Babolat Aeropro Drive Tennis Racquet
- Sports Type: Tennis
- Brand: Babolat
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Well Worth The Price
Pros
Great spin, good cortex system, very good design
Cons
Need to hit with spin to get the most out of it
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Worth getting for the spin potential.
The Aero Pro Drive (APD) is the signature racket offered by Babolat, and is a variation of the racket that world number 2 Rafael Nadal uses (he uses a modified APD Cortex), as well as the weapon of choice of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Because of the high profile users, everyone wants one, but is is worth it? Well, let me tell you my story.
I am a 4.5 level heavy baseliner who hits with a lot of topspin and likes rackets around 11.5 ounces. My friend had gotten this racket while I was still using my Prince O3 Silver, and we switched rackets for our match, and I loved the spin potential so that I went out and bought one for my own rec use. I work and play at a local tennis center, so I have access to several stringers and strings.
Ok, so that's my story. Let me start off by stating that this racket is VERY GOOD, but only for some players. For those who hit with a lot of topsin, this racket is very good, due to it's AERO triangular like shape, which gives you plenty of plowthrough. My topsin shots work great from all areas of the court, especially from the baseline. My killer shot is my mega-slice forehand, which works very well, but I like it on my present racket more (Babolat Drive-Z 105). On serve, shots went where I wanted them too with enough kick to throw the other players off guard, and that along with my fast flat serve kept them off guard. The reason why I said that this is only good for some is that you really need the shot to get the most out of this. My friend that I mentioned earlier uses it, but hits very flat without any sort of spin, and so, doesn't get as much out of it as I can. The internal Cortex system works well at suppressing the vibrations tranferred through the handle, but I still would use a vibration dampener if you use one currently. For me, it's a little light, so I added an ounce of lead tape up at the head.
As far as strings, I tested three different sets over play testing periods of 1 week each. The first was my current string of choice, a LUXILON ALU Power Spin, which helped increase spin even more. The second was a set of BABOLAT XCEL Power, good because the power on this stick is relatively low. The last was a hybrid job, with Genesis Black Magic on the mains and Wilson NXT on the crosses, which worked very well, but I prefer the co-poly in this stick. If you have any arm problems, go with a multi like XCEL Power or NXT. Also, I string my rackets at mid tension (57).
Overall, this racket is a good stick for any experienced play with lots of spin.
I am a 4.5 level heavy baseliner who hits with a lot of topspin and likes rackets around 11.5 ounces. My friend had gotten this racket while I was still using my Prince O3 Silver, and we switched rackets for our match, and I loved the spin potential so that I went out and bought one for my own rec use. I work and play at a local tennis center, so I have access to several stringers and strings.
Ok, so that's my story. Let me start off by stating that this racket is VERY GOOD, but only for some players. For those who hit with a lot of topsin, this racket is very good, due to it's AERO triangular like shape, which gives you plenty of plowthrough. My topsin shots work great from all areas of the court, especially from the baseline. My killer shot is my mega-slice forehand, which works very well, but I like it on my present racket more (Babolat Drive-Z 105). On serve, shots went where I wanted them too with enough kick to throw the other players off guard, and that along with my fast flat serve kept them off guard. The reason why I said that this is only good for some is that you really need the shot to get the most out of this. My friend that I mentioned earlier uses it, but hits very flat without any sort of spin, and so, doesn't get as much out of it as I can. The internal Cortex system works well at suppressing the vibrations tranferred through the handle, but I still would use a vibration dampener if you use one currently. For me, it's a little light, so I added an ounce of lead tape up at the head.
As far as strings, I tested three different sets over play testing periods of 1 week each. The first was my current string of choice, a LUXILON ALU Power Spin, which helped increase spin even more. The second was a set of BABOLAT XCEL Power, good because the power on this stick is relatively low. The last was a hybrid job, with Genesis Black Magic on the mains and Wilson NXT on the crosses, which worked very well, but I prefer the co-poly in this stick. If you have any arm problems, go with a multi like XCEL Power or NXT. Also, I string my rackets at mid tension (57).
Overall, this racket is a good stick for any experienced play with lots of spin.
