With its Fresh FoamX underfoot, New Balance ensured that the CT Rallyshoes would excel in the comfort department. Chris was happy with the level of cushioning here. He said, "I really enjoyed the comfortable ride of the CT Rally shoes. The shoes felt decently broken in within the first hour, and I was running around in them comfortably. The midsole cushioning was impressive. Under my heels, the shoes felt very plush and well cushioned. The forefoot region felt more responsive and lower to the ground, but there was still ample cushioning for comfort. I would have liked slightly better ventilation because my feet did run a bit hot, but other than that, I found the CT Rally shoes to be very comfortable."

Mark enjoyed the glove-like fit of these shoes. He said, "I prefer a firm midsole, but one that bends easily in the proper spot, and that is what the New Balance CT Rally shoes afforded me from the start. I would not call it a break-in period, but after a few hours of play, the cushioning improved. Even after 25 hours of play, these shoes did not lose that firmness. My feet are slightly narrow, and I was able to get a glove-like fit without having to rely much on pulling the laces tightly. The height and positioning of the stock arch support was great, and I never gave any thought to it, or the rest of the shoes for that matter, during play. With all that support and cushioning, I have to say that ventilation was not a strong point for the CT Rally shoes, but it was sufficient. Overall, I would rather have stellar safety and comfort than optimal breathability."

After a brief break-in period, the CT Rally shoes started to feel plusher to Troy. He said, "My initial impression of these shoes was that they felt pretty firm in both the uppers and the material under my feet. That said, these shoes broke in as time went on, softened up a bit and seemed to get better in terms of comfort. The Fresh FoamX in the midsole almost felt like it was molding to my feet the more I wore them. I noticed a high level of cushioning in the heel, where it was nice and thick, but there was a thinner layer in the forefoot. There was plenty of arch support where I needed it, and the upper materials broke in nicely, with no rubbing or pinching. If I had to find some complaints, I would say these shoes weren't all that breathable, and being picky, I would have liked a bit more cushioning under the forefoot region. It's not that it was bad, but if the cushioning were closer to the Nike Air Zoom GP Turbo, it could have been even better — maybe even in the GOAT conversation for cushioning?"

The New Balance CT Rally shoes earned high marks from our playtest team when it came to support and stability. They really impressed Mark, who said, "I feel that the level of support ties into almost every aspect of a court shoe due to the multi-directional nature of playing tennis. Taking into account the CT Rally’s level of underfoot midsole, snug but non-restrictive upper, and secure heel cup, I have to say the CT Rally shoes are as good as it gets in support!"

Tightening up the laces did the trick for Chris. He said, "I felt very confident moving around the court in my pair of CT Rally shoes. The uppers felt nice and supportive without ever feeling restrictive. When making aggressive lateral cuts, the shoes proved to be equally as stable, with a nice rigid chassis that resisted twisting too much. I did have a couple instances of my feet sliding into the ends of the shoes on quick stops, but I was able to fix that by adjusting the lacing."

Similar to his experience with the overall comfort level, Troy found that the stability of these shoes increased after playing in them a bit. He said, "I found the support and stability to be very good throughout the playtest. Like I mentioned, right out of the box these shoes felt pretty stiff, but they broke in nicely. Once they broke in, after a few hours on court, the shoes felt like they molded to my feet and gave me all the support I needed. With a nice, snug fit and a low-to-the-ground feel in the forefoot, I felt confident in my lateral movement. The stability was good overall, and the outrigger on the lateral side of the forefoot did a good job of stabilizing my feet when I needed to change directions. Overall, they might be just a bit less stable than the Asics Gel Resolution 9 shoes, which are some of the best in this category, but still very impressive."

Clad in the extra protection of the rallyrRallys six-month outsole warranty, these New Balance CT Rally shoes held up well to the aggressive play of our testers. By the time this playtest was through, Chris was seeing very little damage on his pair, even where he usually wears his tennis shoes down. He said, "I was very happy with the outsole durability of the CT Rallys. I really enjoyed playing in these shoes, so I put a lot of hours on them, and the outsoles were lasting well. I tend to be very tough on the outsole under the big toe of my right foot, but the shoes held up well even in that high-wear area. The uppers also resisted my toe-dragging tendencies, so I have no complaints there either."

Mark agreed, adding, "On the merits of its performance and construction alone, I thought the outsole durability of the New Balance CT Rally shoes was better than good. The fact that New Balance includes a six-month outsole warranty makes the new CT Rally not just durable but more economical for the avid player."

The outsoles of these CT Rally shoes withstood Troy's energetic game. He noted, "The NDurance outsole rubber held up well for me throughout the playtest. I am not a huge toe dragger like I once was, but I saw little wear or balding after about 15 hours of testing. There wasn't a ton of protection around the toe region, so I think New Balance could have done a little better job of beefing up the tips of these shoes and the medial side of the toe box. That said, with the NDurance six-month outsole guarantee, I would be confident making a purchase knowing that these shoes are backed up if I did wear through the outsoles."

The modified herringbone pattern that New Balance designed for the CT Rally outsoles adds a good combination of grip and give on the court, and our playtest team was not disappointed. Troy could trust his movements in these shoes. He explained, “The overall level of traction worked well for me and my movement. Right out of the box, the outsole rubber felt a little bit on the firm side, but after a short break-in period, I found the rubber to get a bit more grippy. I wouldn't say that these shoes felt too sticky, but there was a nice amount of grip on our indoor hard court where I did the majority of my testing. Whenever I needed to change directions quickly or push down hard for an aggressive takeoff, I felt confident doing so."

These shoes complemented Chris' style of play. He described, "I would say the CT Rally shoes offer slightly more grip than give. I was still able to pivot and take small adjustment steps without issue, slide a little out of a shot and generally feel confident. There are shoes that allow me to slide more easily, but all in all the blend of grip and give fits my game well."

Mark enjoyed playing on hard courts in these shoes. He said, "Although not ideal for a clay court surface, the New Balance CT Rally shoes struck a nearly perfect blend of outsole grip versus slip on every hard court I played on."

Our playtesters all thought the New Balance CT Rally shoes had a great ratio of weight versus stability. Chris was pleased with how unobtrusive these shoes felt on his feet. He said, "I had to force myself to think about these shoes when testing them. It was easy to slip them on, go for a hit and not give them a second thought. For me, that's a huge compliment because it means the shoes are doing their job and my movement feels natural. I was impressed the shoes proved to be so durable without feeling heavy at all."

The CT Rally shoes offered a good balance between weight and support for Mark. He said, "I try to begin a shoe playtest with as little knowledge about the shoe as possible, especially in terms of weight. My estimation was that the CT Rally shoes were in the 14-ounce range, and I was not far off. More important to me is whether shoes feel light on my feet without having to take much of a hit in support, and these shoes rode that fine line perfectly."

Again, after a brief break-in period, <b>Troy</b> really started to enjoy the fit and feel of these shoes. He described, "At the beginning of this playtest these New Balance CT Rally shoes felt a bit stiff and clunky. So in that sense, they were pretty much what I would expect from stability-oriented shoes in the initial phase of testing. However, once they broke in and really started to mold to my feet like a glove, I found them to feel rather light and speedy. These shoes felt fast without being too soft in the uppers, which is the issue most of us found with the New Balance 996v5s."