Adidas Solematch Control review

After a series of demanding playtests and meticulous lab measurements, we have no doubts that the Adidas SoleMatch Control is an excellent option for:

• players who want light and nimble tennis footwear
• fast movers who want excellent grip and side-to-side confidence
• aggressive players who want all the upper reinforcement they can get

When you want to enjoy a game of tennis but also survive a heatwave, you do need a more breathable shoe than the SoleMatch. One of our current top options for that is the ASICS Solution Speed FF 2.

This ASICS shoe is also a better option for those with narrow feet. Given the spaciousness of the SoleMatch Control, you may require a more close-fitting tennis shoe. The Nike Vapour Pro is another shoe on our minds.

The SoleMatch Control made us feel very much in control of the dynamic footwork thanks to its grounded platform. Based on our calliper, the shoe's stack height comes in at 26.7 mm. That's a few millimetres lower than the average tennis shoe.

But at the same time, we never once felt like impact protection was missing in this Adidas shoe. Landings remained well cushioned and supported.

Similarly to the heel, the shoe's forefoot stack also comes in lower than the average at 17.3 mm. We felt the benefits of it specifically when pivoting and taking small adjustments with the foot.

We found that the Adidas SoleMatch Control grants its rather intimate ground feel through a lower-than-average heel-to-toe drop. Checking the difference between the shoe's heel and forefoot stack heights, we got 9.4 mm.

Being on the lower end of tennis shoes, it indeed makes the shoe feel closer to the ground as the heel is not so elevated above the toes. It also makes for a more stable experience.

From the heel to the toes, the SoleMatch Control is lined with the brand's springy Bounce foam. We adore this cushioning component in Adidas' running shoes and we now get to enjoy it in this tennis shoe.

Being slightly on the soft side, the Bounce foam treated our feet to its springy nature and great impact protection.

According to our durometer, this foam is at 24.0 HA which is an impressive 25% plusher than average. The only downside is that it tends to bottom out faster because of that too. And because it's the only foam used in the midsole of the SoleMatch Control, the joy of responsiveness will not last very long.

Complementing the Bounce foam is a well-padded 5.0-mm thick insole. It is not the thickest, based on our calliper measurements, but it offers plenty of comfort for sure.

As for our medium-width feet, the Adidas SoleMatch Control is a slightly roomy shoe. Specifically in the toebox.

This was confirmed in our calliper measurements too. Checking the widest part of the toebox, the tool returned 103.7 mm which is slightly wider than average.

The SoleMatch Control also turned out to be more spacious than average around the toes. At the big toe mark, our calliper showed 79.8 mm which is slightly wider than typical. There is absolutely no pinching or toe squeezing in here!

But it's also a warning for narrow feet: do use that extra eyelet to make a runner's knot unless you want to experience toe jamming.

For a speed-oriented shoe, the Adidas SoleMatch Control made us feel very confident moving side to side. There is not a tonne of support in the shoe's upper but its platform helped us feel surefooted and grounded on the court.

We are utterly amazed at how this Adidas shoe gets to be so stiff without using a shank! It is only by means of a firm carrier foam and a slightly raised outsole rubber that the SoleMatch Control scored 5 out of 5 on our torsional stiffness test.

We never felt as though our ankles were about to roll over in this shoe.

According to Adidas, the shoe's heel is 3D-moulded to provide a more secure foot containment. And from our own experience with the shoe, we can confirm that it's a true statement.

It may look soft on the outside but the shoe's heel counter has a lot of structure to it. Squeezing and pushing it in our manual test, we rated its stiffness as 4 out of 5. Nearly the maximum on our 1-5 scale!

The shoe also granted extra lateral stability through its widened platform. Measuring the widest part of its forefoot, our calliper showed 116.7 mm. That's surprisingly wide, especially given that Adidas' stability-oriented Barricade 13 comes in at 111.9 mm.

But pushing off a wide area like that made us feel quite confident on extreme lateral movements.

As for the shoe's heel, it didn't stand out as particularly wide. With a calliper measurement of 90.3 mm, it is just about the same as the average. But it's nota bad thing at all!

For tennis shoes, a wider forefoot is more important for controlling foot movements.

Given the absence of a shank, the Adidas SoleMatch Control gets to be lighter and also more flexible. We cannot judge whether it's good or bad as it's a matter of personal preference.

Some players do like the extra push-off provided by the stiff shank. And if that's you, we recommend the New Balance FuelCell 996 v5.

With the help of our in-house flexibility test, we determined that the SoleMatch Control is an impressive 35% more flexible than the average tennis shoe. According to our force gauge, it takes 23.9N to bend this Adidas shoe to a 90-degree angle.

With the SoleMatch Control, you may not completely forget that you're wearing shoes but you are going to feel like floating for sure!

Putting this Adidas shoe on a scale in a men's US size 9, we got 12.1 oz (343g) which is lighter than the average. It is not the lightest tennis shoe on our roster but it is one that helped us accelerate with ease!

Seeing how much protection Adidas placed on the upper of the SoleMatch Control, it was no surprise that this shoe lacked breathability.

Compared to the ASICS Solution Speed FF 2 (on the right), this Adidas shoe really falls short of proper ventilation for a summertime match.

In the video above, we pump smoke through the shoe's upper to check how well its upper material lets the heat escape. In comparison, it's easy to see how the SoleMatch Control is only letting a thin streak of air out and only through the tongue area. Because of that, this Adidas shoe loses breathability points, scoring only 3 out of 5.

What's more, hovering the shoe's half-cut upper over the light, we couldn't even see any ventilation holes! It is a very dense kind of fabric.

Even when zooming in on the textile through our microscope, we couldn't see the pores.

There is a mix of thinner and thicker threads but it doesn't help the shoe's ventilation capacity that much.

This has got to be one of the most reinforced toeboxes we've seen in tennis shoes! Adidas went full-force with the Adituff overlays to protect this area from toe drags.

But what's the quickest way to test toebox durability without logging hours on the court? Bring in the Dremel!

Setting the tool's speed to 5K RPM, we held it against the same spot on the shoe's toebox for 12 seconds. For consistency of results, we always apply the same pressure (3.2N) to all tested shoes.

Do we have to say that we were flabbergasted when the sandpaper tip only went halfway through the toecap? That's an amazingly good result, especially for a shoe in this weight and price class.

On a durability scale from 1 to 5, we gave the shoe's toebox durability a solid 5 out of 5.

As for the shoe's interior mesh lining, it turned out to be not so abrasion-resistant. It took our Dremel as little as 4 seconds to tear a notable hole in this part of the upper.

On a 1-5 scale, we assessed it as little as 2. And that's when most tennis shoes average at 3.

But it seems like the inner lining is the only frail part of the Adidas SoleMatch Control. Because based on our wear tests, the outsole of this shoe was made to last!

First of all, it is among the firmest rubbers we've recorded in our lab. Pressing a durometer against it, it showed 88.0 HC which is among the top 5 tennis shoe outsoles based on hardness. And that's always a good sign when it comes to durability.

To back up our findings above, we turned up the Dremel speed to 10K RPM and drilled the rubber in the same spot for as long as 22 seconds.

Considering the shoe's moderate price tag, the result was a very pleasant surprise! Our tread gauge showed that the sandpaper tip only cut through the rubber by 0.6 mm. That's the same result we got in much pricier tennis shoes.

Measuring the outsole thickness of this Adidas tennis shoe, we got 3.7 mm on the calliper. Even though it is slightly thinner than average, we have no serious concerns about the longevity of this component given its hardness and resistance to abrasion.

But do keep in mind that there is no outsole warranty for the SoleMatch Control unlike in some other tennis shoes.

The SoleMatch Control features a mix of very peculiar blocky and wavy traction patterns.

Testing it on a hard court, we found it to be more on the sticky side. But, it wasn't awfully tacky when sliding out of a shot either.

One of the ways in which this tennis shoe saves weight is by cutting corners on the in-shoe padding. There is just enough of it around the collar for heel hold and comfort but the rest of the upper remains sock-like thin.

The tongue in particular is only 3.1 mm thick, based on our calliper. This is a few millimetres less than average.

There are no gussets on the tongue of this Adidas shoe. But there are multiple fabric loops for the laces to go through and prevent unwanted tongue sliding.

There is no pull tab at the back of the shoe. However, it sufficed to grab the back of the collar and the finger loop on the tongue to get the SoleMatch Control on effortlessly.

Ir your feel crave that added padding or customised support, it is easy to remove and replace the shoe's stock insole.