Babolat Pure Strike 18x20 3rd Gen Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 82

Our playtesters noticed the heftier nature of the new Babolat Pure Strike 18x20 from the first swing. The control lovers on our team definitely enjoyed playing with this stick. Mark opened the conversation, saying, "Initially, I wondered how the good people at Babolat were going to improve on such an already proven recipe. Armed with both the new and second-generation Pure Strike 18x20s, which were strung similarly, I noticed that the updated racquet swung a bit heavier and provided better feel at impact. After spending some time at the baseline with this stick, I have to name the third generation of the Pure Strike 18x20 as one of the best backcourt racquets I have tested. As expected, my backhand slice was predictable and effective, and directional control was outstanding. As long as it was strung with a textured or shaped polyester string, the 18x20 pattern provided a nearly perfect combination of launch and topspin. Flattening out my groundstrokes does not come naturally for me, but I felt I could easily shape my shots from the baseline and aim them pretty much wherever I wanted."

Julie has been leaning toward control-oriented frames lately, so she found herself right at home with this updated racquet. She explained, "From my forehand to my backhand slice, I enjoyed this frame on every baseline shot. I recently shifted toward low-powered 18x20 string pattern racquets, and this Pure Strike happened to fall right into my new spec range. With other Pure Strike racquets. I had issues with comfort, stability and overhitting, but this Pure Strike 18x20 had everything I needed to place the ball where I wanted. The higher swingweight kept me from overhitting and helped me place the ball with precision. I was impressed with the comfort level as well. In terms of feel, crisp doesn't usually go along with comfort for me, but in this case, I definitely enjoyed the quick response from the stringbed and the crisp feel. I didn't have issues changing the pace either. This frame felt a bit more powerful than my Tecnifibre TF40 305 because I could swing it quicker, but it was nowhere near as powerful as the Babolat Pure Drive I played with in my college years. However, I still had enough mass behind the ball to hit heavy spin, knife the ball on my slices and redirect pace."

This frame was demanding for Tiffani, but she did hit a few impressive shots with it. She said, "I love a good 18x20 string pattern, and I got a very direct response with this Pure Strike 98 18x20. The ball went wherever the racquet face was pointed, and I could hit a big shot when I got everything right. However, getting everything right proved tricky. Mix together the direct response, my flatter strokes and the higher swingweight, and I was left with little margin for error. The plow through and the point-and-shoot response allowed me to hit some winners, which is not typically how I win points. When I got my timing right, the mass of the racquet created a solid, penetrating shot. However, when I was late my shots would be errant because the racquet was too heavy for me to flick to compensate for the lag. Someone with a faster swing and who uses more topspin would likely find this racquet to be very precise on a more consistent basis. I otherwise enjoyed the stability, comfortable feel and power. I also liked how the racquet's weight and string pattern came together on slice shots."

Brittany wanted more free power out of this racquet. She commented, "Right off the bat, I could tell that the Pure Strike 18x20 was going to play differently than the previous model. As the playtest was wrapping up, I realized I was never 100-percent confident with my groundstrokes. The racquet was low powered, and a lot of my shots were landing short at first. I then focused on really swinging through the ball to get the depth I wanted, but I was having trouble adding spin to get the ball to drop. This resulted in my groundstrokes landing deep past the baseline. I had to put in a lot of effort to get the ball to do exactly what I wanted it to do. However, slices with this racquet were impressive. I was able to bail myself out of some defensive situations by hitting a low, penetrating slice on the run. This is not normally a strength of mine, and I welcome any racquet that can help improve my slice backhand both offensively and defensively."

Volleys - Score: 86

The impressive stability of the Babolat Pure Strike 18x20 kept our team confident at net. "Volleying was a dream," said Julie. "This stick was quick to get into position, and I had maximum control on each volley. When a ball came fast at me, I was able to redirect the pace with ease. It felt super solid overall. The ball rarely landed out of the sweetspot, and I had enough feel on my touch volleys to drop the ball right behind the net when I had the opportunity."

Mark's experience at net exceeded his expectations. He noted, "Looking at the 11.4-ounce strung weight and mid-330 swingweight, I was worried about the Pure Strike 18x20's maneuverability at net. However, once I hit my first volleys with this stick I marveled at its high degree of stability and the fact that I didn't have to sacrifice much in the way of maneuverability."

Once Brittany clicked with the Pure Strike 18x20, she felt confident letting the racquet do the work. She said, "I think volleys were my favorite shot to hit with the Pure Strike 18x20. At first I was having trouble being consistent, then I realized I was doing too much, so I kept my volleys nice and simple. I would focus on getting the racquet in position out in front of my body and let the racquet do the work. I could punch a volley deep or reach down low for a pickup volley and angle it off the court. The racquet's lack of maneuverability wasn't as noticeable here, although I would have preferred it to be a little quicker through the air for timing purposes."

Tiffani loved the Pure Strike 18x20's laser-like precision, but she wished it could have cut through the air more quickly. She described, "Once again, I found the Pure Strike 18x20 to have a point-and-shoot response. The racquet just let me block the ball back, and it would go wherever I directed it with good power. I enjoyed the stable feel of this racquet when I was stretching for volleys, so mishits didn't feel jarring. My struggle came with shots at the body. I admittedly had a moment or two of panic when I didn't think I could get the racquet out in front fast enough. It's just a little cumbersome for me to use in quick exchanges."

Serves - Score: 84

Our playtesters found nice plow through and spin when serving with the Babolat Pure Strike 18x20. Mark was pleased with the racquet's ability to hit through his serves. He explained, "This was yet another part of the playtest where this racquet made shot execution a little easier, if not better. Serving ended up being my favorite shot to hit for the entire playtest. Its hefty 334 swingweight gave me those 'heavy' racquet benefits and allowed me to get some pace out of my serve without much effort."

The issues Brittany encountered at the baseline didn't trouble her on serves. She said, "I was actually surprised that I liked the Pure Strike 18x20 as much as I did on serves. It definitely does not have the easy power that I love from the Pure Drive, but once I got the racquet up and moving, I was able to generate some power. However, I am not sure this would be sustainable throughout an entire match. Instead, I focused on placement. I was impressed with my slice serve; I could really pull my opponent wide off the court on the deuce side. This was a perfect setup to drill the next ball (most likely a backhand) cross court into the open court. Second serves also got the job done. I could tell when I was getting tentative because my serves would start to drop into the net. I had to remind myself to really swing through and let the weight of the racquet do the work for me. This translated into some decent kick serves."

Julie gave this category a resounding thumbs up. She said, "I thought the Pure Strike 18x20's power level was ideal. It was easy to generate the power and spin I needed on my serves, and I had enough mass at the hoop for the extra pop that maximized the power and whirl in the ball."

Tiffani found that the Pure Strike 18x20 worked best on serves when she focused on her form and didn't overthink things. She explained, "Proper technique was a must for me to be successful on serves. This racquet felt sluggish as I initiated the swing over my head, and if I didn't let the racquet flow through the motion naturally, or tried to muscle it in any way, I would get a weak response or send the ball long past the box. For me, the trick was letting the racquet do its thing. I liked the weight this Pure Strike 98 18x20 put behind the ball once I set the racquet in motion and let it swing through. It was tougher for me to impart spin, but I could get just enough."

Returns - Score: 79

The solid nature of the Babolat Pure Strike 18x20 let our playtesters redirect pace easily. Julie appreciated the benefits of this racquet's tighter string pattern. She said, "I loved returning with this racquet; I could swing at full speed without worrying about my shot landing outside the court's limits. This Pure Strike is definitely the most control-oriented in the line for me, and it helped tremendously on first serve returns. I also thought it was stable enough to redirect the pace of big first serves with great precision. The Pure Strike 18x20 isn't the most maneuverable option on the market, but this frame is in my spec range, so I was so happy with its power generation. Slapping the ball is just too much fun sometimes!"

On returns, Mark used this frame's unshakable stability to his advantage. He said, "Although the return of serve was not my favorite shot to hit with this Pure Strike 18x20, I did experience a similar effect as I did with my serve. Without this racquet being extremely heavy, I got the benefits of a hefty frame thanks to the increased swingweight. After playing quite a few sets and tie-breakers with it, I felt like I found more consistency and efficiency on each return."

The Pure Strike 18x20's maneuverability caused Tiffani to alter her timing. She explained, "I don't often have a favorite wing when returning, but this time around my backhand return was much easier to hit, for whatever reason. It may have been because with two hands on the racquet I was less likely to hit the ball late. My forehand return took me a while to fine-tune. Initially, I was dumping a lot of forehand returns into the net. When I reminded myself to keep my stroke short or opt for the chip return on my forehand, I was much more successful."

Brittany had mixed feelings about the Pure Strike 18x20's return game. She concluded, "I was pretty neutral when it came to hitting returns. There were some aspects of the racquet that I liked (stability) and others that I struggled with (maneuverability). I was often late returning, so I had to make some adjustments. I found success when I shortened my swing and blocked first serves back. On second serve returns, I had to step up and make sure I was adding a little bit of spin since I could really launch the ball if I got the racquet moving."

Overall - Score: 83