The Nike Sabrina Two is the GOAT Tennis Shoe

gino

gino

Legend
Disclaimer: as many of you know in this subforum, I have stuck with Nike footwear over the years. Since the discontinuation of a true vapor (X/VP1 last/outsole), I've turned on them & been highly critical (mainly in the footwear space)

As time wears on, I continue to grow more and more aware of how little Nike has/does invest in tennis & how that dynamic flips on it's axis when it comes to basketball. Personally, I've tried on every Nike tennis shoe & worn 20 years worth of various sport Nike shoes. The tennis space has had some nice offerings over the past 20 years. My "shortlist" includes: vapor 5/6/9/9.5/flyknit/X/VP1, breathe cage I/II/courtballistec 1.3/2.3/4.3/lunarballistec/air max cage/cage 3, and the GP Turbo. That being said, basketball has had better tech/design/investment since the inception of the vertical for Nike. For me, the Sabrina Two is simply the best shoe ever for me on a tennis court. Lightweight upper, predictable traction, full length cushion that runs laps around any modern tennis shoe, and a great look. I'm shocked Nike gave this silhouette to a WNBA player (with all due respect to the WNBA). It's an all-time shoe for me, I'd say pick up a pair and give it a go. Don't expect them to be super durable (upper is pretty soft), but they are a really awesome ride while they last

I'll defer to the real GOAT, Foot Doc Zach, for the specs/technical shouts:

 
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CHillTennis said:
Why do you trust Foot Doctor Zach? You realize that he's paid to create a favorable review of the product that he's reviewing, right?
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I trust using them homie, that’s where my conclusions come from. Not some YouTube review. 20+ years of wearing Nike & competing at a high level is what advises my opinion. Would never blanket subscribe to another man’s word. Did you read the OP????? Zach linked in for tech specs
 
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jmacdaununder2 said:
Nike Basketball no doubt continues onwards & upwards; unfortunately for me there’s not a lot of grass or clay court b’ball.
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Sick you get to play on those surfaces. These would do insane on clay man. They are the only shoe with a double stacked midfoot shank that isn’t player edition. The midfoot shank in these the same kyrie irving used in his player edition signatures
 
gino said:
I trust using them homie, that’s where my conclusions come from. Not some YouTube review. 20+ years of wearing Nike & competing at a high level is what advises my opinion. Would never blanket subscribe to another man’s word. Did you read the OP????? Zach linked in for tech specs
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Fair enough. (y) Thank you for clarifying!
 
Here are Zach's recommendations for basketball shoes for tennis - he likes the Sabrina 2 for indoor rubber courts but feels like the outsole is probably too soft for an outdoor hard court and yeah not durable for uppers but definitely good for tennis - some other good basketball options in there for sure
 
fundrazer said:
Have you tried tennis shoe offerings from any of the other brands?
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I wore barricades 3-9, a few asics gel resolutions, and a few other one off adidas offerings (sole court boost, feather light 2011, etc). Been mostly a Nike guy but have tried a lot of shoes from other brands
 
aus89 said:
Here are Zach's recommendations for basketball shoes for tennis - he likes the Sabrina 2 for indoor rubber courts but feels like the outsole is probably too soft for an outdoor hard court and yeah not durable for uppers but definitely good for tennis - some other good basketball options in there for sure
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I think that’s bc his pair had the soft rubber. The new Sabrina 2 in black or red have rubber suitable for outdoor courts
 
gino said:
I wore barricades 3-9, a few asics gel resolutions, and a few other one off adidas offerings (sole court boost, feather light 2011, etc). Been mostly a Nike guy but have tried a lot of shoes from other brands
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Aight. Was just gonna say cause there's been a lot of good options out there. I know I've experimented quite a bit myself. Some brands definitely tend to work better for us though.

Big fan of Asics personally and I think Mizuno is doing a good job with shoes for the most part too. I think you might like Solution Speeds if you gave em a try, or that Wave Enforce Tour (the speedier one)
 
fundrazer said:
Aight. Was just gonna say cause there's been a lot of good options out there. I know I've experimented quite a bit myself. Some brands definitely tend to work better for us though.

Big fan of Asics personally and I think Mizuno is doing a good job with shoes for the most part too. I think you might like Solution Speeds if you gave em a try, or that Wave Enforce Tour (the speedier one)
Click to expand...

All great suggestions. I’m a bit of an irrational brand loyalist. Title should probably read: Sabrina 2 is the GOAT *nike* tennis shoe lol
 
gino said:
I think that’s bc his pair had the soft rubber. The new Sabrina 2 in black or red have rubber suitable for outdoor courts
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do you have a pic of the ones with the harder outdoor rubber? I'm gonna get some basketball shoes for tennis, so can add the Sabrina to my list if i can get the outdoor ones in Australia
 
aus89 said:
do you have a pic of the ones with the harder outdoor rubber? I'm gonna get some basketball shoes for tennis, so can add the Sabrina to my list if i can get the outdoor ones in Australia
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So the outdoor/normal rubber is on the red, black, white, and green colorways. Light blue and black/purple will have the translucent indoor rubber like below

FQ2174500_CrtBluHprPnkBluBlk_SOLE
 
gino said:
So the outdoor/normal rubber is on the red, black, white, and green colorways. Light blue and black/purple will have the translucent indoor rubber like below

FQ2174500_CrtBluHprPnkBluBlk_SOLE
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nice - looks like i might have to do custom as they dont have many colors in Aus - tossing up between these, the DON Issue 5 and the NB Two Wxy 4
 
Nice one - just looked up quickly and they seem to be readily available in Oz, will def look into that as my next Nike replacement.
Currently using NO Turbo GP and I have only one new pair left… lol
 
Basketball shoes are too grippy for me on a tennis court. My feet hurt from stopping too fast. There needs to be a little slidability for tennis.
 
I looked at pics of the bottom of the shoe and it looks like most of my basketball shoes which are mostly nike by the way. But the Sabrina's look like they are the more grippy material so would be worse than the shoes I've already tried. But I haven't tried them so I guess I may be wrong.
gino said:
Traction patterns vary wildly, try the Sabrina, it’s got more give then you are insinuating
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Furthermore the turbos have a really shallow toebox. The Sabrina toe box is considerably more roomy vertically. Reminds me of the Vapor X or Under Armour Curry 1 if you’ve worn either
 
esm said:
Nice one - just looked up quickly and they seem to be readily available in Oz, will def look into that as my next Nike replacement.
Currently using NO Turbo GP and I have only one new pair left… lol
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& they are cheap relative to other performance shoes. I think $50 cheaper than the court ff3 or any top tier nike offering. I think coming from the gp turbo you’ll have a real jarring transition to these because of the decrease in weight. Just be wary that you’re going from a super heavy shoe to one of the lightest I’ve worn (having worn every vapor iteration). The cushion will shock you, for such a light shoe, they are pillows like the turbos. Really smooth ride with good impact protection in the heel. Can’t understate how impressed I am
 
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gino said:
& they are cheap relative to other performance shoes. I think $50 cheaper than the court ff3 or any top tier nike offering. I think coming from the gp turbo you’ll have a real jarring transition to these because of the decrease in weight. Just be wary that you’re going from a super heavy shoe to one of the lightest I’ve worn (having worn every vapor iteration). The cushion will shock you, for such a light shoe, they are pillows like the turbos. Really smooth ride with good impact protection in the heel. Can’t understate how impressed I am
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Thank you Sir - good point re weight. I don’t mind the light weight, as long as it has good cushion. Similar to Babolat SFX.
Can I check if the Sabrina is true to size (obvs I’d get the men’s equivalent sizing… lol). Thanks.
As much as I liked my SFX, the pair I have ran probably half a size large.
 
CHillTennis said:
Just look in the description box for his videos and you'll see what I mean.

It's just affiliate links.
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I've only ever felt that Zach does everything he can to be clear, transparent and honest with his reviews. I do not get the impression that he is the kind of guy to be blinded by a few extra dollars in the short term to lose the trust of his audience in the long term.
 
dr. godmode said:
I've only ever felt that Zach does everything he can to be clear, transparent and honest with his reviews. I do not get the impression that he is the kind of guy to be blinded by a few extra dollars in the short term to lose the trust of his audience in the long term.
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At the end of the day, he's in this business to make money.

I certainly don't begrudge him that.

Only just to say that he has a reason for giving the products a positive review.

Not to mention the fact that the Google adsense money is chump change for someone like Foot Dr. Zach.

He's going to make a lot more from brand deals.
 
CHillTennis said:
At the end of the day, he's in this business to make money.

I certainly don't begrudge him that.

Only just to say that he has a reason for giving the products a positive review.

Not to mention the fact that the Google adsense money is chump change for someone like Foot Dr. Zach.

He's going to make a lot more from brand deals.
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Don’t think he exclusively gives positive reviews based on vested interest btw. He destroyed the vapor 11 and vapor pro 2. Same company as the Sabrina 2 he praised above.

We have to call balls and strikes, I think he’s generally fair and his approach is data driven. Nobody else cuts shoes in half (or does that well) which gives his viewers their own opinions to derive. I have used his midsole reveals to reinforce what I feel on the court. I actually think he didn’t give the Sabrina 2 midsole enough praise
 
gino said:
Don’t think he exclusively gives positive reviews based on vested interest btw. He destroyed the vapor 11 and vapor pro 2. Same company as the Sabrina 2 he praised above.

We have to call balls and strikes, I think he’s generally fair and his approach is data driven. Nobody else cuts shoes in half (or does that well) which gives his viewers their own opinions to derive. I have used his midsole reveals to reinforce what I feel on the court. I actually think he didn’t give the Sabrina 2 midsole enough praise
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Bro, he destroyed the shoe for views.

Let's not kid ourselves.

He's the Mr. Beast of the sneaker world.

Only Dr. Zach's videos are actually watchable.
 
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@CHillTennis I’m really curious about this, what do you do for a living? Besides the obvious on where you complain about tennis outfits and make homemade videos for clicks?

On your most recently video, and you wanted people to pay a fee for “insider info” on when/where to get the shoe itself (correct me if I’m wrong)
 
David Le said:
@CHillTennis I’m really curious about this, what do you do for a living? Besides the obvious on where you complain about tennis outfits and make homemade videos for clicks?

On your most recently video, and you wanted people to pay a fee for “insider info” on when/where to get the shoe itself (correct me if I’m wrong)
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It wasn't free information. :-D

Sorry to you mate.

And yes, My Buyer's Guide was quite the hit with the challenge court fans.
 
David Le said:
@CHillTennis I’m really curious about this, what do you do for a living? Besides the obvious on where you complain about tennis outfits and make homemade videos for clicks?

On your most recently video, and you wanted people to pay a fee for “insider info” on when/where to get the shoe itself (correct me if I’m wrong)
Click to expand...
Wrong! I don't make homemade videos for clicks. :rolleyes:
 
CHillTennis said:
Bro, he destroyed the shoe for views.

Let's not kid ourselves.

He's the Mr. Beast of the sneaker world.

Only Dr. Zach's videos are actually watchable.
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He destroyed multiple shoes that are considered "flagship" nike shoes. on one hand you say the youtube views mean nothing to him, only brand partnerships do. if that's the case why would he slander the VP1 and V11? wouldn't that do damage to his reputation with a premier brand? so you're saying he took the views over brand relations in this one instance. we're just talking internet forum opinions, but let's just keep them consistent
 
gino said:
He destroyed multiple shoes that are considered "flagship" nike shoes. on one hand you say the youtube views mean nothing to him, only brand partnerships do. if that's the case why would he slander the VP1 and V11? wouldn't that do damage to his reputation with a premier brand? so you're saying he took the views over brand relations in this one instance. we're just talking internet forum opinions, but let's just keep them consistent
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It's simple. He destroys the shoes, which gets him the views, which gets him the subscribers, which leads to him getting sponsored.

Is it clickbait? Yes. But at least his videos are good.

Like I said, before I have nothing against what he's doing. But I would not trust his videos to be unbiased, unlike let's say Mark Sansait.
 
CHillTennis said:
It wasn't free information. :-D

Sorry to you mate.

And yes, My Buyer's Guide was quite the hit with the challenge court fans.
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Well honestly I’m sure I can find the free info just about anywhere really.

Idk what you’re sorry about, I didn’t give an inch or penny to your “buyer’s guide”

And that’s good for you
 
David Le said:
So you make homemade videos for baits? Which one is it? Click or bait? Both? Clickbait?
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I make videos for my own entertainment. Plain and simple.

If people like them, great. If they don't...that's great too.

I really don't care, one way or the other.
 
Dropping some photos for those curious about durability, somewhere in the 10-15 hour range now. Toes holding up, which was my one main area of apprehension:

YIiCyC5.jpeg


Wio2it4.jpeg
 
aus89 said:
do you have a pic of the ones with the harder outdoor rubber? I'm gonna get some basketball shoes for tennis, so can add the Sabrina to my list if i can get the outdoor ones in Australia
Click to expand...

Heads up they just dropped a bunch of colors with solid rubber. Sabrina 2 team
 
Updates for those interested:

  • Well past 30 hours on the red pair
  • Somehow the toe is still holding up
  • Outsole getting some light edge wear and dust build-up. In general more durable than my preferred vapor pro 1/vapor 9.5
  • Midsole has not bottomed out, still a really smooth ride. A great even cushion platform with simple foam/zoom

These are incredible performers for tennis, some of my favorite of all time
 
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