Hand tennis or table tennis, played at levels ranging from family games on a table in the basement to the Olympic stage, resembles tennis, with paddles used instead of racquets. The International Table Tennis Federation sets the rules for table tennis.
Players and Equipment
Tennis requires two to four players in a singles or doubles format and a hard table 9 feet long, 5 feet wide, and 2 feet 6 inches tall. Paddles should be red on one side and black on the other, and the ping-pong ball white or orange in color and 1.6 inches in diameter. The net dividing the table should be 6 inches high.
Serving
The game starts with a coin toss to determine which side will serve first. The serving team stands behind its side of the table and serves the ball. The server begins with the ball resting in the open palm of his non-playing hand. He must toss the ball up at least 6 inches before striking the ball with his paddle landing first on his side once and over the net onto the opponent's side. The ball can land on any part of the table for singles. In doubles, it must land on the right side on the service and receiving side of the table. If the ball hits the net on a serve and lands on the opponent's side, the serve is replayed. If it lands on the server's side, the opponent receives a point.
Game Play
Each team alternates serving two points in a row. If the score is 10-10, then each team alternately serves once until the end of the game. Players switch sides after each game, and if their is a fifth game, after the fifth point as well. On the return, balls are allowed to hit the net. Teams alternate hitting the ball back and forth until one team fails, and the other team receives a point.
Scoring
The first team to reach 11 points and up by two, wins the game, and matches are won in a best-of-five series. The first team to win three games wins the match. A team scores a point when the opposing team does not make a good serve, allows the ball to bounce twice on its side, does not hit the ball after it has bounced on its side, hits the ball twice in a row or does not return the ball to the opponent's side of the table,
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