Tennis | How to choose a tennis racket, grip size and headsize
Buying a tennis racket is an important step in your tennis playing journey and knowing how to choose is equally important whether you are just starting out or have been playing for years.
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Beginners
When you are buying a tennis racket for the first time, first and foremost you need control. You will need an aluminium or composite racket with a large surface area and balance point at the handle to make playing easier.
Intermediates
You will be looking for comfort. In order to improve your game, you will need a graphite racket with the balance point at the head and a surface area of 645cm².
Professionals
You will be looking for power and precision. You will need a graphite tennis racket with the balance point at the handle and a surface area of between 630 and 645cm², with a racket weight of more than 295g.
Beginners
When you are buying a tennis racket for the first time, first and foremost you need control. You will need an aluminium or composite racket with a large surface area and balance point at the handle to make playing easier.
Intermediates
You will be looking for comfort. In order to improve your game, you will need a graphite racket with the balance point at the head and a surface area of 645cm².
Professionals
You will be looking for power and precision. You will need a graphite tennis racket with the balance point at the handle and a surface area of between 630 and 645cm², with a racket weight of more than 295g.
Headsize of your racket
The surface area of your racket is an important thing to keep in mind. Below are the three types of surface area (tennis racket size) available and what they mean in terms of your game.
HANDLE SIZE (TENNIS GRIP SIZE)
Size 0 (4 inches): Suitable for children, teenage beginners or women with small hands.
Size 1 (4 1/3 inches): Suitable for average sized women or for men with small hands.
Size 2 (4 2/8 inches): The most common tennis grip size. Standard size for average sized men or women with large hands.
Size 3 (4 3/8 inches): Suitable for men with large hands (and those taller than 6ft).
How to find your handle size?
Below are two ways of finding it. It’s recommended that you use both to get that perfect handle.
Index Finger Test
- Hold the racket in your swing hand, with your palm placed on the same grip level as the strip face.
- Place the index finger of your non hitting hand in the space between our ring finger and palm. Be mindful that if there is not enough space to fit your finger, the grip is probably too small and can mean more hand strength, which can result in tennis elbow. You’d want the index finger to fit nicely between the palm and finger of your hitting hand, with little to no space, this should give you the most comfortable, secure grip on your tennis racket.
Ruler test
- Place the fingers of your racket hand together, then align the ruler’s edge with the bottom horizontal crease of your palm.
- In general the measured length will be between 10.16 cm and 12.7cm. This will give you a great starting point when looking for the right size.
- To get it as correct as possible, hold your chosen racket with the grip size that is closest to what you measured, then employ the index finger test.