2024 Wrapped: Playtester Favorites

Ana:

Ana's favorite shoe playtest from this year was the FILA Axilus 3s. She was blown away by the shoes, explaining that, "I can honestly say these Axilus 3s exceeded my expectations in every way, and they checked all the boxes for the top things I look for in shoes, which are comfort, support and lightness." Check out our full review here!

As for racquets, Ana was most captivated by the Wilson Blade 100 v9. In her own words, "Not only did I feel like this racquet worked on my topspin groundstrokes, but it also helped me on my slices and drop shots. So far, the Blade 100 v9 is one of the best racquets I have tried for my game." If you want to read more of our thoughts, be sure to visit our full review page!

Brittany:

Like Ana, Brittany was enamored with the Wilson Blade 100 v9. This frame was a popular choice for our team, and in her own words, "I found a nice blend of power and control from the baseline. I could tap into power when I needed to be aggressive, but I was still able to be precise."

When it came to shoes, Brittany was most impressed by the Yonex Ad Accels. These shoes proved to be a seriously speedy offering, allowing her to lean into her consistent style of play. Clarifying, she noted that, "To my delight, the Ad Accels met all my needs. In fact, after two hits I looked down and realized I hadn't even utilized the last eyelet, which is something I always need. I then went ahead and used the last eyelet to get even more security." Check out the full review here!

Brittany also playtested a few different strings this year, and enjoyed most the comparative review we did between Solinco Hyper-G and Volkl Cyclone, both being two of her favorite strings already. Be sure to check out our full comparative review here!

Chris:

When it comes to racquets, Chris tests out a majority of the frames that pass through the Warehouse. Out of all the sticks he tried this year, one stood out above all the rest for its uniqueness, that being the Prince Phantom 107G. He explained that, "I was fortunate enough to hit all of the new Phantom racquets, and the Phantom 107G was by far the most fun to hit off the ground. The racquet was super fast and easy to whip around. Add the maneuverable feel to the massive spin window offered by the skinny beam and 107-square-inch head size, and you have a racquet that just begs for creative shot making." Be sure to give our full review a read!

As far as shoes were concerned, Chris gravitated the most toward the adidas Defiant Speed 2, which allowed him to rush the net with confidence and maneuver effectively all around the court. He clarified, "The Defiant Speed 2s are some of my favorite shoes to play in right now. These are the kind of shoes I'd get in several colors throughout their production run and then stock up on them toward the end in case the next version isn't as good." Read our full review here!

For strings this year, Chris most enjoyed the comparative review we did for Luxilon ALU Power versus Luxilon Savage. He explained, "Both of these strings lasted well for me. I'm happy If I can get three weeks of hitting from a poly-based string, and I got into the third week still enjoying both strings. Even though there was a drop in tension, as we get from all strings, I was still able to control the ball and still enjoyed the response of both." Read the full review here!

Jason:

Proving to be a surefire favorite among our team, Jason also was won over by the Wilson Blade 100 v9. In his own words, "The specs are nearly identical to my racquet of choice, so not surprisingly, I really enjoyed it on my groundstrokes. I felt like I could swing the racquet through contact pretty easily to generate power and spin, and it also felt fairly stable. I thought I was able to get some nice shape on my shots with good net clearance."

Similarly, Jason was drawn to a crowd favorite shoe-wise with the FILA Axilus 3. Full of nothing but praise, Jason stated, "These are the best performing FILA shoes I've ever tested. I'd put the very comparable ride and performance of the Axilus 3s alongside the Asics Gel Resolution shoes." Read the full review here.

Mark:

As somewhat of an extended-length aficionado, Mark was simply delighted by Head's first flagship extended-length frame in over two decades, the Gravity MP XL. The racquet emphasized his counter-punching style of play to great heights, and in his own words, "The Gravity MP XL is a brilliantly executed design, and like my own racquet, I can feel where the sources of power and control are coming from. The weight, length, swingweight and 100-square-inch hoop help power the MP XL, with the softer layup of graphite, 16x20 pattern and head-light balance adding the precision I need to harness the power. All things considered, I have to say the Head Gravity MP XL is a 'no-excuse' racquet for me, and the more I play with it, the more I like it from anywhere on the court." Check out the full review here.

Shoe-wise, Mark was most drawn to a pair that allowed him to maximize his dangerous mobility, the Asics Solution Speed FF 3. He noted that, "I never questioned the agility of the Solution Speed FF 3s (I've seen Alex de Minaur move in them), but I was a bit surprised with the degree of support these shoes afforded me, which was excellent considering their light weight." Read the full review here!

Michelle:

As a devout Roger Federer fan, Michelle was beyond excited to try out the signature line from the man himself, the Wilson RF 01 Pro. Though not enough to sway her from her beloved RF97s, Michelle noted that, "I'm so glad Wilson and RF made sure the feel was in line with the previous RF97s: firm but comfortable, and oh-so stable!" Be sure to give our full review a gander!

When it came to shoes, Michelle was most taken by the Mizuno Wave Exceed Tour 6. She loved the versatility of the shoes, and felt confident in them at all times. In her own words, "The traction was a bit tackier, which is probably why I liked them! The traction levels remained consistent through the test, and I never felt stuck or limited in my movement." Read the full review here.

Across the board, the comparative string reviews proved to be the most exciting for our playtest team. Michelle was also drawn to the Solinco Hyper-G versus Volkl Cyclone review, and she noted, "I would recommend both these strings to advanced big hitters looking for control and easy access to spin to complement their fundamentals. I would suggest Hyper-G for tournament players looking for a consistent feel from first hit to several rounds into a tournament. I also love Hyper-G because Solinco has a bunch of versions of the string that are worth checking out, from round to soft in a number of different gauges. Cyclone seems to be a big win for advanced players looking for great grip, or a string to compete against a string like Babolat RPM Blast at a great value and price point. Plus, color and gauge options!"

Munish:

Though he too is a devout Federer fan, Munish was most enamored by a frame that falls exceedingly close to Novak Djokovic's racquet of choice... The Head Prestige MP won him over with its blend of power and precision, giving him confidence to pick aggressive targets and swing even more aggressively. He said, "I really liked this racquet on groundstrokes. It was easy to maneuver and I could put the ball anywhere I wanted. The ever-so-slightly open string pattern also helped in shaping the ball, which then helped me open up the court a bit more. I was surprised by the power levels this racquet provided at first. I'm not used to getting power from Prestige frames, but I eventually adjusted to it." Check our full review here.

When it came to shoes, Munish also was most impressed by the FILA Axilus 3, playing in them regularly to this day. He described them saying, "These shoes shone through the most when I was scrapping for points and had to push off from side to side. I felt confident setting my foot into the court and pushing off without risking any ankle rolls."

For his favorite string review, Munish picked his debut one, MSV Focus Hex Soft. He highly enjoyed the ease of play with the string, noting that, "This string has tons of spin! Even at 58 pounds, I was able to hit with a lot of racquet head-speed and I could feel the string grabbing onto the ball. I enjoyed hitting a lot of drop shots with tons of backspin and I could trust the stringbed in delivering the spin to make the drop shot effective.” Check out the video review here!

Oak:

As a longtime user of the 27.5" Whiteouts from Solinco, Oak had a blast with the 28" Solinco Whiteout XTD+. He was won over by the incredible amounts of power the racquet offered and was delighted with the extra reach when on the run. Clarifying further, Oak said, "The extra-extended length offers free power more than anything else, but the Whiteout still exists primarily as a control-oriented line, resulting in a good 'best-of-both-worlds' approach. Ultimately, this racquet is a demanding experience that offers a tempting blend of length-based power and classic box-beam control." Check out the full review!

For shoes, Oak found a new shoe of choice this year in the Yonex Ad Accels. As a speed-based player, he found even more movement accessible in these shoes. He noted that, "These shoes are maybe the closest thing I’ve gotten to the feeling and playability of the first generation Nike Vapor Pro’s. Speed and court sensations were incredibly gratifying in the ways that those OG Vapor Pro’s were, and they have that same kind of mindless or automatic movement that made me put a ton of hours on them." Check out the video review here!

Tiffani:

As somewhat of a surprise feature, Tiffani's favorite racquet playtest from this year was the Dunlop CX 400 Tour. She enjoyed the control nature of the frame and the reliability it consistently offered. In her own words, "I love the feel of the CX line, but there are certain situations where I am looking for easier power. This is where the CX 400 Tour comes in. While I tend to lean toward control and feel racquets, if I'm honest, I need help in the power department. The CX 400 Tour blends those features so well." Read the full review here!

For shoes, she was most drawn to the adidas Defiant Speed 2. Clarifying further, she said, "I remember testing the first Defiant Bounce shoes and recall them feeling so comfortable. The Defiant Speed 2s are the latest version, and these shoes offered me all-day comfort. The width of the shoes is medium, but my wider feet fit comfortably in them. The uppers were soft enough to let my feet relax, and I could play tennis without any break-in time. The Defiant Speed 2s also felt breathable, and I spent a few hours on court without any overheating issues. There aren't many tennis shoes I choose to wear casually after my court time, but these Defiant Speed 2s are stylish and very comfortable, so I could wear them throughout the day." Check out our full review!

Troy:

This year, Troy found a lot of enjoyment from a modern take on a classic frame, the Wilson Pro Staff Six.One 95 v14. He loved the stability, high static weight and reliability from the frame, and he particularly enjoyed the plow through he was able to get. Elaborating further, he said, "When it came to hitting groundstrokes, this racquet was rock solid, stable and precise. I have played with older versions of this racquet going back some years, and this v14 edition felt very nice to swing. This racquet has always had a hefty, solid feel to it, but with the v14, most of our test racquets were sub-330 on the swingweight (325 is what we list as the average), so I found pretty good maneuverability — or as I said in the video review, 'whipability!' " Check out the full review here!

When it came to shoes, Troy, like Michelle, was won over by the Mizuno Wave Exceed Tour 6, delighting in their speed and comfort. In his own words, "Following suit with previous versions of these shoes, I found comfort to be superb. If I put these up against other lightweight shoes (let's say below 13 or 13.5 ounces), these Wave Exceed Tour 6s really stand out. I would almost go as far as saying these are the most comfortable shoes in the lightweight division." Read the full review here!

Zsofi:

Zsofi's favorite racquet test from this year was the Wilson Blade Pro 98 16x19. She loved the reliability of the frame, and in her own words, "Wilson really created something special with the new Blade Pro! Other than its amazing look, the first thing that stood out to me was how incredibly stable this racquet was from the baseline. I could definitely feel the heftier swingweight (our sample was around 340 strung), which I honestly didn't mind at all. Power was super easy to come by, and I loved how heavy my shots were from the baseline." Read the full review here!

Shoe-wise, her standouts were the Nike GP Challenge 1. She really enjoyed the performance capability of the frame, explaining how, "The GP Challenge 1s felt really nice and supportive overall. The uppers hugged my feet nicely, and I had no pressure points. I loved the plush tongue and the comfort around my heels." Check out our full review here!