Dunlop Aerogel 200
Dunlop Aerogel 200
Introducing to you Dunlop’s latest, Aerogel technology was actually first used by NASA scientists for its incredible support to weight ratio. To be exact, Aerogel material is said to sustain up to 4000 times its own strength! With such potential, Dunlop was among the first to implement this sort of technology into their tennis racquets. Simply called their Aerogel line, the Aerogel 200 was one of the first frames we had to get our hands on and play test.
Groundstrokes
Even before I stepped onto the courts with the Aerogel 200, it was clear from the specs that I had a very control oriented tennis racquet on my hands. Equipped with a 95 square inch head, very thin beam, and just under 12 ounce weight, I expected a player’s type frame that would be geared more towards control. As I began to rally, what I expected and what translated were very close. Offering a considerable amount more control than power, shots off both my forehand and backhand inched closer and closer to the lines. As I became more and more comfortable with the Aerogel 200, I found that I was disappointed only if my shots didn’t hit the lines or come pretty close.
The only shock that came from hitting with this Dunlop was the amount of spin I was able to generate. Not expecting much from the closed 18 x 20 string pattern, the easy access to spin from the racquet was a delight. Whether I was trying to go for the angle and spin my shot wide or hitting a put-a-way from in or around the service line, putting that extra topspin on the ball to keep it from going long was a cinch.
Serving with the Dunlop Aerogel 200 stayed true to what you would think a player’s racquet would serve like. What I mean by this is that going for aces simply by hammering the ball past your opponent isn’t idle with this stick. Instead, hitting angles out wide seemed to be a better approach. Being able to generate spin without too much effort, hitting serves wide with heavy topspin soon became a weapon for me. After figuring out that I wasn’t going to be able zoom the ball down the line at 120mph, hitting serves wide to force my opponent off the court then putting the ball away became routine.
On the other end of the court, return of serves felt both comfortable and stable. I happened to be playing with a fellow co-worker who had a very big first serve. Andy Roddick-esque, he’s usually able to pound them in, leaving you the only option of blocking the ball back. That wasn’t the case with the 200, however. Though blocking the ball back with some slice worked fine, I soon found that I was able to swing through the ball and still receive a very solid feel. Rather than constantly being on the defensive why my opponent was on serve, I found that when certain serves came in my comfort zone, regardless of the pace, I could really take a whack at the ball and be in an offensive mode.
Volleying
Up at the net with the Aerogel 200 was very maneuverable and easy to use. I found that I was able to get my racquet head on a lot of balls and place them where I wanted. If I had to choose a downside to this racquet though, it would be that volleys hit off center werent as forgiving I would have liked. I guess I couldnt expect much from a 95 square inch head in the first place. The end result from off center volleys was shorter depth than I prefer from my volleys. Nonetheless, it was still more than manageable to put away volleys when given time to set up for my shot.
Wrap Up…
Reviewed by: Mark Ibraham
To purchase the Dunlop Aerogel 200 click here
