It is quite annoying when tennis is your sport and you have pain in your arm or shoulder. Fortunately, there are tennis rackets that offer maximum comfort and vibration dampening, so that you can continue to practice your sport with pleasure. Today we will discuss the arm-friendly tennis rackets .
What does an arm-friendly tennis racket do?
Simply put, an arm-friendly tennis racket should offer extra comfort and therefore less impact for arm, shoulder and body. This can be done by a larger ideal hitting zone for the ball, extra damping properties, offering more hitting power for extra (free) power or by a less stiff frame itself. In addition, your racket/string combination is crucial for extra playing ease and comfort.
What are the specifications of an arm-friendly tennis racket?
In general, the larger the blade, the more forgiving the racket. After all, off-center hits don't immediately punish you with extra 'blows' to the arm and shoulder as a result. The rackets with larger blade sizes usually also work with a wider frame construction for extra hitting power and a wider frame is usually also stiffer. The stiffer a frame, the more free power it offers. So that's all logical, right!? But this increased stiffness does offer more shock load. Difficult then? Fortunately, it's not that bad. First of all, it's useful to determine what kind of swing type you have: short/compact, medium or full. If you fall into the first group of players, you can use some extra power in your strokes. Check the first group of rackets below for this. If you have a medium to full swing yourself, there are also very comfortable competition frames. Because this player puts a lot more speed into the ball from his swing, the rackets themselves don't have to be that stiff. In fact, these are somewhat more low-powered with the advantage that there are also rackets with significantly lower RA values (stiffness). A less stiff frame gives less shock load by itself. Check the second group of rackets below for this.
Also useful to know:
For the rest, it is also useful to know that a more open stringing pattern provides more trampoline effect and dynamics. A higher balance point (more weight in the top of the racket) provides more power, but also more leverage on the wrist and arm. The weight of a racket: a lighter racket is not always more comfortable! After all, you need sufficient mass to be able to bring through the ball to give the ball speed and length. And last but not least: your stringing can make up to 50% of the playing characteristics of your racket. So make sure you have a good racket-string combination and replace your string regularly to maintain playing pleasure! That is why we also supply all 'performance' rackets with a free string of your choice from our webshop. For the sake of clarity, you will find all racket specifications explained here ! Below you will find an overview of the most arm-friendly rackets on the market. Click on the links for extra information.
Arm-friendly rackets for players with a short/compact swing:
- Prince Sovereign: The 'biggest sweet spot in tennis' provides an incredibly forgiving racket packed with power for someone who doesn't have it themselves.
- Diadem Nova FS 105 Lite: the unique Flex Stabilization System technology is a kind of rib structure in the frame against the racket wall, which is further filled with a special damping foam. This is in contrast to many other frames in this genre that are hollow. Generous 105 sq/inch blade size combined with a racket with extra damping.
- Prince O3 Beast 100 280: a strong blend of stability and comfort thanks to the return of the O3 ports. These 'holes' in the racket significantly increase the sweet spot for reduced shock load. Although a 100 sq/inch head, it has a generous ideal hitting zone.
- The Prince Precision Equipe 300 is the former Prince Textreme Warrior 107: 'one-of-a-kind' racket from Prince. With 300 grams relatively heavy in this category, but the low 31.0 balance makes the racket insanely manoeuvrable. The generous blade size provides excellent damping with a stable playing feel.
- The Prince Precision Equipe 280 is the former Prince Textreme Warrior 107T: in terms of specs this racket is very close to the well-known TT Bandit, a racket that has always excelled in comfort and power. This Precision Equipe 280 is at a nice middle weight with 280 grams.
- Babolat Pure Drive 110: by far one of Babolat's most comfortable frames.
Arm-friendly rackets for players with an average to large swing
Let's not generalize, players with a bigger swing can also be looking for extra comfort and vibration dampening. So maintaining a bit of control is important, but do you want your racket to have something extra in terms of arm friendliness? See below.
- Prince Phantom 97P : insane (slim!) competition frame from Prince where everything revolves around control and feeling. This includes a wonderfully low RA of 58.
- Tecnifibre TF-X1 300 : a real power frame, but one that feels incredibly comfortable and stable.
- Diadem Elevate FS 98 : beautiful (fully!) foam filled player's frame that excels in stability and comfort.
- Babolat Pure Drive : Babolat's super all-rounder offers comfort, touch, power and stability with easy access to spin. With Cortex Pure Feel for extra vibration dampening.
- Babolat Pure Drive Lite : lightweight comfort in a 100 sq/inch blade size: ideal for the better youth or for a sporty lady who attaches extra value to comfort.
- Yonex EZONE 100 7th gen : very generous sweet spot for a 100 sq/inch racket, great playing comfort and incredibly stable.
- Yonex EZONE 98 7th gen : fine competition blade with great ball feel, a good mix of power and control and sublime stability which means very few unwanted vibrations.
- Diadem Nova FS 100 and Diadem Nova FS 100 Lite: the unique Flex Stabilization System technology is a kind of rib structure in the frame against the racket wall, which is further filled with a special damping foam. This is in contrast to many other frames in this genre that are hollow. A racket with more than enough power, but without the raw edge and the extra stiffness that you can often feel on the arm.
- Wilson Clash 100 V2 : a racket with an RA of 57, but with the power of a Pure Drive, is this possible? Yes it is: an insane mix of power, control and comfort!
- Wilson Clash 100 Pro V2 : with 310 grams the 'big brother' of the regular Clash 100 V2. A very comfortable option in a somewhat heavier weight class. Also recommended is the Clash 98 V2 for a combination of control and comfort.