Friendship/729 Battle

I tested this rubber on a Yasaka Ma Lin Soft Carbon blade, pairing it with a 729 08 on the forehand (FH) and a Battle 1 red on the backhand (BH). The hardness of the rubber is 42, which is almost equal to that of Rakza 7, making it medium hard.

The rubber offers very good grip with some tackiness, and its large pips provide a throw angle around 7. It also has a tensor feeling, which eliminates the need for boosting; its speed is comparable to that of Rakza 7. The spin is excellent, including both topspin and sidespin, which enhances play. Currently, I am using Rakza 7 on my BH, but this rubber serves as my backup paddle.

Blocking with this rubber is impressive, and looping is excellent as well. Close-to-net play feels great, and chopping is very easy due to its lack of springiness, especially when compared to Tenergy 05. Overall, it is a fantastic rubber for the backhand. Once my Rakza 7 wears off, I plan to transition to Battle 1 on the BH and Battle 2 on the FH.

I am in love with 729 rubbers; they are high-quality products available at a great price and they outperform DHS rubbers by a significant margin.

I have a new black rubber with a hardness of 42 degrees. It is slightly harder than the 40-degree option, resulting in less catapult effect. The loop generates excellent spin.

Durability is very good, but as the rubber approaches the end of its lifespan, it began to lose consistency.

Typical for a spin rubber at this price point, it offers impressive speed. I found the throw angle to be medium rather than high. In general, I believe the rubber is similar to Gambler Outlaw, but it features a softer sponge.

However, the topsheet grip is below average, which comes with its well-known advantages and disadvantages. Additionally, the topsheet is very fragile, raising concerns about its durability.

Overall, this rubber performs well as a backhand option, significantly improving service reception, albeit at the expense of sacrificed service spin generation.

This rubber is fantastic! I was inspired to finally write a review here after a year of lurking because it offers such great value. It plays as well as any ESN rubber, but isn’t quite as fast and is generally much more forgiving. I have both the red and black MAX versions, and I use them on a Zhang Jike Carbon T5000 OFF blade.

The rubber has lots of gears but is not too springy. I was pleasantly surprised by the high throw, which I appreciate for topspin play. Coming from Tenergy 05, I found that this rubber has a higher throw and almost as much spin, without being as sensitive to incoming spin.

Playing Characteristics:
The rubber produces a great, satisfying click sound! Compared to Tenergy 05, lifting underspin is more forgiving due to the lower speed and bounciness. The serves are very spinny, and blocks are amazing. However, if you are transitioning from low throw rubbers, you will need to adjust your bat angle. There is always an adjustment period when switching to a new rubber.

Backhand flicks are excellent, especially against underspin. I tried both colors on the forehand and backhand using the same bat, and I noted that the red was slightly spinnier and had a slightly higher throw. However, the differences are nearly negligible; had I not been looking for them, I might not have noticed.

Take Home Message:
This is a very good rubber, period—regardless of its price or value. If you are using expensive tensors and seek a more user-friendly playstyle, this is the rubber for you. There is no reason why one couldn’t use this rubber at advanced or elite levels. My coach, a Chinese junior team member with a USATT rating of 2400, is a Tenergy user and loves this rubber. The price is just the icing on the cake!

This rubber exhibits characteristics similar to the T64 model, featuring impressive speed and decent spin while being sensitive to incoming spins. Its higher throw angle makes it particularly well-suited for smashers and hitters.

This rubber offers great performance at an affordable price, providing a decent glue feel. While it may not be as fast or spinny as the latest ESN-Tensor rubbers, it is quite close. Additionally, it is significantly more controllable than many Tensor rubbers, playing in a very linear manner rather than being excessively bouncy.

In my opinion, this is the best Euro/Jap-type rubber produced by Friendship to date. I would recommend it to anyone seeking a more dynamic rubber than the classic options, yet something that is less springy than Tensor rubbers.

This is a very nice and bouncy Chinese rubber that possesses almost all the playing qualities of European and Japanese rubbers. Additionally, it is offered at a great price relative to what you receive. It also throws much higher than some of my other rubbers.