Just like any other sport, table tennis requires the right sports equipment which are the ping pong balls, paddles and the ping pong tables. If you need a premium gaming experience, then your selection of these three needs to be top of the shelf.
The best ping pong balls are very durable, generate uniform bounce and spin, and can withstand the hardest of hits. They ensure that you don’t have to worry about them breaking due to a smash or even going the wrong way when you expect a spin.
There are a lot of brands out there claiming they have the best ping pong balls to give you the premium experience but we all have heard that before, haven’t we?
Therefore this article is expected to help you identify the top ping pong balls in the industry as we will be talking about some of the best ones. Furthermore, we’ll be discussing the characteristics of good ping pong balls so that you can also identify top quality balls when you come across them.
Characteristics of the Best Ping Pong Balls
Ping Pong balls are a very crucial piece of sports equipment required for playing table tennis, a game regulated by the International table tennis federation. Therefore, it is only reasonable that the “best” ping pong balls is ideally what the ITTF requires. The following are the characteristics of the best ping pong balls.
- Size
- Weight
- Build Material
- Color
Let us examine the ITTF’s stance on each of these properties.
Size
The ITTF requires that a ping pong ball be perfectly spherical. You should watch out for this when making a purchase.
The best ping pong balls have a diameter of about 40 mm or 1.57 inch. Some balls on the market are often smaller than this, coming in at about 37 mm in diameter.
This smaller size makes them faster but that isn’t the standard requirement for the best ping pong balls.
Weight
The weight of a ping pong ball determines how fast or slow the ball moves when struck. This speed is very crucial to enjoying a premium match.
If the ball is too light, it tends to move slower thus affecting overall gameplay. When the ball is heavy on the other hand, it moves faster making the game all the more enjoyable. Of course, it isn’t ideal for the ball to be too heavy to avoid it moving too fast.
Keeping this in mind, the ITTF recommends a weight of about 2.7g as the perfect weight for the best ping pong ball.
Build Material
ABS and Celluloid are the two major materials used to manufacture most table tennis balls.
ABS is the standard choice and the best balls are made from it.
Color
The best table tennis balls can only be colored white or orange. This is because they have an ideal contrast with the background, making it easy to spot them during play.
5 Best Ping Pong Balls
The following are five of the best ping pong balls in the market. They possess some or all of the characteristics discussed earlier.
- Double Fish V40+
- IPONG 40+ 2-Star
- IMPACT PREMIUM Training Table tennis ball
- Kevenz 40+ 3-star
- Pro Spin table tennis balls
Double Fish V40+
The Double Fish V40+ stands tall amongst the best balls for competitions. As a matter of fact, it was exclusively made for major pro tour events until recently when it was made available for league play.
This translates to the fact that it has all the properties required of a table tennis ball at the highest playing levels.
IPONG 40+ 2-Star
This ball is one of the first names that come to mind when training balls are needed. It features a seamless design and a uniform roundness throughout.
It’s seamless design reduces the chances of cracking and hence makes it very durable.
IMPACT PREMIUM TABLE TENNIS TRAINING BALL
Impact premium training balls serve the function of recreational and training gameplay quite excellently. They come in a pack of about 72 pieces in white and orange colors and so you have a lot of balls of different colors to pick from.
Although they might not be sanctioned for use in major tournaments, they are the best options for training.
Kevenz 40+ 3-Star
They are also another set of quality buys for training. Kevenz 40+ 3-Star training balls provide the numbers one might need to implement various experimental plays while practicing.
Not only do they come in large numbers of about 144, they are also sold at a very affordable price.
Pro Spin Ping Pong Balls
To round up our list, the Pro Spin Ping Pong Balls are indeed pro balls made from quality poly plastic material and made with a seamless construction.
The balls are seamless and as such maintain a uniform round surface throughout. This makes them very consistent and gives uniform bounce across all areas.
Wrapping Up
There’s no way around it; you need the right sports equipment to get the new kind of gameplay in any sport. Ping pong balls in table tennis need to be top quality to avoid a frustrating playing experience.
We expect you to already know you should look out for characteristics like size, weight, build material and color when choosing the ping pong balls best for your playing purposes. You need to ensure that these properties align with ITTF recommendations.
Also, to see what we mean, five of some of the best ping pong balls have been listed. Have fun making your choice!