When Barry Hearn met table tennis

It was in 2008 when Boris Johnson joyfully declared that ping pong was coming home.

He may have been referring to the marvellous 2012 Olympics, but it is in fact 2013 that sees ping pong bounce back on to home shores for good, and doing so with a recognisable imprint  that has all the potential to take the country and the sporting world by storm.

Not many from within nor from outside of table tennis would describe the sport as a serious form of entertainment. Table tennis has simply fallen behind the times as western commercialisation has splashed itself all over sporting culture. The sport, despite having vast potential, is stale and nothing more than a mere pastime for your average schmuck to do on their two week holiday in Tenerife.

It’s a dismal situation that a sport with over 300 million frequent participators shouldn't find itself in, however seeds have started to be sprinkled that will eventually see the sport in the limelight it truly deserves.

Over the course of the weekend the World Championships of Ping Pong took place at the illustrious Alexandra Palace.

Strobe lights, an energetic disco beat and a chaotic crowd had the unmistakable stench of sports promotion genius Barry Hearn. Hearn has made his living taking sports and transforming them from leisurely pub activities to major forces in sporting culture. He’s the master of promotion, with darts, boxing and snooker just a part of his genius’ repertoire. 

Barry Hearn, credit to Action Images

I was fortunate enough to speak to the man himself, who explained his decision to go into business with table tennis.

“I like to promote sports I like. I think everyone has held a table tennis bat at some time. It’s a game that 300 million people play, it’s the second biggest participation sport in the world behind soccer yet there’s no big events and no big TV spectaculars. So it’s got the handwriting of events I like to take over. I like to go into sports that haven’t been properly done and do them properly.” Said Hearn.

 If this can be put into context, table tennis has hit the jackpot.

It’s undoubted that table tennis needs a major rehaul and that was put into effect as Ally Pally ripped out the carpet and put in place the barriers around the courts where the action would commence.

The major topic of discussion before the event was the decision to forbid the commonly used sponge rubbers to be replaced by the ‘old-school’ sandpaper like hard bats that seriously reduces both pace and spin in a bid to extend the length of rallies and to create an easier viewing for audiences.

Hearn explained his decision to revert back to the older style of equipment, with each bat being identical to the other and being randomly designated to each player at the start of the match.

“I’m not a fan of sponge bats and I’m not a fan of spin. The game thirty years ago was bigger when it was hard bat and people were watching extended athletic rallies that were more televisual. Today’s modern table tennis frankly doesn't fit television. It’s too up close and personal, you don’t get enough rallies and I think we need to go back to something like this to see if we can create proper sporting atmosphere. I’m fairly critical of modern day table tennis. I don’t think it fits into today’s market but I think this might.” Said Hearn.

As the crowds arrived there was a sense of intrigue as to what would unfold, not only from the spectators but the players themselves, many of them only taking up the hard bat equivalent at the beginning of the week. What was uncertain was that there was a harmonious enthusiasm for the event to succeed and what unravelled most certainly lived up to and exceeded expectations.

The crowd, after a subdued start, became increasingly vocal over the weekend as the event continued to gain approval, with the Dutch contingent being the life and soul of the party. It was bizarre being at a table tennis event that had atmosphere, it felt strange, perplexing, but fantastic. Watching people, pint or family in hand becoming increasingly infectious about the action was the perfect sign of an event that will win people over. The players clearly loved the event too. While undoubtedly the money helped, the passion shown by the players was unparalleled; never did I think I would see two players square up in a match. However it wasn’t a sour note, it was a symbol of drama and entertainment that the sport so desperately craves.

Ryan Jenkins, 11 time Welsh table tennis Champion and dominant force on the British circuit was full of praise for the event.

“It’s completely different. It’s like taking a cue off a snooker player and giving him a stick. I spoke to Barry at length this morning and he is very keen on taking it from a small sport and changing it into a sport that will be on TV and become a huge success. It can be the future. If it’s going to get the sport attention and bring people into the sport it’s a good thing.”

As for the play, it was, as expected, not as quick, but it most certainly didn’t hinder the level of skill required to play. It combined the modern spectacle of a sporting event with the retro feel of a sport moving back to its roots. The rallies were far better to watch, the game was more appealing, more enjoyable. While the double point rule provided another dramatic twist to several games across the day.

Any scepticism I had was quickly diminished. While others will remain reluctant and unconvinced, what must be accepted is that as the world changes, so does sport. Standing still is as good as moving backwards in the world we live in and if the sport is going to move forward it has to change. It may be a step into the unknown and the landscape of the sport may be moving into unknown territory but the fact that the event was on for eight hours on Sky Sports in very rating heavy time slots proves that this is the future for the sport.

It remains to be seen what will come for table tennis, but what can be said is that it is in safe hands in the grasp of Hearn who clearly has big plans for the franchise.

English number 6 Chris Doran made the semi finals.

“This is sport in its purist form. This is player against player, not scientist against scientist and I like that. The television programme syndication on this will go to around 600 million homes. It’s going all around the world, everyone can understand it, it’s packaged properly and its a short game format, it’s appealing. It has potential to grow and with it you will find traditional table tennis players will start looking at this and thinking maybe I should spend more attention on this because it has more growing potential. The money is quite incidental to our world because it’s what TV companies will pay for if they get the ratings, it’s what the sponsors will pay if they think the game is going forward and if we can create a global market for it they will pay for it. But don’t expect it too quick. It took us probably ten to twelve years to get the darts to where it is and I don’t think table tennis will get there any quicker, but you've got to start somewhere and this has been an interesting starting point.”

Table tennis may well not know what to expect, but what can be expected is that big things are to come from the sport.