Yonex Astrox 88 Racket Series: Picking the Right One for You

The Yonex Astrox 88 rackets have been the racket of choice for many professional players, including World #1 Men's Doubles, Kevin Sanjaya Sukamuljo. These rackets are divided into two types, the Skill (S) and Dominate (D) series designed for your playstyle. Recently, Yonex has also launched the Pro versions of these rackets, the Yonex Astrox 88S Pro and Yonex Astrox 88D Pro. In this post, we will take a look at the Yonex Astrox 88 Racket Series and help you decide which one is right for you!

High Level Comparisons

Grip & Shaft Length

The biggest difference between the original Yonex Astrox 88 rackets and the new pro version is the length of the grip and the shaft. The new pro versions have a longer grip and a shorter shaft, to allow players to have greater control of their shots.

The intention of this was to allow players to have quicker reactions in the front court due to the shorter shaft.

Racket Speed

The shorter shaft of the Yonex Astrox 88 Pro rackets allows players to have a quicker swing speed and an easier time manipulating the racket in defense. It also makes it much easier to have a quicker reaction in the front court, allowing you to cut off quick shots and play more skill shots at the front court.

On the other hand, the longer shaft of the original Yonex Astrox 88 makes it easier to hit overhead power shots without having to add a lot of power on your own.

Head Weight

The Pro version of the rackets have a much lighter head feel, making it easy to manipulate and keep your racket up on the court. This allows doubles players to have an easier time controlling the front court and hitting the shots down.

Which is Right For Me?

It may be a tough decision to pick between any of these 4 great rackets, but our intention at BadmintonWarehouse is to make this choice easy for you. Let's take a look at each of these rackets individually and see which one may fit your playstyle!

Yonex Astrox 88S Pro

This racket was built to shine for doubles players in the front court! If you are a player with good front court touch or want to play a quicker game in doubles, this racket may just be for you! With a shorter shaft, it's much easier to hit quick spin net drops, pushes, and kills in the front court.

If you already own the Yonex Astrox 88S and are looking to make an upgrade, we highly recommend giving this racket a try. If you are completely new to the Yonex Astrox 88 Series, the Yonex Astrox 88S Pro is a great place to start.

Pick one up here: Yonex Astrox 88S Pro

Yonex Astrox 88D Pro

This racket was built for attacking players who wanted an easier time moving the racket around in the mid and back court. Overhead swings are much quicker and mid-court drives have much more maneuverability. On the defensive end, it is also much more reliable as the improved head speed helps us recover from dangerous situations.

If you are coming from the Yonex Astrox 88D, this racket may feel a little weaker overhead due to the faster racket speed. However, we are confident that this racket still delivers heavy shots and the quicker head speed provides many more benefits across all aspects of the court. We also consider this to be an upgrade to the original Yonex Astrox 88D racket!

Get yours here: Yonex Astrox 88D Pro

Yonex Astrox 88S

Kevin Sanjaya's racket of choice, this racket has been a staple in many pro players' equipment bags for the past few years. The racket is extremely quick and lets you play to your own skill, using its light frame to help you hit tight net drops, pushes, and cutoffs. This was made originally for doubles players, but many singles players such as Viktor Axelsen use this racket as well.

This racket has been time tested and proven to work for all skill levels, from beginners to the top professionals around the world. If you are looking for a reliable racket for a skill type player, be sure to check out the Yonex Astrox 88S.

Get the original Astrox here: Yonex Astrox 88S

Yonex Astrox 88D

D stands for dominance and like its name suggests, this racket was designed for players who focus a bit more on their power shots than their skill shots. Compared to the S version above, it is slightly lacking in its performance in skill shots like net drops as well as its quickness in defensive shots. However, it makes up for this with its longer length allowing you to generate much more power in your smashes.

This racket has also been time tested and proven to work for players in all skill levels. Particularly for power players, if you are looking for a racket to improve your game, don't hesitate on picking up the Yonex Astrox 88D!

Get the dominance version here: Yonex Astrox 88D

Yonex Astrox 88 Series Recap

The Yonex Astrox 88 Badminton Racket Series is extremely versatile and can fit players of all skill levels and types. There are certainly differences between each racket, but we at BadmintonWarehouse believe that you won't go wrong with any one of them. If none of these seem like a good fit, we recommend checking out the Yonex Astrox 100 ZZ Racket as well — one of our personal favorites!