The range of tennis strings is enormous. There are numerous manufacturers, each with their own brand. You can classify tennis strings in 5 main categories:
The most important tennis string characteristics are:
Control
Even if you hit the tennis ball hard, you are still able to place the ball where you want.
Feeling
When you hit the ball gently, you are still able to place the ball where you want.
Power
When you hit the ball at a normal pace, the ball still reaches a high speed. It is closely related to the elasticity of a tennis string.
Comfort
When you hit the ball, you feel little vibrations in your arm and you experience a flexible return feeling.
Natural gut tennis strings
Gut tennis strings are made of cow (or sheep) gut. They offer the tennis player a superior playing comfort and feeling, generate a lot of power, are very elastic ,extra resilient and the tension remains stable. They are known to prevent injuries like a tennis elbow, since they can absorb the vibrations generated by the impact of the ball because of their high elasticity. The disadvantage is that they do not have a high lifespan, are pretty weather sensitive and expensive to buy. A number of professional players play with natural gut. If your performance takes priority over money, then buy natural gut tennis strings!
Some examples:
Tonic by Babolat
Nylon tennis strings
The most commonly used kind of tennis string. It is estimated that more than 70% of the tennis players use it. They are usually fabricated of a nylon core with multiple long wearing layers. It is safe to say that the more layers, the higher is the quality of the tennis string. These layers compensate the loss of the nylon core's elasticity. Nylon tennis strings usually have a longer lifespan than natural gut tennis strings, but a shorter one than the polyester or kevlar tennis strings. They are aimed at players with a normal tennis string usage.
Some examples:
TYGER Zeo
TYGER Reflex
The best nylon tennis strings are for example the Gamma Live Wire professional or Wilson Sensation NXT Tour. They cost almost as much as a cheaper gut tennis string, but they perform like a natural gut too.
You can define several categories within the range of nylon tennis strings:
Multifilament tennis strings
This type of tennis string comes closest to natural gut strings. Hundreds, often even thousands of fine, individual filaments are braided together to form a tennis string, with a protective coating around it.
The advantages of this type of tennis string: high elasticity, major ball acceleration, lots of ball 'feeling' and great play comfort. Disadvantage: shorter lifespan. Take into account you can have tension loss straight after the stringing. Also once the protective coating is damaged, the tennis string will shred until it breaks.
Some examples:
TYGER Xtouch
Tecnifibre X-one Biphase
Gamma Live Wire Professional
Multilayered multifilament tennis strings
These tennis strings are also built up of fine filaments which are braided together. There usually is at least one mantle of thicker filaments around the core filaments, which are braided in the opposite direction. This means the playing abilities are better and the elasticity is higher.
Some examples:
TYGER Pro Dzeta
Kirschbaum Touch Multifibre
Babolat Xcel Premium
Multifilament tennis strings with a solid core
The most basic nylon tennis string. Sometimes it is also called 'synthetic gut'. A solid core is surrounded by a mantle of filaments. Because the core is massive, these tennis strings have a higher durability than the multifilament tennis strings without a solid core.
Some examples:
TYGER Reflex
Prince Lightning
Multifilament tennis strings with solid core and multilayered
A relatively thin, massive core is surrounded by several mantles of filaments. Because of this, maximum durability is created.
Some examples:
TYGER Titanium
Babolat Powergy
Gamma Gut 2
Multifilament tennis strings with a solid core and structured
These tennis strings have a solid massive core, surrounded by filaments of varying thickness. Because of this, the surface of the tennis strings is structured, which provides more grip and spin on the ball. Disadvantage: the texture does not last very long, which causes the tennis string to become frail. Can have a shorter life span.
Some examples:
TYGER X-spin
Isospeed Pyramid
Polyester tennis strings
They are fabricated with one single polyester core. They are also called monofilament tennis strings and are available in several thicknesses. Their most important quality is their excellent lifespan. The disadvantage of these tennis strings is that they provide you with less power and feeling than nylon tennis strings and natural gut tennis strings and lose their flexibility quicker. With this kind of tennis string, you can hit the ball harder and still keep the ball in the court. The latest generations of polyester tennis strings have improved greatly. Polyester tennis strings are designed for players who have a high tennis string consumption. We advise you to lower the required tension by about 10% when using this type of tennis string.
Some examples:
TYGER Rebound
Kirschbaum Super Smash
Luxilon Big Banger Alu
Pro Babolat Hurricane
Kevlar tennis strings
The kevlar tennis string is the most durable tennis string which is available on the tennis string market. You shouldn't really use this tennis string unless you are a chronic tennis string 'breaker'. Watch out, this type of tennis string is very stiff, plays uncomfortably and generates very little power .This is also very damaging for your arm and wrist. If you do use kevlar tennis strings, we advise you to lower the tension by 10%.
Some examples:
TYGER Kevlar
Hybrid tennis strings
Hybrid tennis stringings are created using two categories of tennis strings: one for the tennis strings in the width and another for the tennis strings in the length of the racket. With most tennis racket stringings, it is usually the tennis strings in the length which break. This is because they move more than the tennis strings in the width and the tennis strings in the width 'saw' little holes in the length tennis strings, causing them to break more easily. That's why you should choose very durable tennis strings, ( polyester or kevlar tennis strings), for the length tennis strings, while for the width tennis strings natural gut or a multifilament tennis string are usually used,( to be able to put touch into your game and for extra comfort). A hybrid tennis stringing has a reasonably long lifespan. This means you can use numerous combinations of tennis strings.
Some examples:
TYGER NRGY Hybrid
Babolat pro Hurricane
To summarize: with the afore mentioned five kinds of tennis strings, gut tennis strings provide you with the best ball feeling, but has a shorter lifespan. Kevlar tennis strings are exactly the opposite: a long lifespan, but an inferior ball feeling. Nylon, polyester and hybrid tennis strings are positioned between the gut tennis strings and kevlar when you are talking about ball feeling and lifespan.
More information:
Stringing guide
Stringing video
Why are tennis strings important?
Tennis string thickness
The correct tennis string tension
The lifespann of a tennis string
The ideal tennis string
Why string yourself?