Short answer: your hand-raise is not automatically illegal, and it does not automatically make the point a let. However, if your gesture distracted your opponent during the rally, an umpire could rule that the rally should be replayed.
The important distinction is between acknowledging your lucky edge ball and actually distracting your opponent while the point is still in progress.
What do the rules say?
Under the ITTF Laws of Table Tennis, there is a provision for interruptions when playing conditions are disturbed in a way that could affect the outcome of the rally. The rules also define a let as a rally whose result is not scored.
documents.ittf.sport
+1
Your situation is a little unusual because you weren't trying to gain an advantage. You were simply acknowledging that you got lucky.
What would the outcome be?
| Situation | Correct ruling |
|---|
| You raise your hand briefly to acknowledge the edge, without affecting your opponent | Point stands. You win it. |
| Your gesture distracts your opponent and could affect the rally's outcome | Let — replay the point. |
| You deliberately distract your opponent to interfere with their play | This may constitute misconduct and could lead to a warning or penalty, depending on the circumstances. |
The distinction between an ordinary let and a point penalty matters: a let means replaying the rally, whereas a point penalty awards the point to your opponent. The relevant rules do not make every distracting movement an automatic point penalty.
cdn.megaspin.net
+1
Applying this to your point
You raised your hand to apologise for a lucky edge, your opponent returned the ball, and the rally continued until you won.
My assessment:
- If your gesture was brief and natural: I'd let the point stand.
- If your opponent was genuinely distracted: a let could be justified, even though he managed to return the ball.
- If you deliberately used the gesture to distract him: that would be a different matter.
One subtlety: the fact that your opponent returned the ball doesn't prove he wasn't distracted. But neither does the fact that he noticed your gesture prove that the gesture affected the rally.
My practical recommendation: keep acknowledging lucky edges with a brief hand raise, ideally without making a sudden or exaggerated movement while the ball is still in play. That's good sportsmanship, and you needn't abandon it.
For your particular incident, I'd lean towards the point standing, unless your opponent was clearly distracted. His decision to let it go during a casual match was a perfectly reasonable way to handle an ambiguous situation.
