Tecnifibre ATP TFight 315 XTC Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 81

With a low swingweight of 314, this ATP TFight 315 XTC swung fast for our playtesters, who found effortless access to spin. Kristen quickly found her groove on groundstrokes. She explained, "From the first hit with this racquet, I was impressed with its comfortable nature. It definitely played plusher than the TFight 300 XTC, and it was super maneuverable for a racquet with a static weight of 315 grams. Since I meshed with the feel of this racquet more than I did with the 300 model, I was able to get more dialed in on my shots and find better control, as well as find my targets more easily. My only qualm was that during point situations I did find I was missing a bit of plow through at times. With such a low swingweight, I think there's some room for customization to help in that category."

Finding some inconsistencies from the baseline, Sean tried changing up his game style to best tap into the ATP TFight 315 XTC's strengths. He stated, "Despite weighing 315 grams, the TFight 315 swung noticeably quicker than its weight might suggest. I found the launch angle to be fairly high, and when combined with the whippy balance, it produced a heavy ball from the baseline. The downside was that although there was plenty of power, the response lacked stability, and I frequently lost control. I feel I played better when I changed my mindset from being a counterpuncher to being an aggressive baseliner."

Tiffani was pleased with the performance of the ATP TFight 315 XTC, and she found no problems handling the weight of the frame. She said, "The last TFight 315 version I tested was the Dynacore, and since then I've adopted a slightly heavier go-to racquet (now playing with a Prince Textreme Tour 100P vs the Babolat Pure Drive), so I felt more comfortable from the get-go with a racquet at this weight. This TFight 315 XTC also has quite a low swingweight, and it felt whippier than expected. I was hitting with more spin than I was with the TFight 300, according to my PlaySight data, which I didn't expect going into this playtest. I liked this racquet from the baseline for its easy pick-up-and-go playability, which I don't always find with racquets at this weight."

Erik appreciated the generous access to spin, but he was missing the more controlled response he found with the TFight 300. He stated, "This racquet felt more powerful than the TFight 300 XTC, but also less controlled. I was able to get great access to spin, though. I found my slices were staying low, and I was able to place them strategically thanks to the excellent feel. This really benefited my game style of chipping and coming into net. With its lower swingweight, this racquet was extremely maneuverable and felt stable on contact."

Volleys - Score: 83

The TFight 315 XTC provided our playtesters with great feel, and it let them react quickly when they were at the net. Erik was able to keep his opponents at bay by mixing up his net-game strategy. He articulated, "This racquet was very maneuverable up at net, and like the 300 gram model, the feel was exceptional. I could pin my opponent deep with a floating volley and carve out drop volleys with lots of spin. I was also able to change it up and hit some short angled volleys. Overall, I felt extremely connected to the ball at net."

Volleying was the highlight of the playtest for Tiffani. She explained, "This was my favorite shot with the TFight 315 XTC. I thought this racquet played surprisingly fast for its weight, but it also had a comfortable feel. It blended the mobility of a lighter racquet with some of the benefits of a heavier spec. This racquet felt plusher in the sweetspot than the lighter TFight 300 XTC."

Though Kristen loved the plush feel, she thought the racquet got pushed around a bit at net. She noted, "Up at net that light maneuverability was super beneficial for getting great reaction time. I was getting great touch and a nice, controlled response. However, the torsional stability did start to waver a bit against big hitters."

Sean also had some issues up at net. He explained, "I found the lack of stability to be frustrating at net, where I was looking for a more solid response. I thought the touch was all right, but I struggled blocking back pace and volleying from the midcourt, where I could feel the racquet twisting in my hand."

Serves - Score: 81

Power, spin and precision made serving a standout portion of the ATP TFight 315 XTC playtest. Sean was pleased that some of the stability issues he experienced on groundstrokes and volleys didn't carry over to serves. He noted, "I liked the pace and spin I could generate on my serve. The theme of consistency being an issue wasn't as prevalent here. When I was generating my own pace I didn't feel the instability of the racquet as much. This was one of my favorite parts of the playtest."

Erik reveled in the many positives. He affirmed, "The power on my first serves was fantastic. I felt like I could bomb first serves and accurately place them with a good amount of control. The control on my second serve was also very solid. I felt like I could place serves wherever I wanted with a significant amount of spin. Therefore, I felt confident serving with this racquet and in my ability to accurately hit my targets. My favorite serve was the T serve."

Kristen was able to vary her serve with ease, and she found good power. She said, "This racquet felt really solid on serves. I found I could really crank up the pace thanks to its fast-swinging nature. I could mix up my serves well and get great precision."

Although it took Tiffani some time to get into her groove on serves, she was ultimately pleased with the racquet's performance. She explained, "I was surprised to find that it was a bit harder to initiate my swing on serves with this racquet, especially considering how quickly I could swing it on my groundstrokes. Once I got this racquet moving, it felt smooth. It just took me a while to get adjusted. I wasn't moving the ball around the service box as easily as I can with lighter racquets, but I could hit my serves with decent power and spin."

Returns - Score: 81

Timing was a key positive when returning with the ATP TFight 315 XTC. Whether they were counteracting heavy pace or dictating play with an aggressive return, most of our playstesters found success, although somed had a tendency to overhit. Tiffani was happy to experience the same user-friendly nature she found from the baseline. She said, "Just like my experience when I was hitting groundstrokes, I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to wield this TFight 315 XTC on returns. It came around quickly so I wasn't getting caught late like I would expect with a racquet weighing 11.7 ounces strung. Similar to how I felt with the TFight 300 XTC, I thought trying to add some spin, which I normally wouldn't do on my returns, was my best bet with the TFight 315. When I missed with this racquet I tended to send the ball long."

Similarly, Erik was pleased with the ATP TFight 315 XTC's performance, but he noticed some errors creeping up on him when he wasn't careful. He said, "On returns, I was able to get the ball back in the court aggressively or conservatively. I like to chip my returns, and I felt like I could get great depth when I did. There was easy access to power on returns, and sometimes I felt like I had to hold back or else I would spray the ball long. When returning first serves, it was easy to redirect the server's pace when I was returning first serves. On second serves, it was easy to take control of the point if I decided to. The TFight 315 XTC was quite maneuverable, and it was very easy to get it around my body. It also felt very solid in my hand at contact."

Sean had some trouble handling pace on returns. He noted,"Like at net, I struggled to find a consistent way to absorb power. I think maybe too much of the ATP TFight 315 XTC's weight was distributed toward the handle. Returning second serves was much easier, since I had more time to take a full swing and generate my own pace."

Kristen relished the comfortable feel and great timing she experienced on returns. She elaborated, "I enjoyed returning with this racquet, and I liked the nice pocketing it offered. It was really easy to get my timing right thanks to the maneuverability. When I was pushed out wide it was easy to get around the ball and create some really great angles off the return, and when I was up against heavier servers it was easy to react quickly and slice the ball back into the court."

Overall - Score: 81