Tecnifibre TFight 305 RS Racquet Review

Groundstrokes - Score: 83

While the TFight 305 RS is fairly light in stock form at 305 grams unstrung, this racquet's 330 swingweight keeps it feeling stable on groundstrokes and rewards full swings with some nice plow through. The specs aligned nicely for Chris, who could tap into his crafty spin game or bring the heat from the back of the court. He said, "I really liked the way the TFight 305 RS felt when swung. It came through contact with better-than-expected mass. I was able to drive shots deep with solid pace, yet the racquet was still light enough to cut aggressive swing angles for spin. The dense stringbed complemented the specs perfectly, and I could take aggressive cuts at the ball without fear of overhitting. I loved the amount of bite the stringbed offered on slice shots. I felt like I was hitting my slice approach shots especially well with this racquet. While I didn't feel as magically connected to the ball as I do with my Tecnifibre TF40 305, I was hitting my touch shots well and had fun moving opponents side to side as well as forward and back."

The TFight 305 RS fit right into Tiffani's preferred weight category, but the racquet proved to be a touch more demanding than she expected on court. She explained, "The unstrung weight of this racquet is right where I like it; it's the same as my own racquet. However, I immediately noticed how much more heft this TFight 305 RS has through the air compared to my Prince Textreme Tour 100P. This TFight 305 RS has a really solid feel and good plow through for a 305-gram racquet. From the baseline, this racquet felt good to swing and not too demanding. It's not the sort of racquet that lets me be lazy, so full, fast swings were required to get the ball landing on target. I'm a sucker for a tight string pattern, and the 18x19 pattern in the 98-square-inch head size let me hit my flat shots with good accuracy. I especially liked how the tighter pattern paired with the heavier swingweight to produce heavier slices than I'm used to hitting. Cross-court forehand dippers weren't really in my repertoire with this racquet, so I had to change up my tactics in those situations."

Mark was pleased to find a similar level of stability as the previous iteration, combined with a more forgiving feel. He said, "Considering that I appreciated the high stock swingweight and close-to-even balance of the prior TFight XTC 305, I had pretty high expectations for the new 305 RS. I quickly realized two things within a few minutes of exchanging groundstrokes from the baseline. First, on the swing, the TFight 305 RS provides that heavy-racquet level of stability the way the 305 XTC did. Second, the frame feels like it's a little more flexible than its predecessor. The TFight 305 RS still features the tight 18x19 pattern, which makes it easy to generate spin, and when you combine that with its stability-inducing specs, depth and accuracy were easy to achieve from the backcourt."

Volleys - Score: 82

Our playtesters found the Tecnifibre TFight 305 RS easy to get into position quickly, and they were pleased to see that maneuverability backed up with enough stability to block back balls and attack with confidence. Mark had no issues closing the net, saying, "The close-to-even balance and substantially high swingweight of the TFight 305 RS never caused me any maneuverability issues at net and provided all the stability I needed to execute point extending and ending volleys consistently."

Tiffani enjoyed adding some variety to her net game. She said, "I felt surprisingly comfortable with this racquet at net. Considering I didn't find it whippy from the baseline, this TFight 305 RS was relatively easy to maneuver into position when volleying, and I didn't feel like I was getting handcuffed too often. I enjoyed the stability and the feel at net the most. This racquet left me feeling confident enough to mix up my net game instead of sticking with the usual punch volley I fall back on."

"The TFight 305 RS had a crisper feel at net compared to my TF40 305," Chris added. "The ball felt like it got in and out of the stringbed quicker, and I found it easy to put some zip on volleys. The racquet felt nice and solid on my touch volleys. I was able to use a gentle grip on the racquet for more feel without having it twist in my hands."

Serves - Score: 82

While two of our playtesters found this TFight 305 RS to swing easily on serves, one needed some time to adjust to the feel of the 333 swingweight overhead. Nonetheless, it was clear that when our playtesters got the racquet head moving, they found power, spin and enough control to pick their spots reliably. Chris loved how connected he felt to the ball off the stringbed, which helped him find success on both first and second serves. He said, "The TFight 305 RS was a fun racquet to serve with. It was light and fast, yet it packed enough mass behind the ball to add some plow-through power. As on groundstrokes, I found it easy to add spin. The dense stringbed continued to impress me with how much grip I could get on the ball. I was able to be aggressive on both first and second serves and still find all the control I needed to hit my targets."

As on groundstrokes, this racquet required Tiffani to fully commit to her swing motion when serving. She explained, "Here's where I needed the most time to adjust to the higher swingweight. As I said earlier, this racquet doesn't let me be lazy with my swing, which isn't a bad thing. I really needed to make sure I was going after the ball so I could get the racquet up and moving. When I did that, I was rewarded with some decent power. A lazy swing resulted in a short serve or one into the net. I had some issues getting enough spin on my slice serve, but when I focused on my motion, I got the results I wanted."

While Mark enjoyed the racquet from around the court, he felt it truly stood out on serve. He said, "In my opinion, the new TFight 305 RS is a great all-court frame, and I feel confident with it from any part of the court. That said, my serve quality stood out a little more than the rest of my shots with this update."

Returns - Score: 84

Thanks to the Tecnifibre TFight 305 RS' stable nature and control-oriented stringbed, our playtesters were able to get dialed in on their targets when returning. Mark found the timing and confidence he needed to take full swings. He said, "With regards to my return of serve, I found myself having enough time to swing through contact more often compared to my usual tactic of chipping the serve back into play."

Chris relished the easy maneuverability he found on returns as well as the precision he found on contact. He said, "I liked the fast feel of the TFight 305 RS on returns. I was able to ready the racquet quickly and take a solid cut at the ball. Getting spin was easy on both topspin and slice returns. I felt connected to my targets and found this to be a very precise racquet."

Tiffani needed to make sure her timing was dialed in, but she was rewarded with pinpoint precision when it was. She said, "I did need to shorten up my swing and concentrate on being explosive on my forehand side. It took me a few games to dial in that shot in particular. Initially, I was hitting the ball late quite often and putting a lot of them into the net as well. Whether it's just confidence or having two hands on the racquet, I didn't have that issue on my backhand returns. Once I found my timing, I liked that the dense pattern let me swing out and pick smaller targets on returns. The stability was nice as well."

Overall - Score: 83