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Why You Should Replace Your Tennis Strings Regularly

Foto van schrijver: Maico EgbersMaico Egbers

Maintaining your tennis equipment goes beyond just taking care of your racket. One critical component that directly affects your game is often overlooked—the tennis strings. Many people believe that strings should only be replaced when they break, but in this blog post, we will debunk this misconception and explain why it is essential to replace your tennis strings regularly.


There is a common belief among tennis players that strings only need replacing when they break. While it is true that a broken string requires immediate attention, waiting for such an event can negatively impact your game and even cause injuries.

Imagine your string being a rubber band. if you put a rubber band in between your fingers for a long period of time the stretch will decrease and the band will dry up. This goes the same for your strings. The strings will lose their stretchability.


This stretchability is very important. The string surface is like a trampoline. The ball enters the string and stretches out (like you jumping on a trampoline) then the trampoline bounces you back out, same as the string with the ball. If you have a new string it will bounce the ball back out of your racket (see slowmotion video below).

But if the string loses is stretchability then the string won't bounce the ball back out of the strings. This results in a fishnet effect where the ball "stays" in the strings (the string doesn't work anymore to bounce the ball out of your racket). You now need to work harder to get the ball out of the racket, which can eventually result in injuries. Of course, this doesn't happen overnight but over a season as you play the strings will lose their stretching ability. The more you play the more often you should replace your strings because every time you play the strings will lose a bit of its stretchability.


This is why you should replace your strings even if you haven't played for a long time. If a brand new racket lies in the closet for 2 years the string will lose stretchability (like the rubber band). That is why I would recommend restringing your racket before you start playing again. This will increase the enjoyment on court and prevent injuries!


Now you may ask: "but how often should I string my racket?"

This is a question I get a lot from my students. And the answer is that it depends on the situation. But a good rule of thumb (if you never break a string) is to replace your tennis strings as many times in a season as you play in a week. For example, if you play twice a week I would recommend you to restring your racket twice during the season. This would mean twice in the summer season and twice in the winter season (beginning and middle of the summer and beginning and middle of the winter)!


Are you curious if your racket needs restringing? I work with the ERT300 (see pictures below). This is a professional device that accurately and quickly determines the stringing and playing characteristics of your tennis racket. It can tell me how your racket is strung and also if your racket needs restringing. It takes the guesswork out and shows you real data! If you want to know how it works, find me on court and I will gladly show and explain it to you!


How the ERT 300 looks on your racket
ERT 300




If you have any questions leave them in the comments or contact me!



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