Play Two

Two Two is a relatively new Swedish padel startup.

Two Two brings a combination of lifestyle branding and performance athletic design to padel. In one of the founders’ words, > “why do padel rackets need to look like they were designed by fourteen year olds?” I’ve had the pleasure of playing with their Play Two racket for the past few months. The Play Two is designed for intermediate players. It is produced in three colors: Green (the pictured model), Grey, and Pink. All models have the same make up: teardrop, ~360g, 3K carbon.

Strap

The wrist strap is comfortable, small, and cinching. Just like the Head strap, but in tennis ball fluorescent yellow. It’s exactly what you want from a strap, it keeps your racket there and you forget about it.

Handle

The handle is relatively thin and 11cm long. It has a slight bulge at the bottom. I normally prefer thin handles, but with this one, I could have used a bit more girth. I would use at least one overgrip. For my testing though, I used 0 or 1.

Bridge

The racket has a short, wide trapezoidal bridge. It was likely designed to increase rigidity in the frame, which I believe it does successfully. I think it looks cool, but I have one complaint that I address below.

3K carbon surface

The surface of the racket is made of 3K carbon fiber. The racket face has a rough sandblasted finish.

Holes

There are 8 rows and 8 columns of drilled holes in the racket face in its widest spot. The interior 4x4 holes are 9mm in diameter and the exterior are 14mm.

On the court

The racket excels in maneuverability and control on the court. Its low weight and central balance - my model weighed 362 grams and had a balance of 26 cm - made me feel really fast on the court. It’s super easy to scoop aggressive shots in the back of the court. And with teardrop shape, its sweet spot is above center and does not lack power in volleys. Where I felt its lack of weight was in the aerial game, where your wrist will work more - grip firmly - to absorb the shock of heavy balls. I recommend it for players thinking about the AT10 18K. It is a best buy for many players and comes with what I think is a much better design. Sadly, most players choose their rackets based only what their favorite pro plays with. We hope we can help change that!

Short sweet spot

My biggest complaint is the Play Two’s sweet spot - it is short. It is pretty wide, but, likely due to the rigidity of the trapezoidal bridge, it is vertically compacted. It starts in the center of the racket face and is about 4.5cm high - so it runs from the 5th to the 7th row of holes, when counting from the bottom.

Who it’s best for

I think this racket is great for intermediate players who like a semi-hard touch. Advanced players may feel its lack of weight. It’s great on blocks, but if you are used to the weight of a 27cm balance racket, you will need a few hours to adjust to the additional effort your shoulder and back will need to make to block fast bajadas.