Wilson Burn 100 Countervail Racquet Review

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Upsides

Improved feel
Easy power and depth
Spin friendly

Downsides

Stiffness led to some arm soreness

Summary

Players can access daring power and spin with the updated Wilson Burn 100 Countervail. Our playtesters individually noted several areas of the court that this racquet served as a weapon, but collectively they were especially impressed with the updated comfort and " ampened feel" that Countervail provided in comparison to the previous version of the Wilson Burn 100. Besides the improved comfort, our playtesters found the Burn 100 to be fairly easy to swing and generated more than enough racquet head speed, leading to ample amounts of spin. As a stiffer racket choice, the Burn 100 offered great power, stability and depth on groundstrokes, volleys and returns alike. However, as a result, our playtesters did find the stiffness to cause some arm and wrist pain during their hitting sessions. The feedback on serves was mixed, but the majority ruled that this was the weakest shot with the Burn 100. Overall, the Wilson Burn 100 is equipped with a maneuverable spec, offering loads of spin potential and good overall power for baseline players looking to add some extra heat to their game!

Wilson Burn 100 Countervail scores
Power	85/100
Comfort	74/100
Touch/Feel	82/100
Serves	83/100
Groundstrokes	86/100
Returns	86/100
Slice	86/100
Topspin	86/100
Volleys	85/100
Overall	83/100

Overall - Score: 83/100

Groundstrokes - Score: 86 / 100

The TW playtesters were impressed with the Burn 100 Countervail at the baseline. All agreed the racket had excellent power, depth and spin potential. The racket was predictable, and although it is a stiffer option and felt ultra responsive, the sweetspot was forgiving and easily attainable especially from the baseline. For a powerful racket, the Wilson Burn 100 Countervail was surprisingly maneuverable and spin-friendly. Some of the playtesters were on the previous version and noted the improved feel and comfort. Tiffani noted, " he stiffness level was still there to provide easy power and depth, but my arm didn't feel it as much. After a few weeks of hitting, I did notice some soreness in my wrist, but I still felt that comfort was improved overall."

Volleys - Score: 85 / 100

Up at net, the Wilson Burn 100 Countervail felt very fast and easy to manoeuvre. The TW playtesters were impressed with how easy it was to use and appreciated the success they received when ending a point with a simple volley. Chris was able to capitalize, saying, " felt like I was getting it into position quickly, and it felt fast through contact. I enjoyed punching my volleys deep and found I could easily add some slice to get them to skid away faster. I also had success dropping the ball short for an angle or drop volley. I had good touch with this racket. Even though the response felt somewhat muted it didn't take away from my sense of what I was doing with the ball. Likewise, when I was punching the ball deep I had a lot of control and a solid idea of how much depth my shot would have."

Serves - Score: 83 / 100

The serve was one stroke that the TW playtesters felt had room for improvement with the Wilson Burn 100 Countervail. They felt the racket only average performing and some even preferred serving with the Burn 100S Countervail. While the playtesters appreciated the power, they were left wanting a little more spin, feel and weight behind their ball. Hannah explained, "It was tougher to get a good feel and loads of spin on these serves, and this was probably this biggest downside of the racquet for me."

Serve Returns - Score: 86 / 100

Like with groundstrokes, the Wilson Burn 100 Countervail was powerful, manoeuvrable and return of serves were landing deep in the court. The playtesters were confident they could start the point on the offence with their return whether they were driving the ball deep in the court, rolling an angle or chipping it back aggressively. Jason summed it up by saying, quot; t was stable enough when reaching for a shot and also had enough power that my blocked shots landed with decent depth. And when I had time to set up, like with my groundstrokes, I was able to get the power and spin required to be on the offensive right away. "

Likes:

Hannah - "Lively response on all shots. I actually really like the stiff feeling of this racket. It’s stiff without being harsh or brassy so it feels stable, easy to use and grants power and depth."

Tiffani - "I liked how this racket took incoming power and fired it back. Comfort, feel and control felt improved over the previous version."

Jason - "Easy to swing and use. Good power and spin. Improved feel thanks to Countervail."

Chris - "I liked the spin, easy pace and manoeuvrability. I also preferred the feel compared to the previous Burn. This version feels more muted compared to the brassy feel of the one."

Dislikes:

Hannah - "Not too much to dislike. I would have liked access to more spin on my serves. Other than that my only complaint is the wrist pain I experienced after extensive volleys, which is expected with this stiffer choice at the net."

Tiffani - "Although comfort was improved and Countervail improved the feel, my wrist still felt sore after playing with this racquet over the course of a few weeks."

Jason - "Deceptively comfortable, but still too stiff for my taste."

Chris - "I was left wanting more comfort from this racket. I had some wrist pain while testing it that thankfully went away once I switched back to my regular racket."

Comparing it to other rackets they've used, our testers said:

Hannah - "I didn’t test the previous version of the Wilson Burn 100 , but this racket is in my preferred weight range and although the feel varies a little bit, the playability of this racket is great when stacked up against racquets like the Babolat Pure Drive, Babolat Pure Aero, Wilson Pro Staff 97 and Wilson Blade 98. I’d say the biggest difference of the Burn 100 compared with these rackets is its extra stiffness and heightened swingweight. "

Tiffani - "It's easy to compare to its Spin Effect counterpart. The standard Wilson Burn 100 Countervail offered a bit more control on my shots than the Wilson Burn 100S Countervail. It felt just ever so slightly faster through the air, but it also felt like there wasn't quite as much weight in the hoop, leaving the Burn 100 Countervail offered more susceptible to twisting than the Burn 100S."

Jason - "Plays similarly to the Wilson Ultra 100 but with more power and feel of the Wilson Blade 98 Countervail. "

Chris - "Like the original Burn this racket is fast, spin-friendly and allowed me to hit with easy pace and depth. It feels more muted compared to the previous version, but I didn't find either particularly comfortable. Compared to my Babolat Pure Drive Plus this racket felt faster which made it easier to hit sharp angles. However, my Pure Drive gives me more put-away power on groundstrokes and serves. Rackets I'd add to my demo list if I demoed this one would include: Babolat Pure Drive , Asics BZ 100, Volkl V-Sense 8 300g, Head Graphene XT Extreme MP A, and the Tecnifibre TFlash 300 Dynacore ATP. "

Playtester Profiles:

Chris: 4.5 all-court player currently using the Baboalt Pure Drive Plus. Chris uses a full-western forehand grip, has a fast swing style and hits a one-handed backhand.

Jason: 4.0 baseliner with a semi-western forehand and two-handed backhand. Currently using a Yonex EZONE Ai 100.

Hannah: Open level player with a semi-western forehand and two-handed backhand. She currently plays with the Babolat Pure Aero.

Tiffani: 4.0 level baseliner with a semi-western grip on the forehand and hits a two-handed backhand. Currently playing with the Prince Textreme Tour 100P.

Review date: December 2016. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us: information.en@tenniswarehouse-europe.com.