The journal Volume 2026

Every examination we've published.

Newest first. Browse by topic from the navigation, or by category from the footer. Older pieces stay reachable forever — we don't archive away from URLs.

Page 18 of 33

171
Community ·9 min · June 2026

Why a Tennis Community Newsletter Is Only as Good as the People Who Vet It

The advice gets repeated until it sounds like fact: join a good tennis community newsletter and you will buy smarter, string better, and stop wasting money on gear that does not suit your game.

172
Buying Guide ·5 min · June 2026

Pink Tennis Racquets: Where the "Pink Means Beginner" Idea Came From, and Whether the Specs Back It Up

If you want a racquet in pink, you are not choosing between style and substance — you are choosing a finish that sits on top of whatever frame the manufacturer poured it onto.

173
Dampeners ·5 min · June 2026

Rubber Band vs. Foam Vibration Dampeners: Does the Agassi Trick Actually Work?

Andre Agassi knotting a rubber band through his string bed is the origin story every budget-minded player eventually hears, and it raises a fair question: are rubber bands a legitimate alternative to…

174
Tennis History ·10 min · June 2026

The Longest Tennis Rallies: What the Data Says About a Stat Everyone Misjudges

Watch tennis with anyone long enough and you will hear the received wisdom: the long rally is the soul of the sport, the thing that separates tennis from the highlight-reel games, the proof of fitness…

175
Stability ·5 min · June 2026

Stability Evaluation: What a String's "Stability" Number Actually Measures (And What It Hides)

A polyester string we pulled off the rack last month carried a printed "stability" score of 8.9 out of 10 on its packaging.

176
Strings ·5 min · June 2026

Polyester Tennis Strings: What the Material Actually Does, and Who It Fails

Roughly nine of every ten men on the ATP tour string with some form of polyester. That number gets quoted constantly, usually right before someone tells you to switch.

177
Racquets ·6 min · June 2026

Tennis Racquet Specifications: Why Weight and Balance Matter More Than the Number on the Throat

The static weight printed on a racquet's throat — 300 grams, 305, 11.2 ounces — is the least useful number for predicting how the thing will feel in your hand.

178
Strings ·9 min · June 2026

Tennis String Maintenance: When to Actually Restring, and Why the "3x/Year" Rule Fails Most Players

Good tennis string maintenance is not a date on a calendar — it is a function of how many hours you play, what string is in the racquet, and how attuned you are to the moment your control quietly…

179
Beginner ·6 min · June 2026

Tennis Warm-Up Drills On An Empty Court: A Footwork Protocol You Can Test Today

If you have a court, ten minutes, and no partner, the most useful tennis warm-up drills you can run are not stretches at all — they are short footwork patterns done at the lines you already see…

180
Babolat ·5 min · June 2026

Babolat Pure Aero 2023 Review: What the Spin Numbers Actually Show

On a 41°F morning, with a ball machine feeding flat balls at roughly 50 mph and a courtside radar logging outgoing RPM, we hit forty topspin forehands with the Babolat Pure Aero 2023 strung with…