the point.

• Service alternates every 2 points. Each player (or pair) serves twice in a row, then service passes to the other side. At 10-10 (deuce), service alternates after every single point.

Scoring a point

You win a point when your opponent:

• fails to return the ball legally,

• lets it bounce twice on their side,

• hits it off the table or into the net,

• or commits a serve/contact fault (e.g. touching the ball with the non-racket hand).

Winning a game

A game is won by the first side to reach 11 points with a lead of at least 2 points. If the score reaches 10-10, play continues until one side leads by two (12-10, 13-11, and so on).

Winning the match

A match is the best of an odd number of games — most commonly best of 5 (first to 3 games) or best of 7 (first to 4 games). Players switch ends of the table after each game, and in the deciding game they switch ends when one side first reaches 5 points.

Doubles specifics

In doubles, partners must alternate hitting the ball during a rally (player A hits, then partner B, then opponent C, then opponent D, and so on). The serving order rotates through all four players, and the diagonal serve rule applies.

Common faults to avoid

• Volleying (hitting before the ball bounces on your side).

• Touching the ball with your free hand or moving the table.

• An illegal serve (hidden toss, ball not thrown up from an open palm).

• In doubles, hitting two shots in a row instead of alternating with your partner.

Authoritative result is Games Won per player (e.g. 3-1 in a best of 5). Higher Games Won wins; a tie is impossible. Total Points Won across all games may be recorded as an optional diagnostic only.

The bestOf and pointsPerGame knobs are match params on this variant's ruleset; total_points_won is a diagnostic count metric and does NOT determine the winner (a player can win more total points yet lose more games), so it never sums into the games_won outcome — record games_won as authoritative.