However, against heavy spin, antispin rubber will return the ball with an opposite spin, similar to long pips. Other rubbers Medium pips Medium pips rubber is a mainly offensive rubber with pips out like the long and short pips rubber. It is more attack-oriented and has less spin than the long pips rubber, but is not as offensive as the short pips rubber. Sponge thickness and density The thickness of the sponge and the density of the sponge layer underneath the rubber also affects the handling of the ball. These affect inverted and antispin rubbers the most, because they rely on sponge for spin and speed more than short and long pips rubber. Thickness Sponge thickness affects the overall rubber speed and control. As a rule of thumb, the thinner the sponge, the more control you have, and the thicker the sponge, the faster it is. Rubbers labeled MX or MAX, short for maximum, have the maximum amount of sponge under the rubber without going over the ITTF regulation of 4.0 mm (0.16 inch). Rubbers labeled OX, short for orthodox, have no sponge beneath the rubber. Usually, inverted and antispin rubber have a larger foam thickness while pip rubber have a smaller thickness. Density Sponge density, also called sponge hardness, affects the over rubber spin. As a rule of thumb, a lower density sponge, will have more spin at lower speeds, while a higher sponge density will have more spin at higher speeds. The sponge density affects antispin rubbers the most, for they rely on a soft sponge and a hard rubber surface to reverse spin. References Table tennis