Truls Moregard: Equipment Setup and the Cybershape Revolution

Truls Moregard is a Swedish table tennis player born February 16, 2002, who won a silver medal at the 2021 World Championships at age 19 after defeating Fan Zhendong 4-3 in the semifinal, playing a right-hand shakehand creative attacking style. Moregard’s equipment setup carries a distinction no other player at the elite level shares: the STIGA Cybershape blade, a hexagonal-shaped paddle head that broke a century-long convention of oval blade geometry in competitive table tennis. Moregard pairs the Cybershape with STIGA DNA Pro H on the forehand (47.5 degrees ESN) and STIGA DNA Pro M on the backhand (42.5 degrees ESN), assembling to approximately 185-190 g. The Cybershape’s six-sided outline expands the sweet spot surface area by roughly 10% compared to standard oval blades, and Moregard’s willingness to compete internationally with a non-traditional shape at the highest level turned a STIGA engineering project into a commercially successful product line. The sections below break down Moregard’s table tennis equipment with full specifications, explain the engineering and playing implications of the Cybershape’s hexagonal geometry, document Moregard’s competition results, and map how recreational players approach the Cybershape decision.

What Equipment Does Truls Moregard Use?

Truls Moregard uses a STIGA Cybershape blade (hexagonal, 5+2 carbon, OFF+ speed class) with STIGA DNA Pro H on the forehand and STIGA DNA Pro M on the backhand. The assembled paddle weighs approximately 185-190 g with MAX-thickness rubbers on both sides.

The table below lists the full specifications of Truls Moregard’s table tennis equipment:

Moregard’s setup runs entirely within the STIGA product ecosystem, matching blade and rubber from the same manufacturer. The forehand DNA Pro H (H for Hard, 47.5 degrees ESN) sits 5 degrees harder than the backhand DNA Pro M (M for Medium, 42.5 degrees ESN), creating a speed differential between sides. Harder forehand sponge rewards Moregard’s full-arm forehand loops with higher exit speed, while the softer backhand sponge adds dwell time for the wrist-driven flicks and counter-loops that define Moregard’s backhand game. Both rubbers use STIGA’s non-tacky tensor topsheet, relying on sponge compression for energy return rather than surface grip.

What Is the STIGA Cybershape Blade and Why Is the Shape Different?

The STIGA Cybershape is a hexagonal table tennis blade that replaces the traditional oval head shape with a six-sided geometry, expanding the sweet spot surface area by approximately 10% while maintaining blade weight at ~85 g. The Cybershape is the first commercially successful non-oval blade used in elite international table tennis competition.

How Did the Cybershape’s Hexagonal Shape Come About?

ITTF regulations specify that a table tennis blade must be “flat and rigid” with at least 85% natural wood content by thickness, but the rules contain no restriction on blade outline shape. For over 100 years, every competitive blade manufacturer produced oval or round head shapes by default. STIGA’s design team, working with Moregard’s feedback during the blade’s development phase, tested hexagonal, pentagonal, and modified-oval prototypes between 2019 and 2021.

The hexagonal shape reached production in 2022 after Moregard used a pre-production Cybershape at the 2021 World Championships in Houston, where he won the silver medal. The commercial release generated polarized reactions across the table tennis community: equipment forums logged thousands of discussion threads debating the Cybershape’s legitimacy, aesthetics, and performance claims within the first 6 months of availability. STIGA reported that the Cybershape outsold every other blade model in the company’s 2022 and 2023 product lines, confirming that controversy translated directly into consumer demand. The STIGA brand guide and product history covers the Cybershape’s position within STIGA’s broader blade development timeline.

What Does the Hexagonal Shape Change About Blade Performance?

The hexagonal outline affects blade performance in three measurable areas:

1. Sweet spot geometry: An oval blade concentrates its widest hitting zone in a roughly circular area at the center of the blade face. The Cybershape’s hexagonal outline extends usable surface area toward the blade edges, particularly at the 2 o’clock and 10 o’clock positions (right and left shoulders of the head). Shots contacting these shoulder zones on a standard oval blade strike near the edge, where wood thickness tapers and energy transfer drops. On the Cybershape, the flattened hexagonal edges maintain consistent wood thickness closer to the blade perimeter.

2. Edge ball recovery: The straight edges of the hexagonal shape create a more predictable bounce angle on edge-contact shots. On oval blades, the curved edge produces variable deflection angles depending on where along the curve the ball strikes. Moregard’s game includes aggressive returns on balls that contact the upper paddle edge during cross-table backhand flicks, a shot where the Cybershape’s straight upper edge stabilizes the deflection vector.

3. Aerodynamic profile: The hexagonal outline alters air resistance during high-speed swings by approximately 2-3% compared to oval blades of the same surface area, measured by STIGA’s internal wind tunnel testing. The difference is marginal at recreational swing speeds (below 30 km/h) but becomes relevant at professional stroke velocities exceeding 60 km/h, where 2-3% drag reduction translates to measurably faster paddle head speed at the point of ball contact.

How Does Rubber Cutting Work on a Hexagonal Blade?

Rubber sheets for the Cybershape require hexagonal cutting rather than the standard oval trim. STIGA sells pre-cut rubber sheets sized specifically for the Cybershape outline. Players using non-STIGA rubbers on the Cybershape must cut hexagonal shapes manually, which complicates rubber installation compared to the oval-blade standard where excess rubber is trimmed along a continuous curve.

The straight-line cuts require more precision at the 6 corner angles than oval trimming. Misaligned corners create exposed blade wood that collects ball marks and moisture. STIGA’s pre-cut DNA Pro sheets eliminate this issue for players committed to the all-STIGA configuration that Moregard runs.

Why Does Truls Moregard Use STIGA DNA Pro Rubbers?

Truls Moregard uses STIGA DNA Pro rubbers because the H (47.5 degrees ESN) and M (42.5 degrees ESN) hardness pairing creates a 5-degree differential between forehand and backhand that matches Moregard’s asymmetric stroke mechanics: full-arm forehand loops demanding higher exit speed, wrist-dominant backhand attacks requiring more dwell time.

What Are the Specifications of STIGA DNA Pro H and DNA Pro M?

STIGA DNA Pro H (Hard) carries a 47.5-degree ESN sponge hardness, 7.5 degrees harder than Butterfly Dignics 05 (40 degrees ESN). The harder sponge compresses less at impact, returning energy faster with a lower throw angle. STIGA rates the DNA Pro H at 154 speed and 130 spin on the STIGA performance scale.

STIGA DNA Pro M (Medium) carries a 42.5-degree ESN sponge hardness, 2.5 degrees above Dignics 05. The M variant throws the ball on a higher arc than the H, adding clearance over the net on backhand strokes where stroke length limits trajectory adjustment through technique alone. STIGA rates the DNA Pro M at 148 speed and 132 spin.

Both rubbers use STIGA’s “Green Fiber Sponge” technology, incorporating synthetic fibers within the sponge cell structure to increase energy storage per compression cycle. Each sheet weighs 47-53 g at MAX thickness. Retail pricing runs $55-$65 per sheet, positioning the DNA Pro line $15-$25 below Butterfly Dignics 05 ($75-$85).

How Does Moregard’s FH/BH Hardness Split Compare to Other Setups?

The 5-degree ESN gap between Moregard’s forehand (47.5 degrees) and backhand (42.5 degrees) sits at the moderate end of professional asymmetric tensor configurations. Other approaches to forehand-backhand differentiation reveal how equipment philosophy varies at the elite level:

Moregard’s 5-degree split creates enough differentiation for the forehand to carry more raw speed while keeping the backhand close enough in feel to support rapid transitions. Ma Long’s 10-degree gap reflects the larger mechanical difference between tacky Chinese rubber and European tensor, a split that requires more pronounced stroke-timing adjustments between wings. Felix Lebrun’s zero-gap symmetric setup at the other end of the spectrum eliminates all adjustment between sides. The best table tennis paddles ranked by playing style guide covers how forehand-backhand hardness pairing interacts with blade construction across multiple price points.

How Does Truls Moregard’s Playing Style Drive Equipment Selection?

Truls Moregard plays a right-hand shakehand creative attacking style, building rallies with unpredictable shot selection and strong backhand counter-loops from close-to-mid distance (0.5-2 meters from the table). Moregard’s shot variety, including backhand banana flicks, sidespin hooks, and late-timed blocks, places higher demands on equipment forgiveness than a more linear attacking pattern.

What Makes Moregard’s Style “Creative” in Table Tennis Terms?

Three technical patterns separate Moregard’s shot selection from conventional attacking play:

1. Backhand-dominant rally construction: Most right-handed attackers build rallies around the forehand loop as the primary weapon. Moregard initiates attacks from the backhand wing at a higher rate than the WTT tour average, using cross-table backhand loops to open angles that set up finishing shots. The DNA Pro M’s 42.5-degree sponge on the backhand side gives these attacks sufficient dwell time for the wrist-snap contact that Moregard’s backhand relies on.

2. Variable spin axis on serve and receive: Moregard’s serves carry sidespin-topspin and sidespin-backspin combinations that arrive at the opponent with spin-axis angles varying by 30-45 degrees between consecutive serves. The Cybershape’s expanded sweet spot at the blade shoulders aids these variable-spin serves, where contact point on the paddle face shifts depending on the intended spin axis.

3. Late-timing blocks and redirections: Instead of blocking flat at the peak of the bounce, Moregard times blocks at the descending phase, redirecting incoming topspin with angular adjustments that send the ball to unexpected table positions. The DNA Pro M’s lower throw angle (compared to softer rubbers below 40 degrees ESN) keeps these late-timed blocks on a controlled trajectory despite the later contact timing.

Why Did Moregard’s 2021 World Championship Run Validate the Cybershape?

At the 2021 World Championships in Houston, Moregard played with a pre-production Cybershape blade through 7 rounds of the men’s singles draw. The semifinal victory over Fan Zhendong (then world number 1) went 4-3, with Moregard winning the deciding 7th game. The result validated the Cybershape as a blade capable of performing at the absolute peak of competitive table tennis, removing the theoretical objection that a non-oval shape introduces structural or performance compromises at the professional level.

The World Championship silver established Moregard (then 19 years old) as the youngest men’s singles finalist since Waldner’s generation and placed Sweden back in the world championship conversation after a 20+ year absence from medal contention. The greatest table tennis players of all time ranking page includes Moregard in the generational talent discussion alongside European players across eras.

What Are Truls Moregard’s Career Results?

Truls Moregard won a silver medal at the 2021 World Championships (men’s singles) at age 19 and reached the world top 10 ranking in the WTT system during the 2022-2024 period.

What Are Moregard’s Major Competition Results?

• 2021 World Championships (Houston): Silver medal in men’s singles. Defeated Fan Zhendong 4-3 in the semifinal. Lost to Wang Chuqin in the final.
• 2024 Paris Olympics: Competed for Sweden in men’s singles and men’s team events. Eliminated in the round of 16 in singles.
• WTT Tour (2022-2024): Multiple WTT Contender finals appearances. Reached the world top 10 in the WTT ranking system.

The semifinal defeat of Fan Zhendong at the 2021 Worlds represented one of the few instances in the 2020s where a European player eliminated a top-ranked Chinese player in a best-of-7 knockout match at a major championship. Moregard’s win came through shot variation and service deception rather than raw power, reinforcing the connection between Moregard’s creative style and equipment that supports wide-angle shot construction.

How Does Moregard Fit into Swedish Table Tennis History?

Sweden’s table tennis tradition includes Jan-Ove Waldner (1989 and 1997 World Championship singles titles, 1992 Olympic gold) and Jorgen Persson (1991 World Championship silver). Moregard’s 2021 silver was Sweden’s first men’s singles World Championship medal since Persson in 1991, a 30-year gap. Moregard’s adoption of the STIGA Cybershape extends the Swedish equipment innovation tradition into non-traditional blade geometry, a different axis of experimentation from Waldner’s grip and timing innovations.

How Do Recreational Players Approach Moregard’s Cybershape Setup?

Recreational players considering Moregard’s setup face a binary decision that standard equipment choices do not present: adopt the hexagonal blade shape or stay with oval geometry. The Cybershape retails at $150-$200 depending on the carbon configuration (STIGA sells multiple Cybershape variants at different price tiers), and switching to hexagonal shape commits the player to either STIGA pre-cut rubbers or manual hexagonal rubber cutting.

For players interested in the Cybershape:

The STIGA Cybershape Carbon (the variant closest to Moregard’s specification) retails at $150-$200. STIGA also sells the Cybershape Wood ($80-$100, all-wood construction without carbon layers) for players wanting the hexagonal shape at a lower speed and price tier. Pairing the Cybershape with STIGA DNA Pro M on both sides ($55-$65 per sheet) creates a controlled attacking setup at $260-$330 total, with pre-cut rubber sheets available to avoid manual hexagonal trimming. The best table tennis rubbers for every playing style guide includes the DNA Pro lineup alongside tensor alternatives from other manufacturers.

For players wanting Moregard’s performance profile on a conventional oval blade:

The STIGA Intensity NCT ($90-$120, 5+2 carbon, OFF speed class) replicates the Cybershape’s speed tier and carbon construction in a traditional oval shape. Pairing the Intensity NCT with DNA Pro H (forehand) and DNA Pro M (backhand) mirrors Moregard’s rubber hardness split at a lower total cost ($200-$250) without the hexagonal shape commitment. The oval blade accepts any rubber brand without custom cutting.

Budget entry point:

The STIGA Allround Classic ($40-$55, all-wood, ALL speed class) paired with STIGA DNA Future M ($30-$40 per sheet) creates a STIGA-ecosystem setup at $100-$135 total. The all-wood blade and softer rubber match recreational stroke speeds while maintaining the brand continuity that Moregard’s endorsement contract represents.