ITTF has its priorities mixed up & totally back asswards.
ITTF keeps saying they want the sport to be better presentable to (non-playing) spectators but they keep
blaming pips / anti players as the only major problem & keep changing the rules accordingly, like
9 times since 1983.
When ITTF went from 38 mm to 40 mm , I predicted that it won't work because manufactureres will make more powerful rackets to return the speeds. The ball speed probably slowed down an year or two after 38 to 40 or celluloid to plastic transitions but speeds have been returned by manufacturers.
Though the 2 color rule was 75% political, it may have made sense for may be at most 10 years. But in th context of
8 rule / regulation changes that followed, it is a joke & meaningless,
So equipment (rubbers mostly) was not the problem
I agree with you that tricky
short serves (third ball attacks & comedy of errors that follows in most matches between two booster supremacists) are the biggest issues for spectator presentation. This type of third ball attacks are possible by
enhancing thick sponges using dangerous illegal chemicals but ITTf looks the other way.
If you look at badminton or pickleball, the serve is not as much a factor. But aces, slice serves & twist serves are somewhat nice in tennis. But even tennis has all but eliminated the impact of aces & serve & volley (like 3rd ball attacks in table tennis though , unlike tabletennis, serve & volley in singles tennis used to be spectacular & needed incredible athleticism) . Lawn tennis is no longer "lawn" tennis anymore except for only just one or two grass court tournaments here & there
But lots of points in table tennis end up with third balls or some simple errors. (pips & anti have very little to do with this, may be some time in the past).
Without going into details , one possible solution (at non veteran & para events only) is to mandate that alternate odd numbered games (the first 10 points of the deciding game) must have the ball crossing the end lines within the end lines by a clear at least 6 inches or 1 feet or whatever. This preserves the beauty of serves (in even numbered games) but at least gives the possibility of longer rallies in half the match with players have to learn to play little more mid & long distance defence with either chopping or lobbing or counter-looping etc
Mandating longer serves (in alternate games) will also somewhat (if not completely) reduce the impacts various illegal methods of serving such as hidden serves, ball of fingers, service toss not within 10 degrees of vertical etc etc.
Short serves will remain legal in even numbered games & last half of deciding game
But (very complex) spins at very high speeds ( & serves) is the most fundamental element of tabletennis that makes it very distinct from any other racket sport & must be preserved instead of stupid atttmepts to turn tabletennis into pickleball or TTX or hardbat etc.
I am saying alternate games & not alternate points because it makes it easier for players to remember & for umpires & players to keep track
I would also
do away with soft (clothe type) nets & use solid material nets with the top of the net designed to prevent net dribbles but cause the ball to bounce significantly
There also probably should be a 15 inch or 30 inch area near the net for entire width of the table where there is no table (like a trough). This prevents easy loss of points with net dribbles & also prevents a large group of player population most players (small children, veterans & para) from being able to get to the ball. If the striker drops the ball in the trough on opponents side , the striker loses the point.
This also allows the design of tables where the solid net can be just folded down without having to remove the net assembly. The net will become an integral part of the table. No complicated stupid net measurements. Broken parts for the ends of the net etc.
I do not want to come off as if I am complaining because I have problems with not having good serves or return of serves. Far from it. I never had problems returning 99% serves from 2800 players in actual tournaments (it is what happens with third ball or fifth ball etc LOL) . I also have very good serves at my skill level but I personally do not enjoy winning easy points on serves without any rallies
Another problem is the increasing use sliding round the net returns that hardly bounce. The only way to prevent these is maybe to extend the net 6 inches more on each side. Again, I am all for side spin & I myself enjoy making these around the net shots but from spectator perspective this may not be good for the sport if the point ends like this, as if there are not enough wasy to end the point quickly (& lessen spectator interest.
