Hello there! Good to see you again!

Every sport comes with it’s own equipment, and then along with equipment comes the maintenance part. These equipments cost so much that you have no choice but to maintain them for longevity (unless you’re crazy rich, not me ☹).

Today, I’ll be writing about how to maintain your Table Tennis rackets and ensure they work for an extended period of time.

Maintenance of the racket, especially the rubber is of detrimental importance when it comes to the game of the player. Since the power and spin mostly is dependent on the rubber of the racket, it’s necessary to clean it up so that it provides the player with its maximum effects.

So here are some tips and products to help with your maintenance:

1. Clean with water and Soap

This is one of simplest and cheapest thing you could do for your rubber. The rubber, over time, starts collecting dust, oil, sweat which makes the rubber less sticky or grippy. This effects the amount of spin that is put on the ball in a negative way. Spin is a very important aspect of Professional Table Tennis and hence makes the cleaning of rubbers an important task.

When cleaning the racket, you should make sure to not use a lot of water. This could lead to the soaking of the rubber and the blade, which is not good for your game.

So, just a little water and quick wipe should do the trick. Make sure you do this after every match.

2. Clean with a spray and sponge

Cleaning with water and soap can get rid of dust, but not all of it. Sweats and oil tend to stick on the rubber despite the cleaning with the water.

To get a thorough clean, it’s advisable to use a spray and sponge to get all the dust off and have it as good as new.

Since the spray is made up of chemicals, it would be wise to give your racket a deep clean with the spray once a week or before a major tournament. Chemicals may interfere with the stickiness of the racket and effect your game.

A bottle of sprays don’t cost a lot and can last for a long time. I will link a couple of them down below that I have used.

1. Butterfly Table Tennis Racket Care Kit
2. Killerspin Ping Pong Paddle Rubber Cleaner

3. Buy a racket case

Keeping your rackets naked in your bags can result in damage to the rubber and the blade (learned it the hard way). Furthermore, the rackets collects a lot more dust that may become difficult to remove in the future.

That’s why it’s better to buy a separate bag to keep it isolated from other things you might have in your main bag.

There are many cases available out there but I prefer the ones that are big enough to put the entire racket in. There cases out there that only cover the rubbers of the racket and keep the handles exposed.

Here are some cases you can check out.

1. Butterfly BD Tour Paddle Case
2. STIGA Table Tennis Racket Cover
3. Killerspin Hard Table Tennis Paddle Bag
4. JOOLA Vision Focus Ping Pong Paddle Case
5. Killerspin Barracuda Ping Pong Paddle and Ball Carry Case Black/Red

4. Side tape

You might have seen many rackets that are covered all over the edge of the rubber and usually have the brand name written on it.

The side tape comes it use when the player is pushing a backspin ball. When playing the shot, the racket makes an angle with the table underneath. As the racket slides forward, the anterior edge of the bottom rubber might rub against the table and with more of these shots, the rubber might end up coming off the blade.

Hence, to preserve the integrity of the racket, a side tape is used.

You don’t have to wrap the entire edges of the racket with the side tape, mind you. You can only cover the parts that are susceptible to rub against the table and you’re good.

Here are some side tapes

1. Butterfly Side Tape
2. Killerspin Table Tennis Paddle Side Tape
3. YIJU 20Pcs/Pack Quality Table Tennis Paddle Edge Sponge Tape
4. Dovewill 20 Pieces Table Tennis Paddle Ping Pong Racket Edge Tape

5. Be careful

In the heat of the game, you might end up throwing the racket or smashing the racket. This, again, damages the rubber over time and if you have a budget constraint, it’s not the best thing to do.

I know in the moment, you just need to vent out all that frustration somewhere. I can’t really tell you what to do, but I usually went out by smashing the ground with my legs really hard or just letting out a scream.

Sure, smashing the racket might BE more satisfying but can’t really do that. Soooooo…. I have to make do with what I got.

Well, that concludes the tips. Hope it helps improve your game and increase the longevity of your equipment.

If you’re new to table tennis and want to get started, here is a simple guide to get you up and running!!

Happy Hunting and Good Luck!!!