Prince Turbo Shark Tennis Racquet Review
Our Review
August 2004

The Prince Turbo Shark Mid Plus courts the market created by Andy Roddick's success. It's perfectly suited to the playing style defined by his game.

But Andy Roddick's success has done more than fuel the sales of his racquet. The popularity of Roddick and his racquet created a large market for competing frames with similar playing characteristics. Enter 2004 Prince Turbo Shark Mid Plus. It joins a field of talented contestants that includes the 2002 Volkl Tour 8, 2002 Wilson Hyper Pro Staff Surge 5.1, and 2003 Head Liquid Metal Instinct.

More than the rest, the Shark leans towards the preferences of advanced players. It swings heavy with the stability of the Instinct. It comes closest to the Surge's best-in-class feedback. Though the Shark has excellent power, it doesn't have the most. Instead, it offers a little more margin of safety for big hitters that don't want to back off.

Like the Head Liquid Metal Instinct, the Prince Turbo Shark Mid Plus has earned a Tennis Magazine Editors' Choice award. On the court, the Shark was a popular and capable all-court racquet. In play testing, a lot of Babolat Pure Drive players preferred our Shark review sample to Roddick's racquet.

Medium-fast strokes unlock the Shark's power and spin capability on serves, returns, overheads, volleys, and groundstrokes. Roddick wannabes and control frame players liked how the Shark produced power and spin without creating liabilities. Feel was crisp. Decent control makes the Shark's firepower very usable.

The Prince Turbo Shark Mid Plus is friendly enough to to help competitive Intermediates that want an even balance of power and control. It will work even better for accomplished juniors and advanced adult players seeking a powerful alternative to players' frames.