by Ron Leon
Introduction:
Dunlop justifiably lays claim to being the World #1 in squash; and the Aerogel Ultimate is its top-of-the-range squash racquet. Appropriately, it bears the signature of the PSA World #1-ranked player, the Eqyptian, Amr Shabana. Dunlop has recently begun selling this same racquet with a different colour scheme and calls it the World Open Limited Edition,which is usually sold for a slightly higher price and is designed to be sold only through pro shops (not on the Internet). These two racquets are absolutely identical except for the colours.
The top-of-range Dunlop squash racquets have a rather conventional appearance that disguises their innovation and effectiveness. Dunlop squash racquets are used by more PSA touring professionals and teaching professionals around the world than any other brand for a very good reason, they're great! Players who have been fiercely loyal to other brands with more modern-looking designs are almost always surprised when they try the top Dunlop racquets; the most common comment I hear is this racquet feels perfect!
The top Dunlop racquets all have the same basic head shape, which has an open throat design with a bridge spanning the shaft yokes, providing added strength and minimizing tortional instability. The Aerogel Ultimate features a super lightweight gel material that fills the voids in the high-modulus graphite frame and distributes the shock from the ball impact over a large area of the frame for a soft feel that any player will immediately notice and appreciate. The hitting area is the maximum allowable 500 square centimeters. Players who like to choke up their grip for certain shots will appreciate the slightly longer handle on this racquet, which includes Dunlop's patented ISIS design that reduces vibration to the player's hand.
I've been a proud member of the Dunlop technical advisory staff for 25 years and I love playing with Dunlop racquets. The Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate deserves its name: it's the ultimate Dunlop squash racquet.
General Impressions:
The Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate is slightly head-light, and it has a very light feel even though it has a very large head. The size of the beam surrounding the head is very small so it has very good aerodynamics. The response and feel when making contact with the ball is very unique: it feels solid and soft at the same time. Power and control are superb. I have a tendency to change racquets frequently, but when I pick up my Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate I rarely have any desire to change racquets it just feels great. Amr Shabana can play with any racquet he wants, but it's obvious why he chose this racquet to bear his signature.
General feel:
When it comes to feel, you can't beat Dunlop. From weight to balance to shape to grip, everything about this racquet feels right. Most racquets with large heads feel unwieldy, especially when digging balls out of the back corners, and in many cases it feels like the head wants to twist upon ball impact (tortional instability). In contrast, the Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate is very easy to maneuver in the back corners and lends itself to quick flicks of the wrist (for which Amr Shabana is famous), and there is no feeling of tortional instability whatsoever. The racquet feels very solid, and even though it's extremely stiff, the gel material provides a very soft feel and excellent response.
Speed-to-preparation:
This racquet moves very easily and quickly from the ready position to the prepared position on either side. This is due to the balance which is slightly head-light. Once the racquet is in the prepared position, it is very easy to hold it steady until the last moment before drawing the racquet towards the ball.
Maneuverability:
The primary benefit of head-light racquets is the ability to move the racquet head quickly without losing control over the preferred shot, especially when the ball is tight into the back corners. This racquet is very maneuverable, which is especially impressive due to its overly large hitting area. Due to the shape of the head the sweet spot extends further towards the bottom of the head than on other oversize head shapes, which makes the racquet feel very forgiving when you find yourself forced to play the ball behind your body or when you find yourself too close to the ball. The extra long handle enhances the feeling of maneuverability by allowing you to choke up your grip more comfortably.
Stroke momentum:
Head-light racquets can't provide the amount of stroke momentum as head-heavy racquets, however the Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate does not give any indication that stroke momentum is being sacrificed for maneuverability. My sense is that this is due to the size of the head and the aerodynamics of the stroking character of this design. The balance the Dunlop has achieved between stroke momentum and maneuverability with this large, slightly head-light racquet is the most likely reason why players always comment on its feel.
Sweet spot:
This racquet has a very large sweet spot, both wide and long, extending much further towards the bottom of the head than other open throat head designs. A larger sweet spot means better ball control for all levels of players. When the ball is very tight to the wall and it's impossible to make contact in the sweet spot, the Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate continues to perform well. When I know I'm going to play with a partner who loves the long attritional rallies along the wall, I'm always confident that my Amr Shabana racquet will allow me to keep the ball super-tight with the power and length I'll need to maintain my position on the T.
Power:
The power of the Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate is surprising and seemingly effortless. This is primarily due to the aero-space quality materials and the manufacturing technology employed by Dunlop. Many racquets that allow for very powerful shots feel very stiff and the response of ball impact when executing a powerful drive or attacking shot is hard and muscular. By contrast, the Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate allows you to execute powerful drives and attacking shots and distributes the impact over a much larger area of the frame, which allows for a softer feel. In my opinion, this should allow players to execute more powerful shots over a longer period with less fatigue.
Driving to length:
Every top player will agree that driving to length is the most important tactical virtue in squash, and sometimes it takes the better part of the first game before you really begin to find your length. The Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate seems to have just the right balance of characteristics to allow you to find your length almost immediately, before the warm-up is over. When I find my length quickly, I can continue to increase the pressure on my opponent by varying the pace and height of my shots to length. This racquet is always reliable in this regard. I also find that driving my cross-court shots to a good width consistently is easy to do with this racquet.
Retrieving tight shots:
As mentioned above, this racquet provides the best of both worlds: a huge sweet spot and an uncanny ability to strike the ball when it's very tight to the wall and send it back tight. One of my favourite aphorisms of the game of squash is squash is a very simple game; you just need to play the ball tighter and tighter. This sounds overly simplistic but it's also very true. What I said earlier bears repeating when I know I'm going to play a match with an opponent who enjoys and is capable of playing the long attritional rally as much as I, my weapon of choice is my Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate.
Volleys to length:
Maintaining your position on the T is easily accomplished by taking the ball early and volleying to length. This racquet performs very well on this skill.
Volley kills:
The slightly head-light characteristic of this racquet enables the skilled player to attack the volley with a kill into the nick with great effectiveness. If you've ever watched Amr Shabana play, then you've seen him execute this skill with this racquet again and again. There's no better demonstration than that. Period.
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Volley drops:
The soft feel that the Aerogel material provides invites the player who volleys to apply feathery touch to their shot to keep the ball in the front of the court. The balance of the racquet also allows for stop-volleys to be executed consistently.
Drops:
Drop shots seem effortless when playing with the Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate. I recommend using a full stroke with this racquet when executing drop shots, rather than attempting to execute drops with a compressed stroke or a tapping stroke. Players who have not developed the ability to execute drop shots with a full stroke may benefit from using a lower stringing tension on this racquet.
Boasts:
Amr Shabana is known for his extensive and imaginative use of the boast, in every conceivable form. The boast is a feel shot, and due to the intuitive feel that this racquet provides, I find it is very easy to execute boasts with ideal speed and angle. The ease of stroke and maneuverability also allows you to execute back-wall boasts consistently when it becomes necessary.
Lobs:
Executing lobs to a proper height with this racquet takes some practice. Players who haven developed their lob technique may benefit from using a lower string tension which will allow them to apply more loft to their lob shot. The key is having a steady follow-through, and causing the ball to rise up after grazing the front wall.
Spins / Cuts:
The balance of the racquet and size of the sweet spot allows for some wicked cuts and spins. The Dunlop Aerogel Elite racquet that bears the signature of Jonathan Power is only slightly heavier than this racquet and identical in all other respects, and it'ss used by Jonathan Power and Gregory Gauthier, both of whom are wizards of the spin. Of course, Amr Shabana is not lacking in that department: so if you're a player who enjoys applying spin to your shots, you're definitely going to enjoy playing with the Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate.
Conclusion:
If you want to own the top-of-the-range racquet from the world's top name in squash, then your choice is easy: Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate Amr Shabana. If you prefer just a little more weight in the head, then choose the Dunlop Aerogel Elite Jonathan Power which is identical in every other respect. If you want a top quality Dunlop racquet with a slightly smaller head size, then choose the Dunlop Aerogel Pro or Dunlop Aerogel Pro GT. These are all great racquets, but only one is the Ultimate, and only one bears the signature of two-time world champion Amr Shabana. When you show up for your match armed with the Dunlop Aerogel Ultimate, your opponent will know you're serious about your game.
