Table tennis rubbers come in a variety of types, each influencing the ball's spin, speed, and control. There are hundreds of different rubbers in the market, each one with different properties that affect the way the ball spins and travels on the table. The main categories are pimpled rubbers, smooth rubbers, and anti-spin rubbers. Each of these rubbers creates different effects when the ball makes contact with the surface, making spin a crucial factor in the game.
Inverted rubbers, also known as smooth rubbers, have a flat surface that allows players to generate all kinds of spins like powerful topspin or backspin. The friction from the rubber grips the ball, giving the player the possibility to create high arc shots with speed and spin. The ability to control spin with these rubbers is one of the key skills in table tennis.
Pimpled rubbers create a less pronounced grip on the ball, allowing for more unpredictable spins and speed, and sometimes weird trajectories of the ball as well. These rubbers provide can provide control but often reduce the amount of spin a player can generate themselves making them ideal for defensive play. (Relying on the oppents speed and spin).
Anti-spin rubbers have a smooth, slick surface that minimizes friction, resulting in a lack of spin when contacting the ball. This makes them useful for disrupting opponents' spin, creating awkward returns that are difficult to predict.
These variations in rubbers give players the opportunity to create a wide array of spins, from heavy topspin to deceptive and confusing backspin. The combination of these spins with different racket angles, ball placement, and timing is what one of the things that makes mastering table tennis incredibly difficult. A player must not only learn how to execute different types of spin but also how to read and respond to the opponent's spin in real time (within fractions of a second).