At this stage of your tennis learning journey you should know how to hit forehands, backhands, serve, volley and at least two of them should be reliable shots that you feel comfortable hitting. You should either be hitting top spin or beginning to learn it. If you don't meet any of these criteria we recommend you read our beginners guide for choosing a tennis racket and revisiting this guide afterwards.
5 things to do when choosing an intermediate racket
1. Keep your grip size
You should already know your grip size and unless you have grown all of a sudden this should be the same as the one in your beginner racket.
2. Experiment with weight distribution but avoid Head Heavy (HH) frames.
At this stage you should only be looking into Headlight (HL) or Even Balanced (EB) frames. If you are serious about getting better, these two options will reinforce the best habits while also protecting your body the most. Our preference is towards the HL side, since that is what you find most professionals using, but EB is good as well at this stage and could provide an easier transition if you are coming from a HH frame.
3. Experiment with head size but keep avoiding oversize frames
In reality, at this stage, anything larger than 105" should be avoided. You want to reinforce proper hand eye coordination when tracking the tennis ball and want to maximize your rackets "sweet spot" zone. A smaller frame does this for you. If you are coming from a bigger frame 107" (you shouldn't if you followed our beginner's guide to choosing a racket) a good target range for head size is 103" - 105".
4. Experiment with weight
By the time you become an intermediate player you should have gained some strength to begin slowly increasing your racket's weight. Take a look at your beginner racket's weight and try to get a slightly heavier one or if you think that weight is good for you try to keep close to it.
5. Begin paying attention to string patterns
Begin paying attention to string patterns, but don't let them define your purchasing decision. When you find a racket that "feels" right take a look at the string pattern and keep it in mind for your next racket. A pretty safe starting point is 16x19.
Bonus
6. Resist the urge to buy your favorite pro player racket
If it was controversial at the beginner stage it is even more controversial at this stage. You have already proven that you are serious about getting better at tennis and would like to be rocking the latest and greatest from your favorite tennis player. This is a trap and it should be avoided. At this stage you are still figuring out which parameters work best for you and are beginning to understand and develop your play style. This is the stage with the most experimentation and you want to avoid commiting to a racket that has a particular play style attached to it. In other words, the development and understanding of your play style should begin to define your racket and not the other way around. You will get there eventually but do yourself a favor and delay gratification a bit.
The rackets here should "feel" better than the beginner rackets you started out with, while still leaving room for improvement to acquire better rackets in the future. Below are some rackets we have filtered out for this stage of your tennis journey.
5 things to do when choosing an intermediate racket
1. Keep your grip size
You should already know your grip size and unless you have grown all of a sudden this should be the same as the one in your beginner racket.
2. Experiment with weight distribution but avoid Head Heavy (HH) frames.
At this stage you should only be looking into Headlight (HL) or Even Balanced (EB) frames. If you are serious about getting better, these two options will reinforce the best habits while also protecting your body the most. Our preference is towards the HL side, since that is what you find most professionals using, but EB is good as well at this stage and could provide an easier transition if you are coming from a HH frame.
3. Experiment with head size but keep avoiding oversize frames
In reality, at this stage, anything larger than 105" should be avoided. You want to reinforce proper hand eye coordination when tracking the tennis ball and want to maximize your rackets "sweet spot" zone. A smaller frame does this for you. If you are coming from a bigger frame 107" (you shouldn't if you followed our beginner's guide to choosing a racket) a good target range for head size is 103" - 105".
4. Experiment with weight
By the time you become an intermediate player you should have gained some strength to begin slowly increasing your racket's weight. Take a look at your beginner racket's weight and try to get a slightly heavier one or if you think that weight is good for you try to keep close to it.
5. Begin paying attention to string patterns
Begin paying attention to string patterns, but don't let them define your purchasing decision. When you find a racket that "feels" right take a look at the string pattern and keep it in mind for your next racket. A pretty safe starting point is 16x19.
Bonus
6. Resist the urge to buy your favorite pro player racket
If it was controversial at the beginner stage it is even more controversial at this stage. You have already proven that you are serious about getting better at tennis and would like to be rocking the latest and greatest from your favorite tennis player. This is a trap and it should be avoided. At this stage you are still figuring out which parameters work best for you and are beginning to understand and develop your play style. This is the stage with the most experimentation and you want to avoid commiting to a racket that has a particular play style attached to it. In other words, the development and understanding of your play style should begin to define your racket and not the other way around. You will get there eventually but do yourself a favor and delay gratification a bit.
The rackets here should "feel" better than the beginner rackets you started out with, while still leaving room for improvement to acquire better rackets in the future. Below are some rackets we have filtered out for this stage of your tennis journey.