Our playtesters enjoyed the maneuverability and spin on their groundstrokes, but with its rather head-light balance, the Babolat Pure Strike 100 16x20 was not without fault. Brittany thought the racquet responded best to full swings. She explained, "I have playtested all the Pure Strike generations, and the 100 (16x19 string pattern) has been my favorite in the past, so I was excited to try this new string pattern. Spoiler alert! I ended up really liking it! When hitting groundstrokes, I noticed a nice blend of power and control, leaning more toward the control side. I found the most success when being aggressive and not holding back. I would pick a target and take a full swing, and I was confident that the ball would go where I wanted. If I let up a little, my ball would land a little short and was easier to attack."

Tiffani compared this new model to other Pure Strikes. She said, "As soon as I saw a 100-square-inch Pure Strike with a slightly denser string pattern, I was excited to try it on the court. This Pure Strike 100 16x20 was the first of the family I grabbed from the playtest stack to try out. I found the response to be closer to the Pure Strike 98 16x19 than the Pure Strike 100, which had a higher launch angle. The power and control levels were similar to me, and the unstrung weights are the same on the 100 16x20 and 98 16x19. The difference for me was mainly that the 16x20 feels whippier, whereas the Pure Strike 98 16x19 swings with a bit more heft and plow through. This Pure Strike 100 16x20 felt fast, and I really liked how I could keep my slice backhands low and skid them through the court. This racquet offered me good targeting, but not a ton of free power. Depth was achievable, but it did require me to keep my swing speed up and not get 'scared' or tentative during points."

Our newest playtester, Ana, praised the Pure Strike 100 16x20's quickness. She described, "I was able to turn and take the racquet back quicker than with other racquets I've used. I felt like I was rarely late on my shots. The racquet responded very well on heavy high-spin shots and angles. It felt great when my opponent hit a low slice, and I would come around under the ball and hit a fast forehand. However, due to that low swingweight, it also felt unstable, and I had to do more with my stroke to make sure I was going to get the ball in the court. I had to use my wrist more in my follow-throughs to get to that control I was looking for. This is a great racquet if you generate a lot of spin, bit if it were up to me, I would add weight to the head of the racquet to increase the swingweight and make the racquet more balanced and stable."

Zsofi also appreciated the maneuverability, but she craved more stability from the Pure Strike 100 16x20. She said, "One of the highlights of this playtest for me was just how fast the racquet head came around; it was super easy to accelerate, which especially helped with quick reaction shots. That 16x20 string pattern really shone with the 100-square-inch head size and the quick racquet head speed. The result was great spin potential. I loved using spin to generate depth and some pretty crazy angles, especially from the baseline. However, the frame got pushed around more than I would have liked. I would love to customize it and add some weight to the hoop to fix this."

The Pure Strike 100 16x20's easy maneuverability was a huge plus for our team on volleys. That said, most of our testers would have liked a bit more power at the net. Zsofi explained, "I did think the racquet was a bit underpowered, so I really had to stick my volleys to create the depth I was looking for. Otherwise, I enjoyed how fast the racquet head came around on quick reaction volleys."

Ana praised the speed of the racquet head, saying, "I was pushing a little more than usual to find a good feel for the ball and to get my volleys deep and low. Like on my groundstrokes, the Pure Strike 100 16x20 felt quick, and I could react easily. I did like the feel of the racquet on my volleys even though I felt a little pushed back at contact. It was not very forgiving when I hit my volleys late, but when I was able to get clean, firm contact, the Pure Strike 100 16x20 responded very well."

"Although I liked how easy it was to maneuver into position, I felt I needed to stick my volleys to get good depth," said Tiffani, echoing Zsofi and Ana. "I think the Pure Strike 100 16x20 was a little too head light at net, where I could feel some instability when I missed the sweetspot. Because I'm not the most confident volleyer, I would have liked a bit more stability on this particular shot."

On the other hand, Brittany found great stability on her volleys with the Pure Strike 100 16x20. She said, "When I approached the net, the first thing I noticed was the stability. For me, the racquet felt stable even when I was reaching or hitting an off-center volley. It did feel less maneuverable than the Pure Strike 100, and I was late on a couple of volleys. When it came to feel, I thought the racquet played a little softer and more comfortably than the previous generation."

When it came to serving with the Pure Strike 100 16x20, the quick racquet head speed translated into easy spin and slice for our playtesters. While Brittany struggled a bit with the lower power level on her serves, she was able to make up for it nicely with spin. She said, "I prefer a racquet that offers a little more easy power. I had to really put in effort to generate racquet head speed on flatter first serves. My favorite serve to hit was the slice first serve out wide on the deuce side. I liked that I could focus on my placement to make up for the lack of MPHs and still get some free points, or at least start off on offense."

"I liked how this racquet came over my head, and I found the Pure Strike 100 16x20 to be quite spin friendly on my serves," added Tiffani. "I was getting more action on my slice serves than I had anticipated, and I found it to swing more easily than I thought it would, which initially had me cutting slices too wide on the deuce side. I adjusted my targeting and enjoyed swinging my serves out wide on that side. I wasn't able to overpower anyone, but that's nothing new for me. Using spin and placement got me into points without too much trouble."

Ana also felt like she could easily harness the maneuverability to create spin on her serves. She noted, "The Pure Strike 100 16x20 felt great on serves. Due to the racquet being so great at generating spin, I was able to hit a great kick serve with lots of spin and speed, and I could get that high bounce going out of the court. My slice was also great; it was low and fast, and I was able to pull my opponent off the court."

The serve was one of the best parts of the playtest for Zsofi. She said, "I really enjoyed hitting serves and overheads with the Pure Strike 100 16x20. I felt like I could tap into the true potential of the frame. I found great control on my shots, and I felt confident picking my targets, especially on my slice serves."

Easy maneuverability and quick racquet head speed were again the standout features when returning serves with the Babolat Pure Strike 100 16x20. Each playtester found a way to really maximize the racquet's potential for her individual playing style. Ana described, "The racquet felt great in terms of how quickly I could get set. On second serves, I looked for a deeper return by stepping back and letting the ball come to me instead of stepping in and taking the time away. I found it worked better, and I could get my opponent out of position with a high heavy return away from the middle."

Although Zsofi thought the Pure Strike 100 16x20 got pushed around a little on returns, she was able to adjust both her shot and shot selection to better match the racquet. She explained, "Unfortunately, I did have some issues with control because the racquet wasn't stable enough, and it got pushed around a bit against heavier-hitting opponents. Because of this, I wish the swingweight was a bit higher to stabilize the frame more in those situations. This stability issue also showed in my returns, so I had to keep that in mind when choosing the type of shot I was going for."

For Brittany, taking full swings was the best way to hit returns with the Pure Strike 100 16x20. She said, "I felt comfortable starting a point with my return. Similar to my groundstrokes, I could pick riskier targets and take full swings on both first and second serve returns. I was able to be precise, which helped me transition to offense with ease."

"As is typical for me, I preferred starting points on the return," added Tiffani. "The Pure Strike 100 16x20 does feel fast through the air, so I could use full swings for the most part. The trajectory off the stringbed also felt very controllable, so I felt confident taking aim on my returns."