STIGA has entered the tennis industry. They are far more famous for table tennis, so how will they do? Here is our STIGA Supreme Review.
You can check out our video review of the STIGA Supreme here.
STIGA Supreme Review
We have covered STIGA’s tennis racquets before, but this time we have tested pro player Simon Freund‘s racquet of choice, the STIGA Supreme.
The STIGA Supreme comes at a standard “tweener” spec.
Specifications unstrung
Head size: 100 sq inches
Weight: 300 g (+/-7 g)
Balance: 325 mm (+/-7 mm)
String pattern: 16×19 (relatively open)
Beam width: 23.5/26 mm
Stiffness: 71 RA
This has become the average racquet spec these days. It gives a player a combination of power and forgiveness but might be challenging to control for players with flatter and more traditional strokes. The string bed is more open than in racquets like the Ezone 100 or the Pure Aero 2023. The mold and string pattern are very reminiscent of the Pure Drive Original from the early 2000s and almost identical to the Tenx Strike 300.
How does it play?
The Supreme plays as expected. It has good spin potential, a high launch angle, and semi-high power (I would say Pure Drive and Ezone 100 offer more). Control and feel are not premium qualities of this racquet. I did struggle sometimes with an erratic response from the open string bed, which is not unfamiliar from the beloved Babolat Soft Drives I used to play with. But the Soft Drive has a bit better feel and control with a lower stiffness.
The comfort of the STIGA is decent, but I would be cautious with the string and tension. I tried 25/24 kg (55/53 lbs) with the Toroline K-Pro setup and that worked pretty well. HEAD Lynx Tour 1.25 at 23 kg or 51 lbs had a combination of being stiff and erratic.
Next time, I will string it with Toroline Caviar, possibly in a hybrid like the K Pro, but perhaps drop it down to 50 lbs.
No matter the tension, you need to be able to control the ball using top spin. Flat shots tend to sail a bit. This is not a knock on the racquet but quite typical for this style of frame.
Summary
The STIGA Supreme is not a bad racquet. It does offer good stability, power and spin potential. I found control and feel to be a little lacking and hesitate to recommend it to tennis players with more traditional technique and slower swing speeds. For the ambitious junior or spin-heavy player, it can be solid weapon.
