Head Graphene Touch Radical Pro Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 81

Big power and easy spin were the standout features for our team when using the Graphene Touch Radical Pro from the baseline. "I've come to expect such a response from the Radical Pro now, and I feel this racquet delivers a power level similar to the old Extreme Tours," began Chris. "Compared to the previous version, it felt like the mass was distributed differently in this racquet. The Graphene XT Radical Pro felt like it had more weight in the hoop, and I got better directional control over my shots. With this version, I felt like I could brush up the back of the ball more aggressively for shots with more spin, but I lost some control. Still, the power was very impressive, and I was hitting more clean winners than expected. I loved my backhand down the line with this racquet. On defensive shots it was easier to find depth and pace while scrambling. The downside to all of the power was some trouble I had controlling approach shots. I found it easy to overhit with this racquet, and I was constantly holding back on shots when moving inside the court."

With an 11.5 oz strung weight and a 330 swingweight, this racquet was right up Michelle's alley at the baseline. She loved the way it felt on contact, explaining, "It was powerful and maneuverable, and everything just came together for me when I started hitting forehands and backhands. It reminded me of the original Graphene Radical Pro, which I absolutely loved. The Graphene Touch Radical Pro was firm enough to provide me with the power levels I like and need to end points aggressively, but it was never uncomfortable. I could knife the slice well, too. I know some of my fellow playtesters felt like it was hard to hit their targets with the Graphene Touch Radical Pro, and although I did find that to be the case at the beginning of the playtest, the more I hit with this racquet the more comfortable I became with it. As the playtest went on I struggled less with the predictability. The Graphene Touch Radical Pro felt stable and the sweetspot felt large. It was just an all-around fun racquet to hit with, and it felt rewarding at impact.

Of all the racquets he has playtested recently, this updated Radical Pro maneuvered most similarly to Troy's racquet of choice. He said, "When stroking forehands and backhands from the baseline my timing and contact points were dialed in. The feel of this racquet at contact was solid and stable. The average swingweight came in at 330, which provided good stability and easy plow through. With the addition of Graphene Touch there was a very dampened and muted feel on contact. Even with this technology, the racquet felt a bit firm on my arms when strung with my typical co-poly string. A part of me misses the smooth and flexible feel of the older generations of Head Radicals. Furthermore, the Graphene Touch technology decreased the responsiveness of this racquet. On certain shots the ball trajectory was unpredictable. I struggled the most when I slowed down the racquet and had to rely on feel. I was often off target on my backhand slice or when I was blocking the ball back with a short backswing. I never really felt confident with placement when it came to these types of shots. I had to to hit heavy topspin and aim at big targets from the baseline. I sprayed the ball too frequently when I played my usual aggressive style. With older versions of the Head Radical, such as the MicroGel, I loved how I could take huge rips at the ball without fear of missing. Even the Head Graphene Radical Pro (two versions ago) felt much stiffer than the classic Radicals, but I still found good predictability. This version wasn't necessarily a hard racquet for me to use from the baseline, it's just that some of the older versions were great."

"If you were expecting this racquet to feel anything like a Radical you would've picked up 10 years ago, think again," stated Sean. "The 16x19 pattern and thick beam made the Head Graphene Touch Radical Pro incredibly powerful from the ground. I think this is a departure from the classic feel of the Radical line, and it offered its own benefits and pitfalls. Traditionally speaking, I would expect this to be more of a control racquet, so I was surprised by how much power came with the package. This was great when I was looking to be aggressive with big targets, but harder when I was pressed to thread the needle. There was also an adjustment period when I found I had control only when I shortened my strokes, but once I dialed back on the loopiness it was much easier to rein in the natural power of this racquet."

Volleys - Score: 76

For the most part, our team found the Graphene Touch Radical Pro to be stable at the net, but they all agreed there was a lack of feel and touch. The previous generations of this racquet have always felt relatively stable for Michelle, and this Graphene Touch version was no different. She shared one struggle she had, saying, "I missed a bit of feel and touch at net. This isn't a huge part of my game, but in pressure situations I got a bit frustrated. On the other hand, it was easy to be aggressive and swing at volleys or really stick them with authority. I also found that the Graphene Touch Radical Pro absorbed pace pretty well. I just would have preferred a bit more feel, which prevented higher scores from me in this area."

Troy found a solid and stable feel when coming to the net with the Graphene Touch Radical Pro. He commented, "The mass in the head of this racquet made it easy for me to block my volleys back with easy depth. Anytime the ball was hit hard at me at the net this racquet stood its ground and didn't flutter in my hand. This was a nice feeling, but similar to what I experienced from the baseline, I found a lack of response when going for touch shots. If I blocked my volleys back with good depth and aimed for big targets this racquet played well, but I was inconsistent anytime I went for a deft volley near the lines. I enjoyed the mass in the head of this racquet since it helped with stability and power. For my preferences, I would have liked some added weight in the handle to make it a bit more maneuverable at the net."

The Graphene Touch Radical Pro offered some nice punch for Sean when he came forward to finish a point. He said, "The mixture of maneuverability and power made it easy to put the ball away. However, even though this racquet was maneuverable, it was definitely too powerful when I was volleying from neutral or difficult positions. The powerful, muted response caused the ball to fly off the stringbed with little opportunity for feel or touch."

Chris agreed that the Graphene Touch Radical Pro felt very solid and was loaded with power at net. He said, "I had some instances when stretch volleys that I thought would be lucky to clear the service line floated past my opponent's baseline. Obviously, putting the ball away with power was not an issue with this racquet! Again, I didn't feel as accurate as I did with the previous version, but I felt like I volleyed well with it. My biggest issue was getting to the net with authority. I lacked confidence on both serves and approach shots, which made it tougher to attack the net."

Serves - Score: 79

Aggressive servers who could get the Graphene Touch Radical Pro moving were rewarded with power, spin and plow through. Troy found easy power on serves with this firm, lively racquet. He explained, "The 330 swingweight let me ramp up the MPHs on first serves. While I could go big on flat first serves I couldn't find enough consistency to benefit my game. On kick and slice serves this racquet provided easy access to spin; I created sharp angles on slice serves and got the ball jumping high off the court with kick serves. On second serves I didn't feel confident hitting close to the corners of the service box, so I aimed for the center of the service box to make sure I would get it in. This made my second serve predictable for my opponents, and often times they stepped in and ripped returns, which is not a position I want to be in."

Serving was the highlight of this playtest for Sean. He offered, "The racquet seemed to fly through the air with immense speed, and it provided huge pop on my first serves. I felt that the direction of my serve was easy to control on flat serves. Kick and slice serves were a little more wayward, directionally speaking. I got a lot of kick on my second serve but it was hard to find a consistent target, which would be problematic in a match situation."

Chris expected to enjoy the big power and spin on serves, but he was a little disappointed. He explained, "I really struggled to serve accurately with the Graphene Touch Radical Pro. Whenever I tried to hit a fast flat serve I lost some control and missed my targets too often. I also struggled to judge the amount of spin I was getting from the racquet. I had issues with serves dropping short into the net, and I never felt fully dialed in on second serves. I ended up serving to big, safe targets and taking some speed off to be more consistent. It was a shame, since I loved volleying with this racquet but lacked the confidence to attack the net behind conservative serves."

Michelle continued to enjoy this racquet when serving. She added, "I could ramp up the pace and be aggressive with first serves. I found satisfying amounts of power, and I got the ball moving on kick and slice serves. Again, the more time I put in with the Graphene Touch Radical Pro during the playtest the more dialed in and predictable it was for me. If I had any complaint, it was that I was overhitting initially on big serves, but I just had to re-focus my timing and targets to find success."

Returns - Score: 80

With all the right tools to be a solid returning racquet, the Graphene Touch Radical Pro aided our team offensively and defensively. Chris enjoyed returning with this racquet. He said, "It felt very solid, and I was able to use the power well. I enjoyed the stable response on block returns and found easy access to depth. I also enjoyed returning with lots of spin. I thought the Graphene Touch Radical Pro worked well when I was looking to redirect the pace of the incoming serve. The solid response held up well to big serves, yet the racquet also felt fast and easy to maneuver."

"Based on how much I loved this racquet from the baseline, I knew I was going to enjoy hitting returns with it," began Michelle. "This was one of those guilty pleasure racquets that made me want to tee-off 90 percent of the time. Maybe that wasn't always the smartest return to go with, but I just tried to pick bigger targets and went for it. When I was playing against big servers the Graphene Touch Radical Pro was stable enough for me to block balls back and get back in the point defensively. I found great angles and awesome offensive options off my returns."

The stability and plow through the Graphene Touch Radical Pro packed helped Troy get a lot of serves back in play. He added, "My favorite aspect of this playtest was the easy depth I could get with just a little backswing. Anytime I was stretched out on a return I used the mass in the head of this racquet to chip the ball back with enough depth to keep me in the point. Against big, flat first serves I found a decent amount stability; the racquet didn't flutter or twist in my hand. The lack of response and consistency I experienced from the baseline and on serves wasn't as much of an issue for me on returns. I usually try to keep the ball deep near my opponent's feet when returning. My returns were effective as long as I aimed for the center of the court, but they were less effective when I was playing doubles. I didn't feel dialed in with my targets if I tried to work the ball or caress it away from the net player. My chip lob return wasn't finding my intended target and often times ended up being an easy smash for the net player during doubles."

Despite the thickness of the beam, Sean thought the racquet was a little wobbly when returning first serves. He said, "This was tricky, considering a centimeter here or there can ultimately determine the fate of the point. I would sacrifice some of the Graphene Touch Radical Pro's power for better control."

Overall - Score: 78