Graphene Touch Extreme MP Racket Review

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Upsides

Big Power
Big Spin

Downsides

Lacks some control
Stiff feel high in the stringbed

Summary

The Graphene Touch Extreme MP proved to be a little bit of a departure from previous iterations. We found this racket to offer a distinctly different feel, which can most likely be attributed to the change to a more traditional oval head shape. Our team also found loads of access to power and spin from every spot in the court, making it easy to put balls away and turn defense into offence with one shot. Volleying was described as " point and shoot, " and serving turned into a display of big, flat first serves. However, with all that power came a lack of control. At times, our testers had trouble reeling in the power of the racket, making it difficult to hit with consistency or get our shots to our intended targets. All in all, though, players looking for lots of power and spin in an easy to use package should continue reading.

Head Graphene Touch Extreme MP scores
Power	90/100
Control	66/100
Maneuverability	80/100
Stability	82/100
Comfort	67/100
Touch/Feel	67/100
Serves	83/100
Groundstrokes	77/100
Returns	78/100
Slice	74/100
Topspin	82/100
Volleys	83/100
Overall	75/100

Overall - Score: 75/100

Groundstrokes - Score: 77 / 100

Our team got plenty of power and spin from the Graphene Touch Speed MP from the baseline. However, all that power was could be challenging to control. Our squad found that spin was the key to getting the ball to drop inside the lines. Chris explained it best. He said, " Big power and big spin were immediately apparent strengths of the Graphene Touch Extreme MP. The new head shape and aggressively open string pattern seemed to promote improvements in both of those categories. Even when on the run I was able to hit with surprising pace and spin. I merely needed a flick of the wrist to send the ball back with enough on it to either get me back in the point or win it outright. On the downside, if I hit the ball a tad flatly it was easy to miss long. Likewise, when attacking inside the baseline I had to ensure I was getting lots of spin to help me keep my shots inside the lines. "

Volleys - Score: 83 / 100

The easy access power and spin made it easy to volley with the Graphene Touch Extreme MP. The racket felt stable and maneuverable, which it made it easy to place the ball with some good power. Some of the reviewers complained of a stiff feel that made finesse shots more difficult to execute. However, overall the team found success during net play.

Serves - Score: 83 / 100

Pace and spin were once again the shining attributes of the Graphene Touch Extreme MP, and our whole team couldn't help but try to blow big first serves past their opponents. A couple of the team members once again criticized the feel, with one noting he wasn't as precise and the other saying she felt soreness in her shoulder after serving with this racket.

Returns - Score: 78 / 100

Our testers were able to do a lot of damage with the Graphene Touch Extreme MP using just a short, compact swing. However, when we went for bigger shots the control wasn't quite there to give us the consistency we wanted. Andy captured the thoughts of the team. He said, " I had to keep things simple on the return of serve and stop myself from trying to go for too much. If I let the racket do most of the work and just took a compact swing, I could get my returns back deep and effectively with ease. However, any time I took a little bigger swings many of my shots would sail long or miss their intended target. Chip returns also tended to float a little more than usual as the lack of mass made it a little difficult to control that type of shot. "

Likes:

Chris- " Big power and spin on serves and put-away shots. Loved it at net. Great serve and volley racket for me. "

Brittany- " I like the power, plough through and stability. "

Michelle- " Loads of power! Loved it when I connected and executed a big, flat first serve. "

Andy- " Easy power and spin. Very lively and forgiving sweetspot. Nice maneuverability as well. "

Dislikes:

Chris- " A tad firm feeling -- especially higher in the stringbed. "

Brittany- " I wasn't a fan of the feel and was left wanting more control. I also found it a tad cumbersome toward the end of a hitting session. "

Michelle- " The lack of control really hindered my consistency. I found it to be uncomfortable and brassy in the upper hoop and did have a bit of shoulder pain. "

Andy- " Not enough control to keep me feeling confident going for my shots. I also felt too disconnected from the ball due to the lack of feel. Lastly, the feel was a bit brassy and uncomfortable toward the top of the racket hoop."

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

Chris- " This racket packed bigger power and spin compared to both the outgoing Extreme MP as well as my old Pure Drive Plus. Compared to my Yonex EZONE DR 98+ this racket lacked feel and comfort. The most similar playing competing racket for me would be the Volkl V-Sense 8 315, which has a similar head shape. Both also have a thin, thick, thin beam profile and share almost identical swingweights. "

Brittany- " I playtested the last three versions of the Extreme MP, and this plays differently partly due to the new head shape. I would say there was better plough through and stability, but it was missing some maneuverability. I think it plays closer to the Pro version of years past. Other rackets that play similar are Babolat Pure Drive Plus and Yonex VCORE SV 100+."

Michelle- " It seemed similar to the Dunlop Force 100 -- powerful and lots of access to spin. Compared to the previous Extreme Pro, I found this racket to pay even more powerfully, but the swingweight was similar, so it was nice to have that easy-to-access put away power off the ground and on serves. "

Andy- " As a big fan of the Extreme racket line in the past, I was pretty disappointed with this playtest. This iteration lacked the feel and control that the previous versions had. It has a bit more power and spin along with being a bit more dampened feeling, but that dampening effect also left me feeling too disconnected to the ball. A couple rackets this Extreme MP reminded me of was the Dunlop Force 100 and Tecnifibre TFlash 300. "

Playtester Profiles:

Andy: Open level all court player with a semi-western forehand grip and a two handed backhand. Andy currently using a Yonex EZONE DR 98+.

Brittany: Open level player with a semi-western forehand and a two-handed backhand. She currently plays with the Yonex EZONE DR 100.

Chris: 4.5 all-court player currently using the Yonex EZONE DR 98+. Chris uses a full-western forehand grip, has a fast swing style and hits a one-handed backhand.

Michelle: Open level baseline player with a semi-western forehand and a two handed backhand. She currently plays with the Wilson Pro Staff RF97 Autograph.

Review date: July 2017. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us: information.en@tenniswarehouse-europe.com.