Cornilleau Target Pro GT H47

It's great rubber on its own but I found it disappointing in several aspects especially when you compare it to previous version of Target(Ultim/Force).
I'll try comment on its performance while comparing some aspects to Target Ultim 47.5/50

Weight:
Although not as heavy as some Chinese rubbers and Tibhar Evolution series, it's still pretty heavy (u can check Dan's review) which is quite a letdown especially when u compare to Target Ultim which was (almost) 10g lighter per uncut sheet ... even lighter than Target Pro S39.

Loop:
Very high dwell time thanks to very flexible topsheet, even more than Ultim which I already found to be pretty elastic already. This makes hard loops very controllable while really powerful when u need it (easier than Ultim as well). Under stronger impacts (drive-loop) Spin is also one of highest among Euro rubbers alongside Victas V>15, Omega VII and you don't need aggressive Chinese strokes to extract the most out of it.
Softer loops however, especially lifting backspin , could be an issue sometimes. The topsheet is very grippy only when it deforms up to certain extents, meaning on slow loops the rubber doesn't deform enough to offer sufficient grip for highest-level of spin, it's still stronger than most cheapish/last-gen rubbers, but definitely much less impressive than drive-looping with it.
Target Ultim in contrast, has excellent surface grip which allow incredibly spinny slow loops. Spin is about just as high as Target pro in drive loops but you would need more accurate shots than Target Pro to keep the ball in play as well as getting the spin you want.

Block/Punch:
Not best / direct rubber for this due to elastic topsheet, but still top-class control with lots of speed on tap when needed. Not too spin-sensitive. I would say it's friendly than quite some top-class rubbers such as V>15(also pretty good in blocking), MX-P and Tenergy (except T25) in this aspect.
I do find myself blocking/hitting even better with Target Ultim though due to stiffer topsheet.

Serve+Short games(chop, flicks):
This is the most disappointing part for me as short games is my biggest strength as well as my favorite "shots", and Target Pro felt like a significant downgrade from Target Ultim.
As mentioned earlier the topsheet lacks a bit of grip until the ball dwell into the deeper "layers" of it, meaning that to get the most spin out of the serves, you would need to do high-toss serves just like Hugo Calderano would do. If the opponent was returning the ball short with low/no spin and u want disturb the game flow by adding strong backspin to the ball it would also be a pretty difficult task. In Dan's video you might've seen Can Akkuzu chopping the ball with plenty of backspin in short games but that's because Dan gave him strong backspin in advance which makes deforming the topsheet for the receiver quite a bit easier to do. Flicks are easy with plenty of safety margin because of soft topsheet, but again it's a bit hard to generate strong spin unless your stroke really lets the ball "drill" through layers.
Target Ultim on other hand, can easily generate very strong spin in short games thanks to very grippy top layer. Medium-toss serves are more than enough to generate incredible spin and with some practise it's feasible to generate REALLY short ghost serves. It's also very easy to keep the ball short and flicks are more direct on harder impacts (again thanks to stiffer topsheet).

Conclusion: If u must buy Target Pro as Ultim/Force is discontinued, I suggest picking the hardest 51deg sponge version to get the best "surface spin". Also to extract the most out of Target Pro, you would probably need a blade which is pretty slow in lower gears as well as having a REALLY stiff top ply in order to allow the ball to have the best dwelling time on the topsheet, but even then the Target Pro does not really offer more spin than the previous Target Ultim/ Target Force. Pro is more friendly / easier, and maybe a bit spinnier in topspin rallies under very strong strokes (thanks to high dwell time) but that's about it, and even that seems a bit pointless in my case due to the massive weight addition to my racket setup which actually upsets my racket balance as well as reducing my stroke speed(as well as spin) and my forearm's agility when it comes to counteracting unexpected shots(I don't have the pro's stamina after all ). My range of toss height variations for my serves, which I often used to throw off my opponents, was also being reduced, as well doing some crazy moves during short games which was possible with Ultim but not with the Pro.

Target Pro is still a pretty good rubber that can compete with many top-class rubbers out there, but having moved back to my Target Ultim right after the Pro, I still see no reason why Cornilleau had to make all these changes to the topsheet.

Cornilleau Target Pro GT Series with pro player Can Akkuzu
Weight: 70 grams uncut, 49 grams uncut
Sponge Hardness: 47°
Hardness: Medium/Hard
Speed: High
Spin: Medium/High
Blade used: Cornilleau Hinotec OFF
Location: French Table Tennis Club Amien


Written Review

Initial Inspection

Like all new rubbers the target pro is plastic ball ready and has been developed and made in Germany. Cornilleau partnered with Michelin to produce this series, with the help and feedback of Cornilleau’s professional players.

The rubber comes in 4 sponge harnesses 39, 43, 47 and 51 degrees. The softest being 39 and the hardest being 51. The only difference between the 4 versions are the sponge hardness. The pimple structure and top sheet are identical.



Out of the packaging the rubbers feel firm and grippy and have a porous sponge.

The weight of our Target Pro rubbers, when uncut, increased in weight as the sponge hardness went up. As you can see on the table below, the 39 being the lightest at 64 grams, 43 being 70 grams, 47 weighing 70 grams and the 51 being the heaviest at 71 grams.



Speed

Against all high class pro’s I’ve come across in the reviews, you can immediately feel the consistent crisp quality as they put the ball in the right place with the same spin and speed so you can easily get in a nice rhythm.

My first impression of the rubber was that It didn't require much effort from me, the rubber felt alive and has a great sound. During my topspins with the 47 I liked the amount of speed and control I had on the ball. We were both able to easily play fast and snappy shots with good consistency.

The rubber is very effective on the backhand side, the forgiveness helped me when playing at maximum effort whilst maintaining control.

Blocking

An attribute I enjoyed with this rubber was its control in the active blocking game.

Even though Can was hitting full power shots at me i was able to control the ball back with relative ease, with certain rubbers i've used in the past against pro’s it has been much harder to contain their power with the same level of consistency.

Control and Feeling

The rubber allows for great feeling due to the amount the ball soaks in, which really helps as the target pro 47 is fast rubber. This high level of feeling made the ball more controllable. Low incoming balls can be picked up with ease with the rubber which again adds to and helps maintain consistency and confidence in your strokes.

The main advantage with these rubbers is how easy it is to play with them, the balance of the sponge softness and medium to hard topsheet gives you good margin for error.

Spin

I could generate a good amount of spin, however the ease in which i was able to open up backspin balls was effortless. I could produce enough spin to follow up with a very strong attack which, when Can eased off a little bit, were outright winners or forced Can back from the table.

I had good confidence in my shots when opening up. This is really important as the first few balls in the modern attacking game are vital.

Flicks

As mentioned earlier this rubber works superbly well on the backhand side, this was especially noticeable when playing backhand flicks over the table. I was able to pick up balls really well and i had good bite even from Cans world class backspin serves and produced enough spin to set myself up for the following shot.

Punch shots

One area i really want to highlight is how well you can backhand punch with the Target Pro GT 47. You can hit right through weak balls with this lively rubber and get great feedback with a loud clicking sound when you time it well in front of the body.

Away from the table

The Target pro gave me a lot of accuracy even when playing at a high acceleration from away from the table, I could feel the ball sink into the sponge. Again this rubber worked well in top to top exchanges producing a medium to high throw.

Conclusion

We would like to thank Cornilleau and Can in giving us a chance to test the Target pro gt series. The Target Pro GT gives you a lot of control and speed to your game. It’s ease of use will help developing players who want more bite in their shots whilst keeping the control. This series definitely has been designed with speed in mind and you are able to put a lot of propulsion on the ball.

The spin production is also very good with the Target Pro GT. It packs enough spin to put your opponent under pressure.

I especially liked this rubber when playing against backspin, the dwell gave me a lot of time to play my complete stroke whilst thinking about the direction and placement. My two favourite rubbers within the series are the 43 and 47.

Both rubbers are have a medium hardness and give you lots of confidence when playing all strokes. The 51 was a bit too hard for me, however pro player Can loved the 51 as he could get even more power in his shots. The 39 is a very soft rubber and is quite notably different to the rest of the series. It works well for spin based players who want to play with more variation in their game. The 47 and 51 are quite a lot quicker than the 39 and 43.

As noted previously i found punching with this rubber particularly easy and effective, and works really well when playing aggressive shots over the table.

How do these rubbers compare to others on the market? They feel quite similar to the Rhyzm and Tenzone series which we have reviewed. Solid rubbers with good speed, spin and control capabilities. I am very impressed with the topsheet on the Target Pro GT series, it feels grippy and helps when imparting spin on the ball during serves, flicks and push returns.