Decathlon, the French sporting goods giant, produces squash rackets under the brand names Opfeel and Artengo. They are an excellent value, with good quality rackets at low price points.
Camille Serme, the top French player, has been sponsored by Artengo (and now Opfeel) since 2017.
Update: In 2022, Decathlon launched a new line of rackets under the Perfly Squash Rackets umbrella
Opfeel Squash Rackets
In 2019 Decathlon is releasing their updated range of squash rackets under the Opfeel brand name. Here’s a sneak peek from a photo shoot of Camille Serme with her new racket. Thanks to Rafael for the tip.
Photo via instagram →
Funnily enough it actually says “Artengo” on the tin in that photo, but the new rackets are called Opfeel and not Artengo.
This will be Camille’s racket starting in 2019. This is the top-of-the-line Opfeel teardrop racket and it currently costs £60.
In 2019 Decathlon split the SR 990 into Power and Control versions. The Control has a traditional bridged-throat frame and is the same price, £60:
This is the entry-level teardrop, at £30.
Artengo Squash Rackets
The original 2017 squash rackets from Decathlon were sold under the Artengo brand name. I first heard about Artengo squash rackets when top French player Camille Serme posted on her Facebook page in 2017 that she would be be partnering with them to launch a new series of high-end rackets.
Photo via facebook →
Here’s a closer shot of Camille with her first Artengo racket, the Artengo SR 990, which she has been using for two years now:
Photo via facebook.com/CamilleSermeSquash →
Here are the original rackets that Artengo released in 2017. I got a chance to review these particular Artengo rackets — click through to the posts below for the videos.
This is Camille’s original racket:
The Artengo SR 960 is the next racket in Artengo’s range, with a slightly larger head size compared to the 990.
The Artengo SR 560 is Antengo’s entry-level teardrop model:
The Artengo SR 590 is a conventional head shape model:
michel goulche says
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looks like the new line is out : https://www.decathlon.fr/sr-990-power-115-gr-id_8501692.html
https://www.decathlon.fr/C-680676-raquettes-de-squash/N-212755-marque~opfeel/N-793920-poids~115-gr/N-793920-poids~120-gr/N-793920-poids~125-gr/N-793920-poids~131-_-135gr-/T-784055_784132_784045#comparator
Pierre says
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Thanks I posted that here: https://www.squashsource.com/artengo-sr-990-power/
RD says
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Which is the strings used in these racquets?
Rafael says
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Hey Pierre, this seems like a new Artengo model for Camille Serme?
https://www.instagram.com/p/ByUXYtkI14w/
Pierre says
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Thanks for the tip Rafael!
Antoine says
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Hi Pierre,
About that new model, it seems 5g heavier than the artengo (now called opfeel). Have you had the opportunity to talk with Decathlon guys about it?
marc says
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I’ve just noticed too that they seem to have abandoned the Artengo name and gone to the odd Opfeel. As I’ve got the 110g 990 I won’t be rushing to get the new 115g Opfeel 990 but as they only want £60 (UK) for it, it’s probably still a very good buy.
Antoine says
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@Marc: I’ve bought the the Opfeel SR990. It feels slightly heavier but not a big change. The factory strings are still a nightmare, the design is pretty much the same except for the mid-top of the head frame that seemed to be slightly thicker (head heavier?). I will start to play with it next week and will try to update it as soon as I got enough feedback on it.
Pierre says
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Now I see what you all mean – they appear to have dropped the Artengo name entirely. Will have to reorganize things a bit…
Thanks
marc says
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Antoine, what did you restring the Opfeel with? How is it playing? A couple of people at my club tried the 990 I have and said indeed the strings are rubbish so I’ll get it done now.
Patch says
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People use to have some issues buying Artengo and other Decathlon brands, but I must say that the Artengo SR990 is doubtlessly the best racket I have owned, in terms of quality/price. Once restrung (with Tecnifibre DNMAX 1.15, in my case), its performance is comparable or even superior to other top-of-the line rackets I used in the past (Carboflex 130 S or Dunlop Biomimetic Revelation 125). Considering it costs nearly half their price, I highly recommend giving it a try.
Steven says
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I’ve heard Prince are in dire financial situation. In tennis they’ve lost big name like Ferrer to babolat
Lloyd says
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Serme has started playing with this racket as of the world series finals
Simon Scott says
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Tarek is signed to Harrow. I believe a new racket is being developed for him but I don’t know which frame it is based on.
Pierre says
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It’s called the Harrow Reflex but I’m not sure which frame it’s based on
Simon Scott says
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I gave Tarek several Reflexes to try at the British Open over a year ago. We had one weighted and balanced to match his Prince (all done by Nick Down) but he still doesn’t use it.
JJ says
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Looks like prince have lost all their big names again, along with Willstrop leaving for unsquashable. I notice Momen is playing with a unbranded exo-red, Abouelghar and David with unbranded rebels. Looks like the 2017 range doesn’t even include the tour or rebel models. Seems Ashour is the only player still playing a branded racket.
Any idea what the issue is? I think I read they’ve moved production to a new factory or is it a repeat of the financial issue of a few years back.
Lloyd says
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I read somewhere that Willstrop and Ghosal were filing a law suit against Prince for ‘misuse of imagery’ i think? I believe they’re probably going through the same financial struggles as before.
Lloyd says
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https://dockets.justia.com/docket/illinois/ilndce/1:2017cv00504/335777
Just found the link for the court case
JJ says
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Thanks for that. It’s a shame. I do like Prince rackets and one shouldn’t be swayed by which pro’s are using what gear, but I think quality control suffered the last time they went through this sort of thing.