Experience ultimate precision and control on court with the Babolat Pure Strike 18/20 (Unstrung) in White/Red/Black, a new generation tennis racket created for versatile, aggressive players, daring game-changers, and fast, compact counter players.Designed for aggressive hitters looking for stability and consistency on impact, the Babolat Pure Strike 18/20 is designed to ensure an exceptional feel. Its mid-plus headsize is more forgiving and provides you with a winning combination of power and precision.NF2 Tech sees the addition of natural flax fibres to the handle, providing optimal vibration filtration for extreme feel at impact. The flax fibres also generate a muted sound, for an even more controlled feel as you strike the ball.Frame String Interaction (FSI) Control technology combines the tighter string pattern – for more control – with the Woofer system, increasing contact time between the ball and the strings for more feel with every shot.Furthermore, Control Frame Technology has been developed to ensure maximum control, combining the stability of a square-section frame with the power of a standard elliptical structure, resulting in a racket that’s specifically precision focussed.BabolatOne of the sport’s most historic brands, Babolat’s tennis story began all the way back in 1875, when, utilising their expertise in the processing of natural gut for musical instruments and archery bows, Pierre Babolat and his team produced the first ever natural gut racket string.A series of innovations followed, including the tension-resistant Babolat VS string in 1925, which remains popular today, through to the Cordynel – the world’s first electric stringing machine – in 1981. The Lyon-based brand are also responsible for some of the most technologically advanced synthetic strings on the market, such as the RPM and Xcel ranges. In short, they are the masters of strings.But what about rackets? It might surprise you to learn that Babolat’s first range of rackets was released relatively recently, with another Pierre Babolat, great grandson of the family company’s founder, creating the Pure line in 1994.Having cleverly gifted their frames to talented up-and-comers, Babolat’s name began to ring out on the pro circuit, chiefly thanks to the Pure Drive. After Carlos Moya won the French Open in ’98 using the power-focused racket, Andy Roddick and Kim Clijsters became ATP and WTA No.1s with the same frame in 2003. A couple of years later, a youthful Rafael Nadal won his first Slam title, conquering Roland-Garros with the Aeropro Drive, which was specifically designed to suit his spin-based play.Nowadays, Babolat split their rackets into three categories: the Pure Drive for power, the Pure Aero for spin, and the Pure Strike for control. Each series comes in a range of headsizes and weights to suit all ages, body types, and skill levels, with comfort-focused EVO editions available for players who prioritise fun and gradual improvement.Babolat StrikeFirst released in 2014, the control-focused Strike series takes the feel and precision of more traditional rackets and updates it for the modern game, offering a wide range of headsizes, string patterns, and stiffnesses to give you the exact performance you’re after. For players who grew up using frames with thin beams and smaller headsizes, it’s the ideal up-to-date option. Or, if you’re a younger player who favours control and wants to sample the “connectedness” the old guys are talking about, the Strike is the way to go. As with all Babolat’s main racket collections, there are Pure, Evo, and Boost editions available to cater for experienced, improving, and casual players alike.Control RacketControl rackets usually have closed string patterns – essentially, more strings per area – to increase ball contact and give you more control over your shots. They tend to have thinner beams to allow more flex and often utilise material technologies to make you feel more connected to the ball. Features• Endorsed by Cameron Norrie• Headsize: 630 sq cm / 98 sq in• Weight: 305g / 10.8oz• Balance: 320mm• Stiffness: 68 RA• Length: 685mm / 27in• Composition: Graphite• String pattern: 18x20• Grip: Syntec Team• Grip size: 2 3 4• NF2 Tech: addition of natural flax fibres provides optimal vibration filtration for extreme feel at impact, the flax also generates a muted sound, for an even more controlled feel• FSI Control: Frame String Interaction Control is a technology that combines a tighter string pattern for more control with the Woofer system, which increases contact time between the ball and the string for more feel• Control Frame Technology: developed for maximum control, combines the stability of a square-section frame with the power of a standard elliptical structure
