For sports travellers, few things beat the chance to test the same equipment used at the highest level of the game. Ramy James Salameh gets his hands on Dunlop’s FX 500 Tour Series racket and a set of AO Balls to put them both through their paces…
Famous sporting brand ambassadors are hard to ignore, we see them delivering at the elite level and want to emulate them. Certainly, this is no more prevalent than in tennis. A game where technique and footwork must be on-point, alongside, balance, dexterity and artistry with the racket.
Dunlop have British tennis sensation Jack Draper on their books, a strapping 6’4” player who already has three-career titles under his belt and been ranked as high as number 4 in the world. And maybe like Matteo Berrettini and Gregor Dimitrov has those film-star looks to complete the sporting superstar package.
For a game that’s notoriously difficult to master, once you reach an advanced level, choosing the right racket becomes a genuinely important decision. It’s something I’ve been on a constant search for over a long period – until now.
Revving-up the RPM’s just like Draper
In his younger years, Jack Draper was not the tallest teen when setting-out on his tennis journey and so to balance-out this power to height ratio, he revved-up his spin heavy game, which, even to this day, continues to push opponents to the back of the court.
Draper uses a customised Dunlop FX 500 Tour series racket, one that I have had my eye on, especially as a player that loves heavy top spin on both the forehand and backhand sides. As a club and league player, I was looking for a racket that could step my game up, add a little ‘zing’ to shots whilst maintaining good control, whether from the baseline or coming into the net.
Visually, the racket is attractive, looks modern and well-proportioned with a phased purple to sky blue hue that appeals to both sexes. Let’s not forget, we all want to look and feel like a serious player, even when playing in the amateur leagues, like I do.
Power, speed and control
One key attribute that impressed me instantly, was that the FX 500 Tour has a generous sweet spot across the 98 square-inch racket head, but that said, I soon realised why Dunlop have aimed the FX 500 Tour at upper intermediate to advanced players.
One needs to have great foot-work, body shape and a well-timed swing to meet the ball at the heart of the string bed, to maximise the resulting power, speed and control – when all of these come together, the striking of the tennis ball with the FX 500 Tour can feel almost weightless and effortless rather than forced.
Much like finding the ideal rhythm in golf, where the shot sails into the distance accompanied by a lovely ‘Tink-sound’ confirming that everything has aligned perfectly.
The FX 500 Tour delivers that same balance in tennis; a moment of equilibrium where the swing and strike feels free of strain, yet the ball responds with exactly the intended outcome. In practice, finding that sweet-spot with the FX 500 Tour isn’t a rare occurrence, it’s something I am finding regularly.
Quality is audible
The sound generated by the ball hitting the string bed, is also a good marker to its quality in my opinion. When I hit a powerful baseline groundstroke, I am rewarded by a deep, heavy thud, even thump. The serve adds-in a ‘pop’ alongside the ‘thud’, whilst my slice is accompanied by a crisp, high tension snap which sends the ball in rapid reverse revolutions.
In fact the backhand slice is my ‘go-to’ shot. Every player has there ‘go-to’ safety shot and mine is the backhand slice, an almost guaranteed return on my backhand side with plenty of RPM to either float to the baseline or send it arrow-like to my opponents feet, with the slightest adjustment of the racket head angle. The FX 500 Tour is the best racket I have ever played with, to achieve this important tennis shot and to have in my overall arsenal.
In a similar way to Jack Draper, I have speed around the court meaning good all-court coverage, so the weight of the racket is important and at 300g unstrung, is ideal for me. Add to this Dunlop’s innovations in frame stability through an increase in beam thickness in some areas, and this is a winning combination for me.
Dunlop Australian Open (AO) Tennis Balls
Now, there is one hot topic that has been doing the rounds at my tennis club and that is which BALLS to use regularly. Either too fluffy, too soft, too hard or no longevity in the bounce the conversation has taken up many a committee meeting. Using my FX 500 Tour racket, I tried the premium Dunlop Australian Open (AO) balls.
Marketed as durable and high-performance for hard courts, these ITF-Approved all-court balls do seem to maintain a firmness (thankfully, not overly solid) and a very consistent bounce. A good felt covering, did not fluff up too quickly but just enough to maintain rallies; the Dunlop AO’s performed really well and sit in my top 3 balls, especially for top-spin heavy game. They seemed to go down well with my tennis club colleagues on a hard court surface.
Overall, the Dunlop FX 500 Tour racket is proving to be a literal game changer and making me focus more on my technique. But – a gentle warning – if you are not a steady player, it might be like giving the keys of a sports car to a learner driver. I am always more than happy to let friends and colleagues try it out and explaining “this is the one Jack Draper uses, do you want to try it” – now isn’t that a dream outcome for the Dunlop branding team!