What is the dead rubber in the Davis Cup?
For example, in a Davis Cup series, each pair of competing countries play five matches (rubbers) where the winner is decided on a best-of-five basis. Once one team has reached three victories, the remaining match or matches are said to be dead rubbers.
Dead rubber is a term used in sporting parlance to describe a match in a series where the series result has already been decided by earlier matches. The dead rubber match therefore has no effect on the winner and loser of the series, other than the number of matches won and lost.
Ties and rubbers
As in other cup competitions tie is used in the Davis Cup to mean an elimination round. In the Davis Cup, the word rubber means an individual match.
Since the 16th century, rubber (sometimes rubbers) has been used to indicate a set of games or competitions, usually odd in number, of which the winner of the majority would be the winner overall (best two out of three, three out of five, etc.).
The tournament was originally known as the International Lawn Tennis Challenge, but soon became known as Davis Cup after Dwight Davis's trophy, which was designed by William Durgin and crafted by Rowland Rhodes.
Like most things in life and on the internet, there's intense debate about the origin of the term “dead rubber”. The widely held view is it relates to a card game called “rubber bridge”. Others, on etymology forums, passionately argue its origin is 16th-century lawn bowls.
Table tennis rackets consist of a wooden blade covered with a sandwich rubber on single or double surfaces. The sandwich rubber consists of a sheet and foam layers which are made of a rubber material and foamed elastomer, and is used by combining the sheet and foam layers or only the sheet layer.
Davis Cup 2023 format
Unlike the best-of-five ties in the groups, it is best-of-three at the Davis Cup Finals. The two singles matches will be played first, with a doubles match then deciding the tie if necessary. All matches are best-of-three sets.
Competition format
Davis Cup ties are played over three days, Friday to Sunday. There are five matches, known as rubbers, the winner being the first to win three rubbers.
Davis Cup by Rakuten is the premier international team event in men's tennis. Also known as the World Cup of Tennis, it is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from over 140 competing countries.
What is pimpled rubber in table tennis?
Pimples-in rubber
A rubber with a large contact area for the ball, which makes it easy to impart spin; there are two types, highly elastic with high reaction and moderate for control.
Tacky rubbers, like the name describes, often have a sticky feeling and focus on maximising the amount of grip on the rubber tops surface. Latest generation rubbers, like Xiom Omega V Pro, utilise tacky top sheets with sponges that are less dense to create a more forgiving sponge with a tacky surface.
A tennis ball is a ball designed for the sport of tennis. Tennis balls are fluorescent yellow-green in organised competitions, but in recreational play can be virtually any color. Tennis balls are covered in a fibrous felt, which modifies their aerodynamic properties, and each has a white curvilinear oval covering it.
No nation has won more titles than the U.S., which has lifted the trophy 32 times, including at the inaugural event. The U.S. last won the Davis Cup in 2007 when the team of Andy Roddick, James Blake, Mike Bryan and Bob Bryan lifted the trophy with captain Patrick McEnroe.
- Most years on U.S. Davis Cup team – (tie) 14, Bob Bryan (2003-16), Mike Bryan (2003-09, 2011-16, 2018)
- Most ties played for U.S. Davis Cup team – 32, Mike Bryan (2003-09, 2011-16, 2018)
- Most total victories – 59, John McEnroe (1978-92)
About the Davis Cup and its organiser the International Tennis Federation (ITF)
For a condom, just use the word condom. This is the proper word used in the UK and the USA. As the following links show, using the word rubber to mean a condom, is American slang: US slang for a condom (Cambridge Dictionaries Online)
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, caucho, or caoutchouc, as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds.
But in the United States, the word “rubber” is a euphemism for condom.
The Chinese penhold style uses a round racket with a short handle. On the forehand side, the thumb lies against the side of the handle more or less parallel to it and the index finger curls partially around the end of the handle. On the back, the middle, ring and little fingers are bent to the side.
Are long pimples allowed in table tennis?
To be approved the aspect ratio is not allowed to exceed 1.1. This in effect means that very long and thin pimples are not permitted. Most pimpled rubbers today have a length of between 1.5mm and 1.8mm. On the 2005 ITTF list of Authorised Racket Coverings there are 79 different long pimpled rubbers listed.
The higher the star rating of a table tennis bat, the more advanced and faster it is. As such, it offers less control and is therefore more demanding of the player. The more stars a bat has, the more control and playing experience it requires.
The 16 teams will compete in four round-robin groups of four teams. The top two teams in each group advanced to the quarter-finals. The Davis Cup champions will be crowned after the completion of the knock-out stage.
Davis Cup 2023 Group Stage Format
All matches will be best of three tiebreak sets. All teams in each group will face each other once. The top two teams in each group after the group stage will advance to the final event in Malaga, which takes place between 21 and 26 November.
Italy are world champions for the first time since 1976 after Jannik Sinner produced yet another spellbinding performance to overcome Australia's Alex de Minaur 6-3 6-0 and give his country an unassailable 2-0 lead in the 2023 Davis Cup Final in Malaga.
