Babolat New OverDrive 105 Racquet Review
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Groundstrokes
As predicted the racquet had excellent plow through, good control, great spin and more than enough power. Since the 105” head size is readily apparent, I really like it at the net, of course, more than anything. It was everything an intermediate or advanced player could need. Though for my liking a little more control would do the job—which could easily be rectified by changing the strings to the Babolat RPM Blast and increasing the tension a little. I felt the ball better than most racquets of this head size, I had good control, great touch and good power with not too much over hitting… The overall balance is great. I would give it an A rating on the groundstrokes.
Return of Serve
The pivotal test! My forehand return of serve, as predicted was awesome with tremendous power, decent control, very good feel and placement. A+ rating. The backhand was great…decent control, very good placement and a nice feel. However, I lacked the power I needed to really drive the ball and I suspect that the lightness of the frame didn’t allow me to drive it like I wanted to, still an awesome stick to return with. B+ rating for backhand return.
Volleys
Most of my game now is Men’s Doubles (4.0 to 4.5 type quality) so having a maneuverable stick that can generate power, feel and touch is critical. The Overdrive was great, and I really had no issues with the volleys at all. I was able to manage the racquet with no issues. I had depth, placement and power. A+ for volleys.
Serve
So this is where I thought for sure my issues would begin. So it’s all timing, placement and a lot of effort. I do like a head heavy racquet for serving, but at my age, my arm and body can’t take two hours of high-quality doubles without feeling it later. I can say, without a doubt, that the Overdrive preformed 100% like it should. It felt awesome, controlled and I produced great spin with an ample amount power. This leads me to believe maybe a small amount of lead-tape on the Overdrive would do a world of good. I was very impressed with the way it performed on the serve. A rating.
Overall
This is a good racquet. No doubt. I’m not sure I’ve felt another racquet as pure as this one for its size head. It had everything an intermediate to advanced player would want. A clear winner for 3.5+ players with medium swing speeds looking for a lighter more even balanced frame.
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