Dunlop Biomimetic 100 Racquet Review
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When I first saw this Dunlop racquet in person, I was surprised by the appearance and the teal colored accents. My surprise came from seeing pictures of the European version which had been released well before that used more of a neon green/yellow color accent. Initially I was a bit worried about the weight, which is less than 12 ounces strung and seemed a bit low for a midsize frame.
When I started thinking about this more, I realized it actually was a good idea, for two reasons. The first reason being that there are plenty of players that search for a lighter alternative to the Wilson Six-One Tour, and this fits that mold well at nearly a full ounce lighter. Another benefit of the lighter weight is that many players have begun to experiment with customizing their frames, and there is no denying that a lighter base is much easier to work with to achieve an ideal configuration.
While I still consider the Biomimetic line a fairly basic line in terms of technology, there’s something to be said for simplicity and execution. Yes, these racquets still have the same Aeroskin technology and HM6 Carbon construction, but a simple appearance and avoiding going over the top in terms of technology was a good decision.
Ground Strokes
There are very few things that can match the feeling of hitting a perfect shot with a midsize frame, and in many respects, this frame offered that same euphoric feel. On shots hit in the sweet spot it had a nice sound and provided good pace and spin. The open string pattern is definitely more to my liking than the closed pattern that the 200 line is known for. On the forehand side, the racquet was easy to swing and control was excellent with a solid feel at contact.
On my more compact backhand, the lack of weight, especially in the head, caused me a few problems. Anything not hit perfectly had stability issues which lead to a severe drop in depth and effectiveness. Slice backhands had a nice amount of bite, staying low and skidding through the court well.
I do feel that I need to make one comment on the feel of the frame, which is a bit difficult to understand. The specs list a fairly flexible frame, but that’s not what I was feeling. The racquet is not uncomfortable by any means, but the feel is so muted that I felt a bit disconnected from the frame.
Volleys and Returns
At net, there really is not a way to improve on this racquet. It’s highly maneuverable and provides good depth when necessary while also being capable of hitting the delicate touch volley. I definitely felt like there was nothing that I could not do well.
On the return, this racquet needs more weight in the head for me. On slower serves, I didn’t have any trouble hitting them cleanly and the racquet worked just fine, but anything hit outside of the sweet speed left a short reply and immediately put me on the defensive.
Serving
As a player that just moved away from midsize racquets in the last year, I pretty much knew what to expect going into this one. My favorite midsize frame for serving in recent years was definitely my Yonex RDS001 Mid. Something about that frame was just made for serving bombs, and unfortunately that is the one area that my current frame lacks just a little bit.
With that said, this frame was fairly versatile on the serve. It did not shine in any one aspect, but could do a little of everything well. I was able to get solid pace, control, and spin, but it lacked the ability to fire aces at will or force awkward returns from my kick serve. My best results came when going for a solid serve to set up my next shot, usually either the forehand to the open court or the volley.
Overall
In its stock form, this is a very good racquet, offering tons of control, a solid feel, and more maneuverability than most frames on the market regardless of weight. Having established that, I look at it almost as an unfinished product. It needs a few tweaks and some additional weight for it to really shine.
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