Babolat Pure Drive Plus Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 86

With an extra half-inch of length, the Babolat Pure Drive Plus offered more power and spin than the standard length version from the baseline. Chris has plenty of experience past iterations of the Pure Drive Plus. He said, "It was easy to pick up the Pure Drive Plus and immediately feel comfortable. I had used the previous version of this racquet for over two years before switching briefly to the Yonex EZONE DR 98+ and then to the Tecnifibre TFlash 300 PS. Compared to the previous version, I found the ball to exit the stringbed at a higher trajectory, which gave my topspin shots a loopier arc. Hitting with depth proved easier, making an already easy to use racquet even easier! I liked the way my deep topspin shots pushed opponents off the baseline. I also enjoyed the easier depth when I was on defense and looking to get back in the point. When pushing forward and hitting approach shots I had to be careful not to overhit. Getting lots of spin helped keep shots inside the lines, but I preferred the previous version when pushing forward as it offered a lower, more direct trajectory."

"With the name Pure Drive, you know the racquet is going to offer power," continued Brittany. "With an extended length you know the racquet is going to have even more power. Just like the Pure Drive and Pure Drive Tour, the positives here were power, depth and spin. I also found the Plus version to have more plow through than the others. However, the extra length also took some getting used to. It took a couple sessions to get the timing down, especially on my backhand side. It also took a little bit more effort to generate racquet head speed, so there were plenty of times that I was late hitting the ball."

Kristen found the Pure Drive Plus easier to adjust to than other plus length racquets she has tried. She offered, "I loved the crisp feel and pop I got on groundstrokes and the really easy access to spin. It was pretty easy for me to adjust to the extended length of the racquet. The heavier swingweight was apparent the first time I hit with the Pure Drive Plus, but I settled into it nicely and found it did swing lighter than other extended frames I've tested. Ultimately, I was rewarded from the baseline with amazing access to power and depth and a stable feel on contact."

Tiffani was actually quite surprised at how easily this extended length Pure Drive swung. She explained, "Typically, I find the power level of 27.5" length racquets intoxicating, but the heavy swingweight is also usually sobering. Although not whippy, this Pure Drive Plus was relatively easy to swing through the strike zone, and I didn't find myself struggling with the higher balls as much as I normally would with longer length racquets. The extra length of the Pure Drive Plus was allowing me to really find some good angles on my cross court backhands. The power level was great, and I had nothing to complain about when it came to spin. The drawback for me was that the Pure Drive Plus felt really stiff, more so than its standard length counterpart. The RDC reading is lower for the Pure Drive Plus by a couple of points, but it feels stiffer to me. We had it strung with a full bed of RPM Blast, and it was punishing on my wrist. I loved playing with it, but my body didn't."

Volleys - Score: 84

With the crisp feel and extra length of the Pure Drive Plus, the TW playtesters had to make a couple adjustments before they could fully enjoy hitting with it at net. Regardless, Brittany loved the extra length on volleys. She explained, "Even though it was only a half-inch, it felt like my reach was extended several inches on each side. I got to a couple balls that I didn't even think I could get a racquet on. I was coming up to net more due to how aggressive I was, and it was extremely easy to punch the volley deep to end the point. Maneuverability was a little below average, which was expected due to the extended length."

"This racquet was a great weapon at net," added Kristen. "As someone who doesn't come to net often, I had much greater confidence when coming into the net with this racquet thanks to the great stability. It was super easy to direct the ball and to block back quick touch volleys."

Tiffani needed some time to get used to the extra length. She said, "This racquet felt pretty maneuverable at the baseline, but I could sense the extra length at the net. Like other extended length racquets, the Pure Drive Plus just felt like more racquet to get into position when it came to quick reaction volleys. Thankfully, the sweetspot was very forgiving. If I had the awareness and time, I found it easier to choke up on the handle for volleys. It was much more maneuverable when I did that, and the racquet didn't twist as much on mis-hit volleys."

Chris let the racquet do all the work up at net. He raved, "I've always enjoyed the easy power I get from Pure Drives on volleys. The new Pure Drive Plus exceeded my expectations when it came to punching volleys deep. The response was nice and lively. All I had to do was get the racquet behind the ball and point it in the right direction. On my touch shots there was a slight adjustment switching from the old to the new due to the livelier feel of the stringbed. I had to be a little more careful when cupping under a volley because it was easy to float the ball up and leave my opponent with a sitter."

Serves - Score: 89

The highest scoring shot with the Babolat Pure Drive Plus was without a doubt the serve, especially for Tiffani. She praised, "The Pure Drives are my favorite racquets to serve with, and the extended length gives me added pop over the standard length version. I also thought the stiff response was less noticeable on serves than on any other stroke."

"Big serves just got bigger!" exclaimed Chris. "This latest Pure Drive Plus really packed a punch on serves. I loved all of the power I found. Spin was super easy to generate, too. When the stars aligned and I connected sweetly I was able to hit a bigger serve. My targeting was not as precise on flat serves, but I got more and more used to the different response as the test wore on. I started aiming closer to the lines and trusting the spin I was getting would get the ball to drop on target. I loved the spin I got on second serves because it allowed me to hit higher over the net while still being aggressive. I often find myself serving at my best with a Pure Drive Plus in my hands, and this racquet was no exception."

After a small modification Brittany was able to really go up and after her serves. She offered, "There is nothing like serving with a racquet in the Pure Drive family. The raw power and spin may be second to none in this Plus version. It was extremely easy to step up to the baseline and crank a flat first serve to start the point. I noticed I was missing long a lot on my first serve with the extended length. I just had to make a small adjustment and snap my wrist a tiny bit more to get the ball to dip down into the service box. I prefer serving with the standard length version because it's a little more forgiving on second serves."

Kristen agreed with the rest of the playtesting team. She commented, "The Pure Drive Plus was super powerful on serve. I found excellent precision and easy access to spin from the first serve I took with this racquet. The extended length allows for good reach and the ability to blast through the ball on flat serves."

Returns - Score: 85

Loaded with power, the TW playtesters found themselves adding additional spin and aiming toward safer targets with the Pure Drive Plus on the return. Kristen was able to start off points on the offensive. She said, "Being someone who loves to go for aggressive returns, I really enjoyed the controllable power this racquet offered. I found I was getting great mass behind the ball and good depth."

"I enjoyed the surprisingly quick swing of the Pure Drive Plus when I was hitting returns," raved Tiffani. "I feared I would feel hindered, but I was able to get the Pure Drive Plus around in time to tap into its inherent power. I had to be cautious of only two things. Firstly, although I loved how the Pure Drive Plus made me feel like I was hitting more powerful shots than usual, I needed to keep it in check and choose smart targets. Secondly, I once again struggled with the stiffness of this racquet."

Chris enjoyed the same fast feel on returns as he did from the previous version. He compared. "While this racquet took a little extra effort to get around compared to my TFlash 300 PS, it still made a great option for taking a quick rip at the ball. I had no issues getting a lot of spin on my shots. I hit some solid angle returns in doubles and was also able to find all the spin I needed to get my drive returns to drop inside the lines. My flat returns tended to fly on me more with this update so I focused on adding some spin to all of my returns."

"The power of the Pure Drive Plus continued into returns," concluded Brittany. "It was very easy to overhit at times and I found myself dialing back and adding more spin. The extra length made it a tad cumbersome to get around my body, but once I got it going I could really generate some racquet head speed. It was stable enough to handle any serve hit my way."

Overall - Score: 84