Breakdown

Groundstrokes: 8.3

With its extended length, larger head size and 16x19 string pattern, the Wilson Blade 104 v9 comes ready to offer easy power, shot depth and access to spin from the baseline. The excellent maneuverability of this Blade 104 was a highlight for Tiffani. She said, "Although I've strayed from extended-length frames as my go-to racquets, I always find them fun to use. This Blade 104 v9 stayed true to theme. One of the reasons I've not used a 27.5-inch racquet as frequently is that I often find them difficult to maneuver over longer stretches of time. That was not an issue with this Blade 104. It comes around very quickly for its length, and I think it helps add a stable feel as well. Considering its weight, the Blade 104 v9 does stand up better to harder hit shots. Although this racquet is in the Blade family, it delivers more power than the other Blade frames.The only issue I really had was when trying to hit winners with my flatter shots, which tended to go long."

Jason agreed, adding, "This Blade 104 v9 really swung fast! It was super quick through the air even though it has an extended length, and it allowed me to generate a ton of spin on my shots. The open string pattern also helped me achieve easy height over the net, which was both good and bad since I was having some trouble controlling the depth of my shots. I found that most of my misses went long."

The comfort and responsiveness from the baseline impressed Mark , who said he would add a little weight to hone the stability and directional control. He said, “There was much to enjoy and very little to gripe about when playing with the ninth generation of Wilson's Blade 104 from the baseline. The combination of its 27.5-inch length, 16x19 string pattern and responsive layup of graphite afforded easy shot depth, easy access to spin and great comfort. My main consideration for groundstrokes is whether a racquet allows me to absorb pace and change the direction of the ball without much fuss. The frame I was testing had a pretty low swingweight, and although it was surprisingly capable in that regard, a little extra weight in the hoop would improve the Blade 104 v9's directional control." 

Volleys: 8.2

One of the most important qualities for success at the net is maneuverability, and despite its extended length, the Wilson Blade 104 v9 excels in that respect. Mark explained, "The all-court prowess of the Blade 104 v9 was evident at net. Its extra frame length and slightly larger head size helped make most any volley easier for me to execute, and this racquet provided a plush feel, even outside of the sweetspot." 

The larger head size offered versatility for Tiffani's volleys. She said, "I didn't have any issues with getting this racquet into position despite its extended length. I also enjoyed the larger hitting area from the head size. I could hit a variety of volleys, although the feel was somewhat dampened so sometimes I wasn't quite sure whether I hit the ball in or out until it landed."

The Blade 104 v9's speedy maneuverability impressed Jason at net. He said, "This racquet felt lightning quick on my volleys. I was able to easily snap my wrist on overheads to put the ball away. With the open string pattern and extended length, the power was definitely there. However, I did notice that torsional stability was not as great against the bigger hit shots. I would add some tungsten tape at 3 and 9 o'clock to help with that."

Serves: 8.8

Our team agreed that serving was a highlight of playtesting the Wilson Blade 104 v9. For Jason, the power and spin he got from his serves was impressive. He said, "I was pleasantly surprised with the pop I was able to get on my serves, which usually doesn't happen with a racquet that weighs less than 11 ounces and has a sub-315 swingweight. I was also able to gain great access to spin on my slice serves."

The extended length also helped Tiffani with her serving. She described, "This might have been my favorite shot to hit with the Blade 104 v9. With standard-length racquets, I tend to hang my pinky off the end of the racquet to get extra reach, but with this racquet's 27.5-inch length, that extra reach comes built in! I could hit with more pace and good spin, and I thought directional control was good as well."

Mark had a good time serve-and-volleying with the Blade 104 v9. He said, "It is not likely that I will convert to a full time serve-and-volley strategy with any racquet. However, my serve confidence, combined with how easy it was for me to volley with the Blade 104 v9, made it a no-brainer decision to frequently charge the net after my serve instead of waiting for the invite from a short groundstroke."

Returns: 8.1

Our playtesters all agreed the Wilson Blade 104 v9 was easy to get into position for returning serves. They did have varying experiences with stability and control, though. Tiffani was impressed by how stable this Blade felt. She said, "The comfort and stability on returns took me by surprise with this Blade 104 v9. The v9’s specs didn’t lead me to believe it would feel stable on returns, but I didn't have many issues with it feeling too light. Because of the maneuverability I could also take some full swings on returns. It's not really a drawback, but the only thing I needed to be aware of was not going for too much because this racquet does offer really easy depth and pace. Getting too ambitious typically resulted in me missing my shot."

Adding topspin to his returns was key for Jason. He said, "Getting the racquet on the ball was not a problem because of how quickly it swung, and I felt like I could take a full cut at the ball even when going up against most first serves. However, I was definitely overhitting more often than I’m used to, and I had to make sure I was adding topspin to my shots to get them to drop in. I thought control was lacking just a bit."

Maneuverability came at the expense of stability for Mark. He said, "The Blade 104 v9's maneuverability was never in question on my return of serve, but stability against big serves was. Off medium-paced serves, rendering a good return was easy and predictable. Once the pace of the serve increased beyond that I noticed the hoop wobbling a little, and at that point, it became a struggle to keep the return low and deep."

Breakdown Summary