The Functional Tennis Saber
Why are players training with a racquet this small?
It's a training racquet with a head so narrow that only a clean, centred hit works. Here's why players practise with it, and how to use it between lessons with your coach.
Why a smaller head helpsAlready sold on it? See the sizes.
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Where you hit the ball matters as much as how you swing
Every racquet has a sweet spot near the centre of the strings. Hit it and the ball comes off clean, with pace and control. Miss it, even slightly, and you feel the vibration, lose power and lose direction.
A big modern racquet hides a lot of those near-misses, so it's hard to tell how often you're really finding the centre. Finding it more often is one of the most direct routes to more consistent tennis, and it's what a lot of lesson time is spent on.
Want to find the centre more often?
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A racquet that tells you the truth
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Only centred contact works
The narrow head leaves almost no room for error. Keep the ball in play and you know you found the middle.
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Every mishit is obvious
You feel and hear an off-centre hit straight away, so you can correct it on the next ball, without anyone watching.
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Your own racquet feels bigger afterwards
After practising with the Saber, the sweet spot on a full-size racquet feels generous, and it's easier to find under pressure.
Hear every mishit for yourself.
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For parents
“Move your feet!”
It's what every tennis parent calls out from the fence. With a big racquet, a player can stretch and reach for the ball and still get it back, so the habit never has to change.
With the Saber, reaching doesn't work. To hit the centre of that small head, the player has to get their feet to the ball first, set up, and then swing. Precision makes footwork necessary, so the racquet does the reminding for you.
Let the racquet do the reminding.
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How to practise with it between lessons
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1
Take one thing from your last lesson. A forehand contact point, a steadier backhand, a shorter take-back. Practise just that.
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2
Rally slowly with the Saber. Start close to the net or against a wall, keep the pace down, move your feet to every ball, and count how many in a row you hit from the middle.
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3
Switch back to your racquet. Hit the same drill again, notice how much bigger the sweet spot feels, and bring what you felt into your next lesson.
Have one ready for your next practice.
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Ready to try it?
See every Saber size, the specs and shipping details on Functional Tennis's site.
See sizes & prices at Functional Tennis (opens functionaltennis.com in a new tab)Buying through this link supports Court Coach Pro, at no extra cost to you. Learn more
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The SaberFunctional Tennis Saber
Mid, Lite and Junior sizes · Buying through this link supports Court Coach Pro, at no extra cost to you. Affiliate link · Learn more