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With the advent of technology, the use of table tennis rackets has become significant in the development and propagation of the sport where it has greatly affected the speed and spin of the ball, style and the level of play. Little has been known about the sandpaper or "Liha" (in Filipino term) rackets by most modern player now, unlike the "Hardbat" which the Americans have popularized. However, both "liha" and hardbat have been popularly played in the Philippines during the American colonization. It has its own humble beginnings and has great influence in the contemporary games of Philippine table tennis. The study aims to explore "Liha" table tennis rackets and its influence in the Philippine table tennis setting. Using a cultural-historical activity theory approach, the researchers have drawn from a widespread database that included published materials, pictures and video transcripts of events, interviews, field notes and texts produced by prominent table tennis personalities and the Table Tennis Association of the Philippines (TATAP). The following data were gathered: I. Popularity - Hardbat and Liha became so popular during the American colony of the Philippines through the efforts of TATAP's first president, the late Senator Sergio Osmena when several world-class players in the likes of Martin Reisman, Richard Bergman and Johnny Leach were invited to play in the 1st Philippine Invitational of Champions in 1952 II. Events conducted - Included in some regional and national table tennis events III. Underground "Liha"- The unrevealed story where it is being kept privately in most areas especially in Cebu City where the late Mr. Sergio Osmena resided IV. Champions produced which started off as Liha players - The late Teofilo Ybanez and current Southeast Asian Champion Richard Gonzales V. Physical fitness for elders at Marikina and Malabon Table Tennis Club in Metro Manila VI. Fiestas-"Liha" events in fiestas; e.g. Sinulog Fiesta of Cebu City -Central Philippines VII. Rules - Modified Rules compared from the ITTF Rules. In conclusion, the game of table tennis using "Liha" rackets has its benefits in the Philippine table tennis scene. The researchers do not wish to propose and inform the table tennis community to include "liha" to its present "rubber" tournaments but rather suggest having it as an added "variant" to be legalized and recognized in table tennis events. It can be played by young and old individuals who do not only want to enjoy the game because of its longer rallies but also to maintain an optimum level of fitness , fun and a "fallback" grounds from the present fast-paced game of table tennis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

since the advent of sponge rubber rackets in the early 1950's, traditional sandpaper rackets used in national and international competitions with such longer rallies, less spin and speed have slowly declined and eventually almost forgotten. We investigated the performances of the participants during the 2013 World Championship of Ping Pong held in London, England from January 5-6, 2013. The event offered cash prizes and participated by 64 players from 18 countries (39 rubber, 20 hardbat and 5 sandpaper players) who were selected by Matchroom Sports. To level the playing field, specifically made sandpaper rackets provided by the organizers were used. The double elimination format was played in the qualifying stage with 8 groups of 8 players vying for the top 4 spots going into the final stage where the single elimination format was played with the best of 3 games using the current ITTF rules. A "double pt." rule was also introduced. The results confirmed that sponge rubber players, who advanced to the final rounds can adapt to sandpaper rackets. With limited or no hardbat training, we felt that some rules can be changed to achieve more rallies with an epic sense and greater balance between defense and offense to further separate significant differences between sponge/rubber and sandpaper game. However, because a significantly statistically greater number of participants used sponge rubber rackets, inconclusive data and evidence exist to determine whether full time sandpaper had an advantage over part-time sandpaper enthusiasts that otherwise use sponge rubber rackets. Furthermore, the format of the competition mirrored to a large extent the modern sponge rubber sport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]