Choose your padel racket

Do you want to improve your performance and continue your progression ? Our experts will explain to you how to choose the right padel racket.

You will have to take into account several criteria such as your level of play, the weight, the shape, the balance, the type of foam and the surface of the racket.

Our padel rackets

YOUR LEVEL

This is the first criterion to take into account to define the family of padel rackets that will suit you.

• Beginner Player: you should orient yourself on a control-oriented round padel racket thanks to a soft foam. It will allow you to feel the ball well on every shot and offer good forgiveness.
• Intermediate Player: You should orient yourself on a semi-rigid racket with neutral balance. They have the advantage of being versatile and continuing to improve you.
• Advanced Player: Orient yourself on a teardrop-shaped racket. This is the best ratio between power and control.
• Expert Player: You play several hours a week and master all the moves. Favor a diamond-shaped padel racket, as it increases the power of each of your strikes. It is also a very technical racket, as it requires good centering to exploit the power.

THE WEIGHT OF THE PADEL RACKET

Weight influences several game factors such as power, but also maneuverability. It is best to take a racket around 350 grams for beginners. You will have better control of the racket for faster progress. From 375 gr, the racket is heavy and therefore offers more power at the expense of maneuverability. With experience, you will be able to determine the mass that suits you best. We recommend that you choose the racket according to your type of game. Indeed, attacking players will favor heavy rackets while defensive players prefer light rackets for more touch and maneuverability.

THE BALANCE

Balance is related to the shape of the racket. Indeed, the higher the balance, the more power you will have at the expense of maneuverability. This is the case for diamond rackets. Due to a rather high weight, a high balance and a small sweetspot, this type of racket is to be preferred for expert players. A low balance will promote maneuverability and ball touch which we recommend for beginner padel players to ensure rapid progress. Finally, mid balance is often tied to the tear (or teardrop) shape in order to achieve the best balance of power and control. Intermediate and confirmed players should favor this type of racket.

THE TYPE OF FOAM

We hear more and more about it and the foam is of paramount importance in the choice of your pala.

SOFT FOAM

It has the following advantages:

• More control
• Better comfort
• More ball touch

Soft foam is preferred for beginners to reduce the risk of injury but also to get a better touch on the ball. In defense, the soft foam allows you to feel the ball better and therefore to control your shots more.

Players with joint problems should also go for soft foam to effectively reduce vibrations. Padel is a sport of sensations and the foam will directly impact your sensations.

HARD FOAM

It offers the following advantages:

• More power
• Better responsiveness

The more the pala has a hard foam, the more it will be reactive and therefore powerful. The ball will crash more into the racket storing more energy to return it. This is the spring effect provided of course that you have good power. If not, you will not get the power gain. Players who hit hard and already have a good technical level will benefit the most from the advantages of rigid foam. Some very powerful and technical padel players, however, prefer soft foam, as they have enough power to get the balls out and will enjoy better ball feel. It is therefore important to test beforehand in order to define your preference on the rigidity of the foam.

A SEMI-RIGID OR SEMI-SOFT FOAM

Semi-soft or semi-rigid foams have the advantage of being very versatile. The intermediate player continues to improve and therefore needs a racquet with medium stiffness. In his evolution, he will be able to define his game profile (attacker or defender) and thus orient himself on a soft or rigid foam.

To deepen your choice on the type of foam for your racket, do not hesitate to consult our guide on how to choose the foam for your padel racket.