It is clear it was the pips that hindered the player who plays with normal backside rubber a lot here.
These pips are a disgrace for table tennis and should be a separate competition.
Matches like this one clearly prove this fact.
The fact that more and more pips rubbers are being considered illegal to play with in ITTF competition proves this problem.
Ask most pro and amateur players what they think about pip players and it will become very clear these pips are ridiculing our sport.
Could you be able to explain to somebody why a 60 year old could win a pro tournament in any other serious sport?
I have no problems with people playing with pips. I mean Joo Sae-hyuk was such an exciting player to watch. I actually hate that ITTF are banning some of the pimple rubbers.
When the blade has two colors to distinguish which side is which, to me, that is fair game. I use inverted on both sides. If I know the red side is inverted and black is long pips, and I still lose, that is my problem. I think it adds excitement to the game and when I play pips players, I have to think harder.
Let us use basketball as an example, if people are good, they can just jack up three pointers. They don't need to drive to the basketball and dunk. People literally are jacking up more and more three pointers each season. Is that bad for the game? Steph Curry is quick but nobody will mistaken Steph Curry with Vince Carter, Michael Jordan, or Giannis Antetokounmpo. Variation makes a sport exciting.
In tennis, many amateur players win many matches doing drop shots and move you all over the court while they are sipping beer. Should drop shots be banned in tennis?
Xi wins this event but let us be honest, she is not coming to win the World Championship. A tennis pro who uses drop shots and varying strategies without a hard punch or good serve will not win Wimbledon either. Hasn't there been a lot of talks about how boring men's game in tennis has become? Serve, and ace. Serve and a high return, put it away. Done. 40-0. Next game, change of serve.
variation is actually good for a sport.