A table tennis racket is made up of two distinct parts.

1) A wooden blade which incorporates a handle...

and...

2) table tennis rubbers which are affixed to each side of the blade using water-based glue and then trimmed to fit the blade.

The most common type of rubbers are "sandwich rubbers" where the top rubber and sponge underneath are combined into one sheet.

Here's a side view of a racket showing the wooden blade with sandwich rubbers affixed to each side of the blade.

Note: Some rackets have rubbers with no sponge underneath, including the traditional "hardbat", but these are much rarer than sandwich rubbers.

Rule 2.04.01 states...

"The racket may be of any size, shape or weight but the blade shall be flat and rigid"

In addition the rules state that at least 85% of the blade by thickness must be of natural wood.

But of course, even though your racket can be any size you want, the larger it is, the more difficult it will be to use.

Therefore you'll find that the majority of rackets are all a similar size ... about 15cm (6 inches) across and 25cm (10 inches) long including the (10cm / 4 inch) handle.

Some people like to try out a larger racket, like Microsoft founder Bill Gates shown here, but they soon find that they're too unwieldy to use effectively!

Rule 2.04.03 states that...

"A side of the blade used for striking the ball shall be covered with
either,
ordinary pimpled rubber, with pimples outwards having a total thickness including adhesive of not more than 2mm,
or
sandwich rubber, with pimples inwards or outwards, having a total thickness including adhesive of not more than 4mm"

by courtesy of the ITTF

This means that the umpire should check the thickness of your racket coverings to make sure that they're not greater than the 2mm or 4mm allowed.

Although all rubbers that you buy should be the correct thickness, a player could deliberately alter the rubber on his racket.

Also, repeated re-gluing of rubbers can cause the sponge layer to swell, so the umpire should always check the thickness.

In 2008, new rules were introduced to check the thickness of rubbers. You can read about them here.

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Rule 2.04.05 states that...

"The covering material shall extend up to, but not beyond the limits of, the blade except that the part nearest the handle and gripped by the fingers may be left uncovered or covered with any material"

This means that your table tennis rubbers should not overhang the edges of your blade, although the umpire may allow some tolerance.

As a guide, ±2mm would be an acceptable margin to most umpires. If you have a larger overhang, the umpire will make you trim off any excess rubber.

Rule 2.04.04 states that the blade and rubbers must be continuous and of even thickness. So you need to make sure that your blade is not unduly damaged and that your rubbers have an even surface.

Rule 2.04.06 states that...

"The surface of the covering material on a side of the blade, or of a side of the blade if it is left uncovered, shall be matt, black on one side, and of a bright colour clearly distinguishable from black and from the colour of the ball on the other"

Note: This rule was updated on 1 October 2021 to include other bright colours in addition to bright red. The authorised bright colours are pink, purple, green and blue.

This means that if you have rubber on both sides of your blade, one rubber must be black and the other rubber must be a bright colour clearly distinguishable from black and from the colour of the ball.

However, if you only use rubber on one side of your blade (for example, if you use a penhold grip), you can leave the other side of your blade uncovered - but it must still be coloured black or a bright colour (depending on what colour your rubber is on the other side).

Also, it's important to note that if you don't have a rubber on one side of your blade, then you cannot use that side of the racket to hit the ball.

You can read more about the two colour rule and how to choose your table tennis rubbers here.

In the past, players used various liquids, powders and chemicals to enhance the properties of their rubbers. Sometimes it was just as a means of cleaning their rubbers, but often it was in order to significantly improve the performance of their rubber.

However, in 2008 the rules were changed and now it's no longer allowed.

Rule 2.04.07 now states that rubbers must be used without any physical, chemical or other treatment.

So if you want to clean your rubbers, you can only use plain water.

Rule 2.04.07 states that...

"Slight deviations from continuity of surface or uniformity of colour as well as helpful or protective fittings may be allowed provided that they do not significantly change the characteristics of the surface."

This means that a small amount of wear and tear is allowed, but if your rubbers are damaged so much that the ball is likely to rebound unpredictably and cause problems for your opponent, you'll have to replace them.

The umpire, and ultimately the tournament referee, will decide whether your racket is sufficiently damaged to render it illegal.

But because it's at the umpire's discretion, this means that one umpire may decide that your racket is OK, whilst another may decide that it's not.

But, in deciding whether your racket is legal or not, the umpire has to primarily consider the interests of your opponent.

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Rule 2.04.08 states that...

"Before the start of a match and whenever he or she changes his or her racket during a match a player shall show his or her opponent and the umpire the racket he or she is about to use and shall allow them to examine it."

This rule was introduced in 1983 due to the proliferation of "combination" rackets in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

At that time, players were allowed to have rubbers which were the same colour on both sides of their racket.

However, many players would choose two rubbers which had completely different playing characteristics. For example, they would have an offensive rubber on one side of their racket and a defensive rubber such as anti-spin or long pimples on the other side.

Therefore their opponent could not easily see which type of rubber was being used for each stroke, especially when the racket was constantly being "twiddled".

So this rule ensures that your opponent can at least know what rubbers you have on your racket.

This rule was supplemented in 1986 with the "two colour" rule which says that one side of your racket has to be red and the other side has to be black. This rule was further updated in 2021 to include other bright colours in addition to red.

However, even though the rubbers must now be different colours, it's still important to know, before the match starts, which rubbers your opponent is actually using.

Therefore you can no longer use a different racket without your opponent (and the umpire) examining it first, which means that you can't bamboozle your opponent by using a racket which he hasn't been allowed to examine.

If you're playing in a higher level event, the following additional Regulations will usually apply in addition to the basic rules discussed above.

Regulation 3.04.02 states that you're no longer allowed to change your racket during a match unless it's been accidentally damaged so badly that you can't use it.

If the umpire does allow you to change your racket, you must show your new racket to your opponent and to the umpire.

Also, to prevent you from secretly changing your racket between games, you must leave it on the table during the intervals between games and you must not remove it without the specific agreement of the umpire.

If the umpire does allow you to remove your racket during an interval for any reason, both the umpire and your opponent must be given the opportunity to inspect your racket before the next game starts.

Regulation 3.02.01 states that only table tennis rubbers authorised by the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) can be used in authorised events.

You'll find a list of authorised racket coverings here.

You must also ensure that you attach them to your blade so that the ITTF logo and the maker's logo or trademark are clearly visible near the edge of the blade (so that they can be checked by the umpire) ... and they must only be attached to your blade with adhesives that do not contain harmful volatile solvents.

(In 2008, new rules were introduced to check whether illegal adhesives have been used to affix the rubbers. You can read about them here)

Here's an example of the details and logos which appear on the lower portion of Butterfly Tenergy 05 rubbers which have been authorised by the ITTF.

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