On the earth of tennis, gear evaluations have grow to be a staple for gamers of all ranges. Whether or not you’re a leisure participant or an aspiring skilled, chances are high you’ve turned to YouTube or numerous web sites like this one for recommendation on which racket to purchase.
However right here’s the uncomfortable fact: most racket evaluations aren’t neutral, and even when they’re – are they helpful?
The Monetary Actuality Behind “Impartial” Evaluations
To grasp why most racket evaluations can’t be trusted, it’s essential to observe the cash—or reasonably, the dearth of it.
Many YouTubers and bloggers who evaluate tennis rackets don’t make sufficient cash from their content material to afford to purchase each new mannequin available on the market. This monetary actuality creates a dependency on producers, who typically ship them rackets at no cost in trade for a evaluate.
Sadly, if an impartial reviewer slams a racket too harshly, the model might minimize them off: they’ll not obtain free rackets, content material, or views.
The opposite distinguished racket reviewers are sports activities retailers who’re there to promote you the rackets, so the probabilities of them criticising a brand new launch are close to zero.
The result’s a cycle through which reviewers really feel pressured to endorse the merchandise they obtain at the least partially, resulting in glowing evaluations that will not mirror the racket’s true high quality or efficiency.
Take the current launch of the RF 1.0 racket, for instance. Each distinguished racket reviewer had a video up inside hours of the launch, most of them singing its praises. Had any of them even performed it for an prolonged interval?
A couple of savvier reviewers sprinkled in some gentle critiques to keep away from wanting too keen, however the general tone was overwhelmingly optimistic. This synchronised wave of content material isn’t a coincidence; it’s a well-orchestrated effort to create buzz and drive gross sales, which is truthful sufficient, however the movies aren’t at all times clear about that.
The Damaged Mannequin of Racket Evaluations
Past the problem of monetary dependence, racket evaluations have a basic flaw. Tennis is an intensely private sport, and the racket that works wonders for one participant could be a nightmare for an additional.
This is because of a myriad of things, from muscle reminiscence and play model to non-public preferences and even the precise situations on the day of the take a look at.
Whenever you learn a evaluate, you get one individual’s subjective expertise closely influenced by their distinctive circumstances.
I’ve obtained hundreds of emails asking for racket suggestions over time, and I’ve seen this play out repeatedly.
Gamers will typically ask for racket suggestions, anticipating a definitive reply. However the actuality is, with out seeing somebody play (only a few persons are prepared to share footage regardless of stating they’re a 5.0 when requested 😄)—and even then—it’s practically inconceivable to suggest the proper racket.
When reviewers take a look at rackets, they typically take a look at with their most well-liked strings, at their most well-liked pressure, and with the right grip dimension. Which means even their expertise is tailor-made to them, and their suggestions won’t apply to you in any respect.
The Phantasm of Attributes
One other difficulty with racket evaluations is overemphasising attributes like spin, energy, and management. Virtually each racket is marketed as providing distinctive ranges of all this stuff, however the fact is, no racket could make up for deficiencies in your recreation.
Spin, for example, is essentially a product of approach, not gear. The identical goes for energy and management. A racket might need a slight affect, however the participant makes the shot, not the racket.
For this reason studying racket evaluations is usually a waste of time. You’ll discover glowing experiences about the identical attributes for nearly each mannequin, including to the confusion.
In actuality, the variations between fashionable rackets are refined, and any well-trained participant might seemingly swap between them with little impression on their recreation.
From my testing, if rackets have related specs, they play just about identically, and in the event that they had been blacked out, I’m not certain I might let you know which is which, particularly if they’ve an analogous profile/form.
The largest distinction maker is the string, and also you don’t see as many evaluations of strings as a result of rackets are the place the cash is.
The Actuality of Fashionable Racket Manufacturing
Including to this farce is that just about each racket launched at this time is nice. There’s hardly ever something inherently unsuitable with any of them. Why? No matter model, most rackets are manufactured in the identical factories, utilizing the identical processes in China.
They’re basically the identical product, simply branded in another way. Whereas some firms tout their proprietary “know-how” and minor variations in manufacturing processes, there may be solely a lot you are able to do with carbon graphite and a mould—particularly when it’s the identical firm making the racket for numerous manufacturers.
The times of some grasp craftsman meticulously making a racket within the Austrian Alps are lengthy gone. Solely Yonex nonetheless has its manufacturing facility in Japan, so its high quality management is understood to be one of the best within the business.
However even with Yonex, the variations are sometimes marginal for the typical participant. The uniformity in manufacturing implies that the actual variations between rackets are a lot smaller than the advertising would have you ever imagine.
One other side that complicates the racket-buying course of is the business’s brief improve cycles. Most main manufacturers launch a brand new mannequin from the identical line each two years, typically accompanied by heavy advertising that nearly discredits the earlier model. The options as soon as touted as groundbreaking within the final mannequin immediately grow to be out of date, changed by “new” know-how that guarantees to be higher.
This fixed cycle of upgrades can frustrate customers, who might really feel pressured to purchase the newest mannequin even when their present racket remains to be performing nicely.
It’s a advertising technique that performs on the concern of lacking out reasonably than a real want for brand spanking new gear. To be sincere, it’s only ProKennex stands out as an exception, guaranteeing that the cosmetics of their rackets received’t change for a set interval. I like the very fact they don’t appear to replace theirs each 18 months or 2 years, and it does assist retailers handle their stock extra effectively.
What Ought to Customers Do?
So, for those who can’t belief evaluations, what do you have to do? The reply is straightforward: take a look at the rackets your self. Most tennis retailers provide demo applications that permit you to strive a number of fashions earlier than committing to a purchase order. That is the one approach to discover out what certainly works for you.
Whenever you demo a racket, string it together with your most well-liked string at your typical pressure and make sure the grip dimension is right.
Spend time hitting with the racket in numerous situations, and take note of the way it feels throughout totally different photographs and actions. This hands-on expertise will let you know way over any on-line evaluate ever might.
By all means, use evaluations to create a demo shortlist, however don’t simply purchase them primarily based on it. The costs are too excessive now ($250) to simply take a punt.
Solely Artengo can be the exception right here. They’re the one firm I inform individuals to simply purchase (sure, shadow swing them in your native Decathlon), as their worth factors are very engaging.
The opposite exception can be sale rackets from outdated inventory. For instance, the IGA 298 racket, which is grime low cost now, is one just about anybody can play nicely with.
Keep in mind, it’s not the racket that makes the participant—it’s the participant who makes the racket work for them.