Bid to introduce 40mm ball which is slower and generates less spin

Delegates arriving for the World Championships were greeted with a report prepared for the executive committee by the ITTF’s education and research department in Ottawa.

The author of the report, Mikael Andersson, who has undertaken comparative studies between the two balls, is a firm advocate of change.

Andersson concludes: “A new 40mm ball will mean a lot of positive changes for our sport. The 40mm ball is slower, generates less spin and is more visible for players, spectators and media.”

Citing research done in Beijing, Andersson claims the new ball is 4 per cent slower than the 38mm equivalent, while similar research in Ottawa claims an 8 per cent difference.

While Andersson’s report is in theory supposed to be an impartial presentation of scientific facts it is presented in a brochure which leaves executive committee members little doubt how to vote on the matter.

Slogans like “bigger is better”, “positive change”, “change is good”, “new millennium” and “take the lead” should get the message across.

And if any dyed-in-the-wool opponents of change remain unconvinced there remains one even more persuasive slogan — “more TV coverage”.

Seven major TV networks, canvassed on their opinion, have all come down firmly on the side of the new all-singing, all-dancing larger ball.