Mizuno has officially arrived to the racket world

The racket world kind of mimics the men’s ATP Tour during the 2010s; it’s dominated by a "Big Four." Wilson, Babolat, Yonex, and Head make up most of our sales, but that could be changing because, this year, a new sporting powerhouse has entered the fold: Mizuno.

While Mizuno has carved out a niche for themselves in tennis with their footwear, they are much more well known in sports like baseball and golf. On a personal note, I’ve been a huge fan of their soccer shoes for over a decade; the quality, craftsmanship, and insatiable desire to be the best is always on show with the Japanese brand.

So when I heard they were making their way back into the racket world with two new rackets this year, I was very excited. After extensively testing these two frames over the last several months, including a data-driven session at UBC with Mizuno’s head engineers, I can safely say: it’s time to pay attention to Mizuno.

This March, they released the Acrostrike for control and the Acrospeed for power. In this article, I’m going to go over the fascinating and unique technology they use in both these frames and provide an overview of what you should expect in terms of playability. For a more in-depth review, though, you can watch our full YouTube reviews that I’ve embedded in this article.

Acrospeed 300: Power with a Twist

The Mizuno Acrospeed is, on paper, a pure power racket. It weighs 300 grams, has a 100-square-inch head size, a 16x19 string pattern, and a thick, variable beam.

It also has an extremely high stiffness rating, flexing at 69 RA strung. Traditionally, a racket that stiff would likely produce jarring vibrations and a harsh feel, but the Acrospeed isn’t anything like that. In fact, the first time I hit with it, I hadn’t tested the flex and I would have guessed it was in the high 50s or low 60s. It’s an extremely plush racket, and Mizuno was able to create such a unique feel profile through the use of some very savvy technology.

The Magic of "Dual Spring" Tech

How does Mizuno make a stiff, powerful frame feel like a plush, flexible racket? It all comes down to a proprietary layup technology called Dual Spring.

In a traditional racket, carbon sheets are firmly bonded together to create a singular, solid structure. Mizuno’s engineers did something completely different: they placed a slick, non-adhesive layer between the carbon sheets in the hoop at the 3, 9, and 12 o’clock positions. This allows the carbon layers to slide against one another during impact and creates two distinct benefits:

• Plushness: The "sliding" effect mimics the feel of a much softer frame, providing incredible comfort and dwell time.
• Energy Return: Like a spring, the layers load up and snap back, amplifying trampoline effect and shooting the ball off the strings.

On-Court Performance: Feel and Comfort

Describing the feel of the Acrospeed is a challenge because there is truly nothing else like it on the market. The first racket I thought of when I hit it was actually the Wilson Clash, but only in terms of the "wow" factor. Both these rackets feel completely different to what you would expect but, where the Clash can feel mushy or disconnected from the ball, the Acrospeed feels much cleaner. You still feel the graphite flexing, and it’s buttery smooth.

The Acrospeed has a massive amount of dwell time. You feel that sensation of the ball sitting on the strings, which is rare for a 300g power frame. It completely removes the jarring vibrations you’d expect from a racket that looks so similar to the Pure Drive.

As much as I appreciate this revolutionary feel, I do (of course) have to nitpick. Because the technology is so effective at dampening, you do lose some feedback. For players who like a more crisp sensation from their power racket, this is much more muted. But overall, the feel of the Acrospeed is phenomenal and so difficult to describe that I highly recommend you try it out for yourself, if possible.

Power and Sweet Spot

The Acrospeed is a power racket. Don’t let this plush feel make you think that it lacks energy return or soaks up some of the ball's power at impact because it simply does not. During my Trackman testing at UBC, the data confirmed what I felt on court: I was hitting my first serves significantly harder than I was with both the Ezone 98 and the Acrostrike 305.

The real x-factor isn't just top-end ball speed though; it’s also the forgiveness. The Dual Spring technology effectively creates a massive sweet spot. Usually, when you hit a ball off-centre on a power racket, the result is a stiff, jarring shock and a lower quality ball. With the Acrospeed, that plush feel extends to the edge of the string bed and produces a high-quality ball even on off-centre hits.

It strikes a fantastic balance between a "forgiving" feel and a "rewarding" feel that I haven’t ever really experienced. This makes playing offensive tennis very easy, even when you’re scrambling. You can generate a heavy ball and purposeful angles that you simply can’t on less powerful, less forgiving rackets.

Control Through Spin

Understandably, you may worry that a racket this powerful would be impossible to control. In certain cases, that is true. It’s not a particularly accurate racket on flat shots, or when you slow it down and try to guide the ball back into your opponent’s court. The dwell time is almost too long for pinpoint, flat precision, as in, you get a little bit lost in the string bed. However, you absolutely can control the Acrospeed by using spin.

Mizuno uses a unique grommet system called Booster Grommets at the 3, 6, and 9 o'clock positions. These rectangular grommets allow for significantly more string movement than traditional round grommets. When you combine that extra string movement with the long dwell time of the Dual Spring tech, the spin potential is much higher than it is on a standard power racket.

You can shape the ball very effectively, and it feels like you have uncapped spin potential. That’s how you control the racket.

Who is the Acrospeed For?

One thing is for sure: after your first shot with the Acrospeed, you’ll understand that something is special. It’ll take players a second to get used to it, but after that, there will be two types of reactions:

• The Traditionalists: Some will find the feel too "different" or "artificial" compared to more classic graphite rackets.
• The Modern Players: These players will pick it up, realize they can hit a heavier ball with less effort and zero arm pain, and fall in love with the racket.

Of course, since it is still a power and spin oriented racket, it’s made for players who want that from their frame. If you prefer control rackets, the power will be too high and that’s totally understandable. But, if you do want to try a unique take on a power racket, this is the best I have tested in a very long time.

 

Now I’m going to talk about the Acrostrike which is Mizuno’s new control racket. While it’s not as unique and "special" as the Acrospeed, it’s also a fantastic frame that certainly has its place in the busy, control category.

Acrostrike 305: Modern Control

The Acrostrike is a control racket, but looking at the specs, there’s clearly something else going on. It has a 98-square-inch head size with a 16x19 string pattern, and weighs 305 grams. It’s 6 points head-light, which veers away from the standard 7 points of most other control rackets, and flexes at 59 RA strung.

The beam is where things get interesting. Unlike many classic control frames that have a constant box beam, the Acrostrike has a variable, oval beam. It starts at 21mm in the upper hoop, then goes up to 23mm in the lower hoop, and tapers back to 22mm in the throat. Mizuno chose to give the beam an oval shape (Enerzy Frame) to help the racket produce more power. This is essentially a racket with control DNA, but with more power and spin engineered into the design to keep up with the modern game.

Less Dual Spring

Unlike in the Acrospeed, the Acrostrike only has Dual Spring technology at the 3 and 9 o’clock positions.

This reduces the intensity of that "sliding" effect to preserve a more pure and raw graphite feel. If the Acrospeed feels like it has 100% of that Dual Spring feel, the Acrostrike has around 30%. You still get some plushness and extra dwell time, but it doesn't overpower the feedback you want in a control racket.

Hitting with the Acrostrike feels like a breath of fresh air in an era of heavily dampened rackets. Many modern frames use technology to kill off vibrations, which also hurts the traditional feedback that control rackets are so good at producing. The Acrostrike feels remarkably connected to the ball and it brings me back to more classic frames from the '90s and 2000s.

That raw feel does come with a trade-off, though: stability. Modern stabilization layups (like those found in the Wilson Blade) work to artificially expand the sweet spot. This makes them easier to use at the cost of good feedback, but it’s a sacrifice that many players are willing to make. Because the Acrostrike doesn’t have that type of technology, it is less forgiving on off-centre hits, especially in stock form.

During my testing, I found its stock form playability to be a bit too wobbly, especially against hard hitters. I added a leather grip (which adds 10 grams to the handle) and that transformed the racket. It became rock-solid, more head-light, and, at least felt like a true control racket should.

Control vs. Spin: The Modern Trade-off

If you are looking for a laser beam for flat, pinpoint shots, the Acrostrike is not the racket for you. It has a very open 16x19 string pattern, and a unique set of "spin grommets" that Mizuno calls 4-Way Pocket Grommets. These are X-shaped and allow the strings to move into grooves to increase snapback, but they also takes away from precision.

The tradeoff is less control for more spin; the Acrostrike is one of the most spin-friendly control rackets on the market. Thanks to the Dual Spring tech and 4WP grommets, the ball sinks deep into the string bed and snaps back with massive spin potential.

You control the Acrostrike by tapping into that spin potential and shaping the ball, not with flat precision. It complements a modern, loopy stroke extremely well, allowing you to rip the ball with high racket head speed and trust that the spin will keep it between the lines. It's a good thing, then, that racket head speed is so easy to generate. Thanks to the oval beam and the traditionally shaped hoop, this racket moves very quickly through the air.

Power and Data: The Trackman Results

On groundstrokes, I actually produced a more powerful ball with the Acrostrike than I did with the power-oriented Acrospeed. My forehand averaged 74 mph with the Strike compared to 71 mph with the Speed.

That doesn't mean the Acrostrike is more inherently powerful (it’s not), but the better control on the Acrostrike made me feel more confident swinging fast and full. This proves that a control racket can actually result in more offensive potential if that’s what you’re comfortable with.

Now it may not be as powerful as the Acrospeed, but it is significantly more powerful than a constant, box-beamed racket like the Prestige or Percept. The oval beam punches through the ball noticeably harder and keeps that theme going that this is a true "hybrid" control racket.

Who is the Acrostrike For?

The Acrostrike is made for purists who understand that they need something a bit more modern than their classic, thin-beamed 18x20s. It's a whippy, responsive racket that balances power and spin with a fantastic, classic feel. That’s the most comforting aspect of the Acrostrike for players coming from control rackets. It’s going to play differently to what they’re used to, but it will still provide a similar sensation on contact.

Mizuno has officially arrived in the racket world. The Acrospeed is so unique that I expect it to follow a similar trajectory to the Ezone's back in the 2010s, and the Acrostrike is one of the best control rackets on the market today. It will take time, but I expect Mizuno to be a serious player in the racket world in the coming years.

If you do want to demo either of these two rackets, you can come visit us in-store, or you can check them out online at racketsandrunners.ca.