Breakdown

Groundstrokes: 9.1

Baseline exchanges proved to be a standout area of performance for our team with this TFight 305S. All of the playtesters enjoyed the dependability of this racquet, which allowed them to lean into their respective playing styles with ease. For Chris, the hitting experience off the baseline was a pleasure. He described, "The TFight 305S was a fun racquet to hit groundstrokes with. I found this version to swing faster and offer a more connected feel compared to the outgoing model. As a result, I found it easy to generate the spin and angles needed to pull my opponents off the court. I found ample power, even if it's missing some of the plow-through power of the previous version. This racquet more than made up for any loss in mass with added spin, which gave me more consistency. My backhand slice was working well with this racquet, too. I found good precision and lots of spin to keep the ball skidding low."

Despite wanting some additional heft and plow through, Troy found this racquet to be surprisingly stable given its weight. He said, "I would say this racquet is very well balanced for hitting from the baseline. I am not talking specifically about the balance in terms of it being head light or head heavy, but more in terms of its performance characteristics; it possesses a great balance of power, control, topspin and slice. With the 18x19 string pattern, it is definitely not quite a topspin monster like the TFight 315S, but it still allowed me to shape the ball well for a racquet with 18 mains. It also feels very fast and whippy (which is something I couldn't say about the last version, the TFight ISO 305, which was very top-heavy), and that allowed me to crank up the racquet speed and create lots of angles on the court. My biggest knock on the TFight ISO 305 was that it got a little too powerful, or 'flighty,’ on flat drive shots. This TFight 305S was just perfect in that sense; it gave me that pop and power, but the 18x19 pattern helped tame the launch, and I felt confident ripping hard and flat when I needed to. I also felt very connected to the ball when hitting a slice or drop shot. As most people who have seen our reviews know, this racquet's specs are a bit light for me, so I would beef it up — then we would have a real baseline weapon on our hands!"

Oak was downright blown away by this racquet, causing him to entertain thoughts of switching over to the frame as his daily driver. He said, "This TFight 305S is absolutely delightful, proving to be wonderfully versatile from all areas of the court. It felt incredibly solid and stable from the baseline, and I really enjoyed the plentiful spin and high launch angle, despite it being an 18-main racquet. It feels much more wieldable than its predecessor, with a swingweight that is a lot more down to earth for most mortals. Slicing with this racquet was a dream, whether I was hitting my defensive forehand slice out wide or my offensive backhand slice. Super maneuverable regardless of court position, this racquet swings and handles fast, which is always welcome. I felt like I could work points the way I prefer, creating angles with my backhand and then counterpunching to put pressure on my opponents."

For Zsofi, the TFight 305S was an early contender for frame of the year, and she found herself having a great time on court with it. She explained, "This was a highly anticipated update from Tecnifibre, and they did an amazing job with it. First, they lowered the swingweight, which made the racquet more maneuverable and easier to swing. I think this is a great change! For anyone worried about the swingweight being too low, I can assure you that the racquet is just as stable as ever. Stability was never an issue for me, and even against big hitters (and I tend to play against many of those!) the racquet never got pushed around at all. I also loved the amount of control I had with the TFight 305S. Normally, I like to go for riskier, sharper angles, and with the new TFight I could easily do that and still trust that the racquet would be very precise. My touch shots (which I love) were on point, and I just really enjoyed the great feel I had with this frame."

Volleys: 9.0

Up at the net, our testers found continued success and reliability with the TFight 305S. They all appreciated the connected feel they had on their volleys, finding that they could make great use of the racquet's stability under pressure. Oak felt like he could wholly trust his volleys, allowing him to leverage his court speed to finish off points at the net. He said, "The sensations overall were really good up at net. The “TFight 305S was solid enough to absorb pace and push balls back deep into either corner, and there was plenty of spin to shape balls. The feel was really impressive, and I liked how confident I felt at net. Drop volleys were delicious with this racquet, but I often found myself going for put-away angled volleys, especially on high volleys. This is one of those racquets that encouraged me to trust my net game, and I felt like I had my partner's back when using it for doubles."

Zsofi was able to tap into her touch and finesse at the net with the TFight 305S in her hands. She said, "I really enjoyed hitting volleys with the new TFight 305S! I felt very connected to my shots, and it didn't matter if I was going for a nice touch shot or a heavier 'slap' of a volley. I knew I could trust that the racquet would have the control and feel I love!"

As one of our most net-friendly players, Chris was impressed by the performance he got on his volleys and finishing shots. He said, "I felt super connected to my volleys with the TFight 305S. I loved the crisp, clean feel and the precision. Both my power volleys and my drop volleys were finding their targets. I often find 305-gram racquets to have the blend of maneuverability and stability that fits my game, and the TFight 305S felt ideal in this regard. I had so much fun with this racquet on volleys that I looked to attack the net as often as possible."

Despite the lighter overall weight compared to his usual spec, Troy found surprising stability from the TFight 305S. He said, "Like I mentioned previously, this racquet was a bit on the light side for me, but it still played decently solid and stable. It was not far off from the solid and stable feel of the TFight 315S, but there was a bit of a difference. When facing big hitters, I preferred the 315S slightly more because the added mass helped me redirect my volleys, but I wouldn’t say that the stability was bad by any means with this 305S. The 18x19 pattern gave me a more direct and connected feel to my volleys, which I noticed the most when I cut under the ball for slice or back spin, and also on my drop volleys. Another aspect that I mentioned in the 315S review is the grip shape of these Tecnifibre racquets (a rectangular profile). I like it on my volleys and on slice shots (continental grip), but on my semi-western forehand grip it feels a bit awkward and unstable in my palm."

Serves: 8.8

Our playtesters particularly enjoyed the TFight 305S's stability on serves, in addition to its highly reliable and accurate stringbed. This racquet really clicked with every one of Chris' serves. He noted, "My serve was working well with the TFight 305S. I like to add a little slice to most serves, and I found solid access to spin with this racquet. When I did go for a flat serve I was impressed with the accuracy I was able to find. My flat serves to the T from both sides of the court were working well. My wide serves with spin were also working well, and I was able to draw some returner errors."

Troy found plenty of success serving with this racquet, although perhaps not as much as he did with this racquet's sibling, the 315S. He said, "There was easy maneuverability and nice pop on my serves. In terms of precision, it was a small difference between this racquet and the 315S. I still had easy pop on the ball, and an even faster feel with this 305S compared to the 315S, but the 18x19 pattern made it feel a bit more controlled, especially on my hard, flat serves. I had good consistency, great placement and easy racquet speed that allowed me to generate lots of pace. With all that said, I was hitting bigger spin on my serves with the 315S, and there was a heaviness to my serves (that some of my opponents mentioned) that I think was partly due to the mass built into that racquet, as well as the open 16x19 pattern."

Oak's time with the TFight 305S on serve proved to be highly enjoyable. He described, "This racquet is such a beast on serves. It's just so incredibly solid and reliable, which encourages me to go for aggressive first serves and really put my whole body up and into the shot. The control was plentiful, and the racquet accelerates so nicely through the ball. I felt very connected to my serve, and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed hitting a flat bomb up the T on the ad side. The TFight 305S is just a really good racquet for serving, and I loved how smooth it felt, even when I went for a more topspin-heavy kick serve. The TFight 305S is simply a great racquet for starting a point."

For Zsofi, serves were impactful and reliable. She said, "I was able to find a lot of control when I served with this racquet! I especially enjoyed hitting second serves because I thought it was pretty easy for me to tap into a bit more slice for that one."

Returns: 9.1

While our testers all loved serving with the TFight 305S, they may have liked returning with it even more. This racquet allowed Zsofi to impose her game from the get-go, even when she had to react quickly. She explained, "Serve returns were absolutely amazing with this frame! I loved taking control of the rallies very early on with my returns. I could punch the ball back with great accuracy too."

Oak described his experience with the TFight 305S on returns as nothing short of remarkable. He said, "It's such an amazingly solid racquet for returns. The response was incredibly precise and powerful, which allowed me to lean into my aggressive return style. I felt confident going for aggressive angles up the line on my backhand side or rolling the ball cross court from my forehand wing. In many ways, it felt like the ideal balance between control and power when I was returning. The racquet handles super fast, and I never felt pressed for time when returning."

For Chris, the TFight 305S's inherent frame characteristics made for a seriously impactful return experience. He said, "The blend of maneuverability and stability the TFight 305S offers on returns made it a great fit for my style of play. I was able to lean in and drive returns with pace and spin. When looking to mix it up, I also had a lot of success with chip-and-charge plays with the TFight 305S. I felt very accurate with this racquet, which translated to lots of confidence on returns."

Troy also found lots to like when returning with the TFight 305S, and he especially appreciated the racquet's versatility here. He described, “The balance I mentioned in the groundstrokes section made the TFight 305S very appealing to me on returns. I felt like I was equally effective on aggressive offensive returns and when I was in a defensive position. Did I want some more weight built into this racquet? Yes, but it did play well in stock form. I had more confidence with this 305S when ripping a hard and flat return because I could generate good pace deep in the court without fear of hitting long. My slice returns felt nice and controlled, staying low off the bounce. I could chip my backhand lob, which I use a lot in doubles, with consistency, and I was very precise with it. My two-handed backhand return felt dialed in, with this 305S letting me drive it flat and deep. I think adding some weight to this racquet would make it even better for me on returns (maybe like 10 to 15 grams total mass and a few swingweight points would be a nice spec for me)."

Breakdown Summary