Tennis Racket Time Machine | Tie-Break PLAY TEST

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Tennis racket time machine is a tie break play test going from modern to classic racquets.
0:00 New vs Old Racquets
0:52 Babolat Pure Drive Plus
3:32 Wilson Hyper Hammer 5.2
6:16 Dunlop 200g
9:01 Wilson t3000
10:03 The Modern Game
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[@IntuitiveTennis]

Change Your Swing Path with the Topspin Pro 👉 topspinpro.com/ref/IntuitiveTennis/

[@51Dss]

watched the video - interesting piece of training equipment.

[@dillonpatel2247]

Not only is it interesting to see Nick’s students progress but it is also interesting to see Nick himself progress.

[@oliverdesouza5741]

So the results were: - Babolat Pure Drive+: Loss 10-12 - Wilson Hyper Hammer: Loss 8-10 - Dunlop MAX 200G: Win 7-5, with a brilliant fight-back from 2-5 down. - Wilson T2000: Loos 2-7 The only aces were with the 200G and T2000, and the best hitting was clearly with the 200G. Look at those beautiful volleys and OHBHs Nik. And the sound is gorgeous too. C'mon Nik, you also know that playing for 20 minutes with a racket isn't sufficient. You should accept the results and play with the 200G for at least a month now to fully assess it's performance. The 200G was built especially for someone of your high calibre.

[@kmdsummon]

The Dunlop win seems to be more likely caused by the fact that Milan is not trained to win to agains such a play when opponent volley a lot. Clearly before switching into old school Nick was loosing. And since right now nobody plays in that way on the top level it means there are techniques to win such players. PS. I understand that the comment was written mostly as a joke. Just wanted to clarify that if somebody would really check the score any decide to buy Max 200G

[@davidkim3854]

Max 200G never disappoints

[@Sabres73]

Borg hit a western forehand and a two-handed BH with a wooden racket. I know that we like to talk about slam counts and GOAT races, but you could make an easy case for Borg as the most influential player in the history of the sport.

[@rsmith02]

Totally agree, he was an innovator

[@vicplaystennis9158]

I thought Borg played by today's standard an Eastern forehand grip. It was only called "Western" in his times?

[@colinbyer3018]

@@vicplaystennis9158 I think you’re right

[@1114gabby]

@@vicplaystennis9158 indeed and he got pretty amazing topspin!

[@davidvawter4859]

Jimmy Connors won more tournaments and matches than any male pro in history playing with an egg beater. Won the US Open on three different surfaces. And arguably introduced the modern power game and the two-handed backhand to men's tennis. Let us not forget the Brash Basher from Belleville.

[@JLongTom]

Very comforting to see Nick making exactly the same panoply of errors that I tend to: - Hitting low smashes long - Pulling inside-out forehand returns down the line - Not preparing for balls that are assumed to be going out but end up easily going in - Hitting short balls long when charging to the net

[@DanTuber]

lol at the racquet throw

[@nordattack]

This was a highly intriguing video and touches on many of the things I have seen and felt over the decades of tennis. I feel modern racket and string tech has changed the game of tennis from one of subtly, thought, skill and point building into a game of brute force. It is certainly fun to watch modern power players pound the ball back and forth, but it is not the game of tennis as played by the greats of the past. It also makes you appreciate just how good those players of the past were doing what they did with simple wooden rackets. Notable is when you went to the Dunlop and changed your game you actually were more competitive and won that tie break.

[@IntuitiveTennis]

💯

[@rds4629]

I actually liked the Dunlop match the most; an all-court match up vs a baseliner. It was the most entertaining!

[@ripleypipe]

Nick, great to see the sensei in full flow, playing opposite such a talented, young opponent.

[@mark245555]

Thanks for the video Nick. I always enjoy watching how you play with various rackets from over the decades. Hopefully this is not really the last time you do this!

[@hoosierbud704]

The clay negated your serve advantage, so true test on groundstroke/volley. I think you would have won more on hard courts, even with old rackets. They are probably most similar to the new ones on one stroke, the serve. Get Anna to be ball girl, video would have 50X views though.

[@melfox215]

I get it's primary a fun video, but at first kudos to Milan who dared to defeat Nik on his own channel. 😅 That being said, playing with various racquets within a short period of time doesn't help keeping a certain level. So quite impressive what Nik is able to do with these relicts of tennis technology. I began playing tennis in the late 80s and quit tennis at age 15 using a Wilson Pro Staff Original Mid Plus 95. Then I switched to an Ultra Hammer 95 in somewhere 2006 where I only played like 5 times a year without any club membership. In 2019 I restarted club tennis, smashed both my Ultras and switched to a Pro Staff 97 ULS and lastly in 2021 to a Blade 98 v7. I still own my Original Mid Plus 95. All these racquets are eligible for playing tennis, but sweet spots of older racquets were way smaller, so you've had to exactly hit the ball to control it. Today's racquets allow hitting the ball a bit too late or outside the middle of the racquet head and therefore reduce errors compared to older racquets. The last 2 years (age 39 to 41) I was able to raise my level to its highest of my life by doing a lot of training and recreational competition, but probably the new racquets are part of it as well.

[@rosePetrichor]

It's always really interesting to watch players from the days of titanium or even wooden rackets. in many ways they got more impressive angles just because there are so many chip and volley shots with no backswing or looping motion and a completely flat grip, lots of loose grip shots too (at least as loose as you can get when the racket weighs so much..!) of course the speed was lower, but then the surfaces were faster and the bounces lower, too...

[@1114gabby]

You did amazingly well with the old sticks! You ever play with Dunlop muscle weave? What a beast!

[@51Dss]

I always believed Wilson must have given Connors a VERY handsome endorsement contract for playing with the T-2000 all those years. Connors was talented enough that he probably would have been as successful playing with a Kramer or a Max-ply Forte, or the tiny Head comp... Almost everyone that I knew who used the T-2000 or 3000 developed elbow problems. The few times I hit with it I described it as an oingy boingy feeling hit whenever I managed to contact in the middle of the string bed. Back then I played for quite a few years using the Bancroft Executive - gorgeous racquet and it played like a dream to me. At the time I could not afford to use the gut strings although I loved how they felt and played they didn't hold up long enough and required re-stringing two or three times every summer. I just used a good textured lighter gauge nylon string which gave me good feel and lasted about twice as long as the gut. The take away from your equipment videos is that for serious players racquet technology, geometry, string type and tension, weight distribution and grip size have to be fitted to match a players approach to the game and his style of play. If a person is playing organized tennis - like on their High School team or college they should go ahead and invest in finding the right set up. There is no need to spend hundreds of dollars but they should not buy some brand name cheap racquet off the shelf at their local Wal-mart. Get your coach or your pro to help you find a racquet that works for you and NOT against you.

[@davidvawter4859]

the Head Arthur Ashe Comp II was a beautiful racquet for its day. I have one c. 1976 in my trunk after liberating it from my dad ;)

[@mingo3841]

Coach Nick channeling Johnny Mac with the 200G😂

[@gillesderais834]

very entertaining video, Nik!

[@junkmail75034]

7:58 Johnny Mac 🤣

[@canadiantennispro]

i agree nice win with the max 200 g though when you hit it clean

[@canadiantennispro]

loved the ace with the t -3000 lol

[@JayRuf3438]

Good video. That was fun to watch.

[@draconis228]

great video nick

[@abcabc-rq4qb]

I'm somewhat in love with 200g rackets, and others with the Imf technology. You haven't played competitive with these I guess. At least not much. You did manage to win wirh it anyhow! Im actually not surprised and very happy for you, your inner newly found mcenroe, and your Dunlop. Please don't hang it on the Wall...it's for playing, if any racket ever were! It is said to have strange properties-the way it manages to stiffen up when swung harder and still remaining soft when touch is needed or when slicing. Reade about it on forums if you ever have the time. People really, really love it and finds joy with it. "I found this gem at a secondhand store...should I string it up they ask and the choire sings praise! THE racket for slapping the snot out of the ball if you ask me. I love your take on tennis and that you are so proud over what you know and how hard you have fought for it over the years. By the way, I think you have earnd yourself the right to campare yourself with Johnny Mcenroe....we should not....EVER! Again thanks for being you and......BIG respekt! Again, you played your best with the Dunlop....something to rejoice over....and indulge in sometimes. Have some fun, life is short😀

[@hayesmaker64]

Nice courts, love the sun shaded seats. What a fun time, thanks for sharing.

[@cvc7395]

Nick, the best shots i liked WERE with Dunlop and the T2000!! the shot sound was harmony to my ears!! you have to do this again ! I d love to see you play with PS 6.0 85 sq or PS 6.1 Classic 95 Sq in. :) :)

[@brianjensen7985]

I hit with my T2000 the other day. I can still serve with it but that small head sure makes it tough. Thanks for the video.

[@vijaynarsapur147]

Nick...do this once more please. Only next time, start with a 0-3 score... you will beat Milan! Amazing first tie breaker BTW. You still have the mind and the strokes of a top 200 pro... father time unfortunately...has shown up

[@pzivic]

I like this video. An interesting topic, it is still unknown that technology has advanced. Rackets and strings have drastically improved the quality of the game.

[@davidsvensson420]

Clearly visible in this video that you were a really good player in your competitive days.

[@ogwally739]

Great video. The first tiebreak was good just for the competitiveness of it.

[@Shaunsweeney-Kubach71]

If you played with the Wilson Profile 95, you would have literally hit my dude off the court. That racquet has zero bend, and is awesome for almost every shot. Great job playing with those antique racquets, I am surprised you didn’t bend the aluminum racquet when you hit with it. Great match and great job on the video my friend.

[@IntuitiveTennis]

🙏

[@orangeyouglad9555]

Wow what a beautiful court

[@VL1975]

Poor Milan..lol I would've love to seen a wooden racket. I think they should have one wooden racket tournament for the pros. lol

[@TheMg49]

Good tennis. Inspires me to go out and hit some balls. Unfortunately, it's raining just enough each day this time of year (I'm watching this vid on Oct 14) to keep us from playing much. Fortunately, I also play a bit of chess and music. You can't have too many hobbies. 🙂👍

[@rafhalimaxd]

2:54 good to know even Nick does that sometimes!

[@maxsonthonax1020]

Enjoyable.

[@jakstrike1]

Hammer time!

[@cdan3609]

At 9:40 the "invisible shot"! :-) I like your motivation and ambition to win, Nick! 💪

[@canadiantennispro]

would be cool to see the difference in the woods , donnay borg pro special , dunlop maxply , jack kramer and so on lol

[@che542]

That was fascinating to see tbh

[@jgugala]

This may be tennis, but that’s definitely a hockey temper.

[@DirkMade]

I bought a vintage yonex 8500 racket, very similar in look to that Wilson T3000. It was what my dad used to use way back in the day. I've been hitting with it a bit to use as a training aid, because the head size is so tiny. It's very similar to the tennis sabre mini head racket, but a LOT cheaper option. My question is - can that Wilson T3000 or my Yonex 8500 be strung with new modern strings? The one I have looks like the strings are as old as the stick! I wonder if it would be more arm friendly if I put a multifilament in it.

[@hansolsson3409]

It is true, grunting really helps! Funniest video ever!

[@toonsoffun5733]

Channeling your inner Borg would be funny. Wooden racket and no complaining :D

[@kmcclarney]

Awesome video! I enjoy seeing you play regardless of the racket. Nice content Question...since the older rackets are harder to play with does that make the older pros better than the current pros?

[@LunarEclipsism1]

No, it simply means that their equipment lent itself to a different playstyle than the modern power topspin game, so they adjusted to play that way. Court surfaces were also less consistent in the heydays of wooden and steel rackets, with more bad bounces, which also contributed to the focus on volleying as often as possible to minimize the frequency of getting a bad bounce. None of that means the players of that time were better, just that they had to play differently. Even John McEnroe, one of the most arrogant men alive, does not think his era of players were as good as the likes of Federer, Djokovic, or Nadal.

[@kmcclarney]

@@LunarEclipsism1 that's what I was thinking as well but was curious about what others thought. I didn't know McEnroe said that about the big 3.... interesting

[@TheShadoPanda]

@3:30 "Bravo majstore" 😂

[@1114gabby]

Since I played in the 70s I know those rackets well.It was a much different style of play. It's more fun when you both have an old school racket ,but that wasn't the point I know. Perhaps you have seen at Newport RI Todd Martin does a competition with 70's rackets? Willander and I think kafelnikov played. Anyway it was interesting to watch.

[@wolpetto]

Hi Nick, could you test the head radical pro (the new orange one)? I think there is a huge improvement from previous models (color apart...)

[@danielesbordone1871]

Dunlop , baby , Dunlop !

[@1988Allnatural]

Notice this is on clay. Nick should've come into the net more in the first two games, his limited movement and slower court allowed Milan to get a lot of shots back where Nick would just make the error due to lack of movement.

[@melfox215]

It's not clay, but a very slow carpet that can get very slippery after raining. Regardless, I support your thought that this court doesn't help Nik's game versus Milan. On a fast court Nik had probably won all the sets regardless the racquet.

[@user-oj7co5wm8g]

That’s har-tru which isn’t red clay but is certainly a clay court. The most predominant type for most of the U.S. as well. Harder, faster, and IMO more slippy than red clay.

[@mitchaelhollingsworth1698]

i have a wooden poncho gonzales racquet. the head size is smaller than i am used to and i play with 93 inch volkl midsize racquets. the balance and weight of the wooden racquet is great. but i have to hit flatter because you simply cannot get the spin you can access with a modern frame. it is less forgiving so you're footwork needs to be sharp to put you in the right position and your technique needs to be better because you are doing more work with less help from the racquet. i also found myself chipping and blocking balls back more often, and lobbing instead of slicing or flicking a ball on defense. if you play with an old racquet, you began to see why the old pros played the way they did. it is fun to break out from time to time. if you went back in time it would be an interesting experiment to give ivan lendl or boris becker a new wilson pro staff rf97 with poly strings and see how that changed their game.

[@qhl5579]

Did you have them equally strung with modern string or spin string

[@where-we-roam]

Fun video Nick. Would have been interesting to see you play with a new racket with which you are not familiar (vs your Babolat). I would have expected that you would play better with your everyday stick vs the old rackets that you don't use daily. Would be cool to see if the Hyper Hammer compared to something like a modern Technifibre, Yonex, Head, etc would feel so obsolete, or if you would feel a bit uncomfortable with not having your trusty Babolat.

[@LunarEclipsism1]

There's no significant technological difference between the hyper hammer era of rackets and today's rackets, other than trends towards different head sizes and string spacing. Graphite rackets have stayed pretty consistent through the whole period of poly string dominance. A modern control racket like a Yonex Vcore 95 or Dunlop CX200 tour or Technifibre TFlight Dynacore 305, (all with 95-square-inch heads), would play pretty similarly to Nick's old 95-square inch hyper hammer as long as you weighted them with lead tape to match overall stats and balance. None would be as forgiving as Nick's extended Pure Drive with its larger headsize and they would all have a slightly different feel, but the performance would be very similar. Heck, Rafael Nadal still plays with a racket model from 2004 (the original AeroPro Drive) but has them painted every season to look like the latest version of the Pure Aero. Andy Murray plays with a model from 1994, the PT57A. Rackets have been very consistent since graphite layups became the norm.

[@where-we-roam]

@@LunarEclipsism1 Yeah. I am with you. That is why I made my suggestion. I feel like the comfort with knowing his usual stick would outweigh any subtle differences or new/old technologies.

[@sendingtime]

I suck at tennis, but I can totally see how different the game was in the past.

[@slimupb]

What strings are you using Nick? I have same babolat as yours. By the way you have a nice punchy serve

[@IntuitiveTennis]

Kirschbaum Super Smash Orange

[@roma3467]

2:57 That requires a great amount of willingness to do🤣. Talking from experience 👀

[@marcelobarros5729]

You should do a video playing with the PS85.

[@sportscastercanada]

The 10-8 tie breaker is entertaining. Is clay your court of choice?

[@IntuitiveTennis]

I don’t mind clay

[@MrMSS22]

Clay is simply the most fun surface to play on :)

[@kmcclarney]

Never played on it. Are the clay shoes really necessary if I did give it a try?

[@lolvonlolipopp]

@@kmcclarney They are not. Your shoes will get dirty so if you find that annoying get a pair.

[@user-oj7co5wm8g]

“Real clay” ok bud. And no, at the rec level clay court shoes aren’t necessary on any clay surface albeit marginally helpful.

[@MrMSS22]

@@kmcclarney Depends on the shoe, some have sufficient profile to play occasionally, with others you'll slip easily. If you play regularly I'd definitely go for a clay model, as it can be used on hard court as well.

[@eddiechen2128]

I don't know if anyone notice that during the past 30 years, we have gotten bigger. Image if we still playing with wooden racquets, how many trees we need to cut down. A good test is to have both players hit with the same types of frames.

[@bole3590]

Super video…kakva je to podloga?

[@IntuitiveTennis]

Har tru

[@hehehehehahahaha2025]

Do you think a racquet like the KPS 88 is still playable in the modern game?

[@MrJohnnyringo23]

7:55 he becomes Johnny Mac

[@stefanthomassen4750]

Funny to see, how the roles changes between you and Milan, who addepts to this "pseudo-clay-court" much better, but guess it is also about his much better physics ;-) For this 1-2 hit-on-hardcourt-strategy won´t work for most players on clay, especially when the opponent has quick feets :-)))

[@hansolsson3409]

Which racquet is Milan playing with?

[@Rasko166]

Is there a difference between this and prior videos with Milan in the way it was filmed? You both seem faster and hitting way stronger and crispier. Was it something like that or you both had a very good day?

[@AJ-pn9dm]

Nick, do you put lead tape or anything on your Babolat?

[@yeeeaaahmayneee3808]

He doesn’t,he talked about it in one of his previous videos,if you are not competing on high level there’s no point in customizing it

[@ignaciogodoy3214]

Is clay court against your style of playing?

[@Gocajoca]

Ovako da te pitam dali si imao iste (Strings) & dali su bili Novi?

[@IntuitiveTennis]

Old strings 😩

[@audiopluginz6126]

👍Thumbs up if you went on to eBay looking for a used Dunlop 200 G after watching this video!?😅😅

[@HankHell41]

2:10 Lol

[@lolvonlolipopp]

Nick getting nerfed on the clay 😉

[@yeeeaaahmayneee3808]

He should do his “beat the pro” challenge on clay

[@spleeb275]

He can’t slide on clay

[@yeeeaaahmayneee3808]

@@spleeb275 it’s not that,it’s just his playstyle and age,he is not very fast and agile and his style is really aggresive so he can get away with it on hard court,on clay your weaknesses get exposed

[@ToiletTennis]

Clay god Nick

[@ssenssel]

What have we learn today, kids? You can't go back in time and technology evolves and moves on for a reason..

[@vanlendl1]

I missed the footwork of Jimmy Connors and Steffi Graf / John McEnroe.

[@aca8638]

I wonder what you say at 2:11 🤣

[@foxfroze4308]

nice video! were you as emotional when you at the start of your career?

[@darrinburkowske5162]

What about wooden rackets?

[@colinbyer3018]

Nick, I thought you had the other video where you explained the racquet doesn’t matter… you used a 5 dollar racquet

[@junkmail75034]

Hey coach you forgot to switch side 🤣

[@wearetemporary]

Man that court looks rough.

[@ampecsu]

found a prestige midplus flexpoint for 5 bucks other day

[@tomr6955]

What happened to it not mattering about the racket?

[@formica.]

I see people play with ancient racquets they have in the garage. Message is: newer racquets improve your game.

[@yukuhana]

I'm surprised you even go through the trouble of restringing the decades old rackets...or did you?!

[@IntuitiveTennis]

I didn’t

[@yukuhana]

@@IntuitiveTennis Wow. I wonder if new string would make a difference, but no point now ;)

[@joseluisdelvillarabad145]

Great video! Agree and disagree at the same time. Agree that you can not play modern game with old school rackets (ps85, whatever g200 dunlop, even old prestiges) if you understand modern as massive topspin game. Partially disagree about your point of old rackets are obsolete. In my personal experience, topspin modern game is a bit too hyped, is prone to inconsistent hitting and not well suited to midcourt game. Old school game uses a more clean and consistent hitting throughout the court. I personally prefer your game on 200g than pure drive. With pure drive, i think you are slightly abusing topspin and lacking depth, with 200g seems you have more confidence palying flat strokes and being aggressive. I tell you this from my own experience, spanish topspin school guy who adopted pure drive in 98. After 15 years off tennis, restarted with pure drive last year and I've decided to change my game to more old school style to gain consistency (always my weakness), and i do not like my old pure drives anymore.

[@ltjoseph9042]

What if Jimmy Connors from 1978, who beat Bjorn Borg at the U.S. Open that year with a Wilson T2000, came here to the future with his Wilson T2000 ready to play his best tennis and played a full length match with Nick and his favorite Babolat? What would happen, who would win? How much of disadvantage would Jimmy Connors have because of that awful, poorly designed, very outdated racket known as the Wilson T2000, but at the time was a highly revered tennis racket frame that the 1 and only Jimmy Connors adored? Enough of a disadvantage so that some (there's no insult intended) obscure middle aged tennis instructor could beat Connors in his prime?

[@rizahawke2059]

Your conclusion is off. You lost with the modern racquet but won with the old school racquet. That clearly shows old school racquets are not obsolete.

[@IntuitiveTennis]

Got lucky with Dunlop

[@bimwopbarn47]

regardless of your comments, your game was way better with the dunlop, as you were mroe creative and harder to read. you were much more predictable and beatable with the babolat and wilson hammer. the metal racquet didn't work for you at all.