Dunlop SX 300 Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 82

Our playtesters unanimously found power to be the standout feature of the Dunlop SX 300 on groundstrokes. Jason appreciated how easy it was to put heat on the ball with this update, though he had a bit of trouble reining all that power in at times. He described, "This racquet packed a punch off the ground! And with the open string pattern, I was also able to hit deep and put spin on my shots. It was easy to attack and put away sitters with this racquet without much effort. However, I noticed that launching the ball long was easier to do compared to my own racquet if I wasn't putting enough topspin on the ball. In other words, it was easy to overhit with this racquet. I would've also preferred the racquet to be a few more points head light to make it more maneuverable."

"When I first started playing with this racquet, I wasn't really digging it," said Tiffani. "I struggled to fine-tune my depth, and the string setup was too stiff for me, making the racquet feel a bit boardy. As the string dropped tension and I played with the SX 300 more, I had a much better experience. I stopped focusing on what I didn't like and discovered a solid racquet. Even though I don't play with tons of spin, I appreciated how much arc I could put on the ball, and instead of my shots flying long, they were landing deep in the court near the baseline. I also liked how well I could knife my slice shots with this racquet. The SX 300 felt stable and maneuverable, and by the end of the playtest I was enjoying its playability and how well it was working for my counterpunching game."

This racquet felt very powerful off the ground for Erik. He said, "My slices were staying low if I was leaning into them and hitting out in front. I enjoyed the maneuverability of this racquet, and it allowed me to hit slices without issue. However, if I was on my back foot, the slices tended to sit up and fly long. This racquet was pretty stable for its weight. It was quite maneuverable and easy to generate racquet head speed. It worked OK for my game style. I did find myself either hitting a big loopy ball or spraying long, and it was tough to hit neutral balls because it was such a powerful racquet. I also found that this racquet did not have much feel; it was very muted for my taste."

The Dunlop SX 300 had a bit more power than Kristen was used to with her racquet of choice. She said, "The standout feature on groundstrokes for me was power. It was easy to get this racquet moving through the air, and it definitely had a powerful response off the stringbed. However, while the racquet felt super comfortable on contact, it was also quite muted, which made it tough to read the response off the stringbed. I struggled with control, especially at the beginning of the playtest when a lot of balls were launching long. I was able to adjust to the feel slightly as the playtest went on. I played a bit more conservatively and concentrated on loading up the balls with spin to keep them within the lines, but I never felt truly dialed in or confident during point play."

Volleys - Score: 83

The SX 300 offered our team a stable response with plenty of put-away power when hitting volleys. Even though Kristen has a counterpunching game style, she still finds her way to the net. She said, “This racquet felt stable for its weight up at net. It was easy to put balls away when my timing was right, and I really dictated the placement of the ball."

Hitting volleys with this racquet was Jason's favorite portion of the playtest. He said, "There was such easy access to power that I could put away volleys and overheads with no issue. The string pattern and Spin Boost grommets worked great when I tried to put some sideways spin on the ball to spin it away from my opponent."

Tiffani was pleased with the SX 300's touch and stability at net. She described, "Like with groundstrokes, I needed to adjust to the response of the SX 300 on volleys. The racquet was at its best when punching volleys, but I was able to get some decent touch as well. I was once again impressed by the stability of the racquet considering its weight, and I didn't notice much twisting in my hands on off-center shots."

"This racquet was pretty easy to use up at net thanks to all the power that was being generated," continued Erik. "Unfortunately, the feel was quite muted, so it was tough to find the ball on the stringbed, and I didn't feel very connected to the ball. I typically play with a dampener, and I ended up taking my dampener off to see if I could get more feedback off the stringbed, which helped a little, but not much. I found myself hitting deeper volleys with a lot of punch on them rather than delicate touch volleys."

Serves - Score: 80

Our playtesters had trouble coming to a consensus on the performance on serves. After fine-tuning different parts of her serve, Tiffani found access to power and spin. She said, "My serve is a work in progress as always, and I've made a few adjustments to my motion in the last few weeks. This SX 300 didn't have a whippy feel overhead, but it still swung easily. It had just enough weight to it that I could hit with good pace, and when I got my motion right, there was good access to spin as well."

Erik was looking for a more consistent response from the SX 300. He said, "I wish this racquet was more predictable on serves. If I got in the 'grip-and-rip' mindset, I seemed to benefit from this racquet, but when I played conservatively it was quite unpredictable. My favorite serves to hit with this racquet were the kick serves out wide on the ad side and body serves on the deuce side."

On the other hand, Kristen appreciated being able to hit both kick and slice serves. She said, "This racquet swung overhead easily, and I found I could tap into a good amount of spin, which allowed me to get good consistency on serves. However, I was missing the plow through I needed to get a heavier, more powerful response and to feel more connected to the ball."

Jason had some ups and downs when it came time to serve with the SX 300. He explained, "My racquet of choice, the Wilson Clash 100, is similar in weight, but I was getting much more power with this SX 300. The increase in unreturned serves or sitter returns was noticeable when I was using this racquet, but I felt like my overall service percentage went down a bit, with most faults being long."

Returns - Score: 82

For the most part, the SX 300 was a weapon on returns in the hands of the playtesters, offering power, depth and stability. Once again, Jason used the easy power and depth to his advantage. He said, "I hate to sound like a broken record, but the power of the racquet is what stood out to me. Control was only average, but when I was able to rocket a return back, placement didn't matter much. Even when I could only chip a serve back, the return landed with good depth."

"I found that the SX 300 performed well on returns when I took a shorter swing and redirected the pace of my opponent's serve back into the court," continued Kristen. "In particular, I was finding some really great angles off my backhand cross-court return on the ad side."

Tiffani was successful hitting returns after she made a conscious effort to add a little more spin. She said, "I'm always happier when returning serves rather than hitting them, and it didn't take long for me to find my range with this SX 300. I did need to be aware that I needed to add some spin if I wanted to take a big swing. My returns are even flatter than my groundstrokes a lot of the time, so when I wasn't thinking about adding spin I missed returns long past the baseline."

Erik found a little too much power in the SX 300 on returns. He wrapped up the playtest, saying, "When I was returning a hard serve my return tended to launch unless I was super controlled with my body. The racquet felt pretty solid in my hands overall, but for my personal preference, it could use a little weight on returns. On the plus side, it was quite maneuverable and easy to get around my body."

Overall - Score: 81