It's funny how you wait a long time for a bus to come along, and then two or three arrive at the same time. My search for the holy grail has been exactly like that.
Let's be clear, I'm still firmly in love with the Doppio. It's just that there's this other woman on the scene now... She's doing things to me... wonderful things... They call her the Eurostaff.
A few people here have been discussing and searching for the ultimate 'pleener' - a thin beam players' frame for that awesome touch and precision, but with a more forgiving swingweight and sweetspot. The Doppio gives me that in spades. It's so effortlessly easy to hit with, like an extension of my arm, yet still packs a punch when attacking. I thought it couldn't possibly be matched and that my search was finally over...and maybe I should have closed my eyes at that point and stopped looking at other women. But no...
My Eurostaff came in as follows -
Unstrung specs: 304g / 289SW / 31.9cm(7.5HL) (100", 21.5mm beam, 66RA, 16x19)
Strung specs: 332g / 321SW / 32.4cm(6.0HL) with OG, dampener, 3g in the butt cap and 1g at 12
Strung with: Velocity MLT 1.3 (multi) @58lbs / Isospeed Cream 1.28 (poly) @55lbs
Basically, an almost identical setup to my Doppio. Exact same swingweight and virtually the same balance. RA is almost the same. Beam width same. And same strings at same tensions.
First thing to say, the Eurostaff doesn't have the soft velvet paint of recent Wilsons. It's a regular matt finish and for some reason the frame seems to feel lighter in the hand than the 97 v13 (even when mine weigh about the same). At first glance it looked and felt like a cheaper version of the v13 (almost toy-like) and I thought it might feel hollow and tinny on the court...but I couldn't have been more wrong. The throat section is flatter than the 97, not as boxy - almost identical to the Blade's throat. The hoop is also a tad flatter than the 97 but not rounded like the Blade. Having grown up with Pro Staffs but experimented a lot with Blades over the last year, the Eurostaff feels every bit a Pro Staff to me. I felt at home instantly. The beam is flatter, as I said, but still feels more boxy somehow.
I absolutely love it.
It has a lot of similarities to the Doppio. Super whippy, great feel and surprisingly powerful for its swingweight. There are obviously some relative strengths and weaknesses as I'll go on to explain, but certainly they are pretty comparable in the ultimate 'pleener' showdown.
They feel very similar to swing (aerodynamics and weight distribution), but the feeling upon impact is a bit different. The Doppio is more raw, the Eurostaff is more plush. The Doppio has a bit more feedback. The Eurostaff is softer and more refined but I wouldn't call it "muted" at all. It has 95% of the Doppio's crispness but perhaps 110% in terms of comfort and sheer silky-smoothness. I've begun to prefer the feel of the Eurostaff, I have to say. Sorry, Seppi!
I love the way it bridges the gap between the 97 v13 (which is one hell of a racket if you like players' frames and can find the sweetspot consistently) and the Doppio. It's like a Doppio that feels like a Pro Staff. Or, like a Pro Staff with more of that 'crazy energy' of the Doppio. The Doppio is so user-friendly and easy to gel with, whilst the 97 v13 can be a tricky customer at the best of times, and darn right cantankerous if you're having an off day. The Eurostaff gives you
very nearly the best of both worlds; user friendly precision and an ultra-smooth ride. She's sophisticated but still a free spirit...
So, yeah, it's much more forgiving than the 97 v13, even though the head size difference is barely noticeable. The 100" has a little more power and access to spin than the 97 too, as you would expect. Other than that, the feel, launch angle and performance of these two Pro Staffs is almost the same, which enables me to switch back and forth between them seamlessly. When warming up or when I need more forgiveness against big hitters, the Eurostaff is more reliable. But when my eye is in and I'm hitting well, I can switch to the 97 for that extra pinpoint precision.
The Eurostaff serves with considerably more power than the Doppio (first serves). Kick serve spin and placement are about the same (ie. equally impressive). On volleys, the Eurostaff and 97 v13 are a bit more stable compared to the Doppio. And let's face it, if you can serve and volley with confidence, you're already halfway to winning the point...
Ground strokes are superb. The string pattern is almost identical to the 97 v13 - nice, open mains with a very consistent response. As much top spin as you'll ever need.
Not quite, but virtually as whippy as the Doppio. Slices knife beautifully. I have to concentrate a bit more on my low slices with only the 19 crosses, whereas the Doppio's 16x20 makes that a bit easier, but make no mistake, the Eurostaff can be punishingly accurate. I've been hitting the lines a LOT. Depth is very easy to find and lock in too, as you would expect from a crisp, thin beam like this. If Wilson had given this the same 16x20 spacing as the Doppio (and if they made it available worldwide), I think this would be one of those hallowed GOAT frames that people on this forum would still be talking about 30 years from now.
With the extra touch of lead at 12 o'clock, this frame seems more powerful than the Doppio to me (even with identical swingweight and 1pt lower RA). Even now as I type this, I'm having second thoughts about saying that. The Doppio has an impressive amount of power for such a whippy frame and manageable swingweight. But, yes, I'm going to stick my neck out and say that the Eurostaff matches it and maybe even beats it. Hard to say. First serves are definitely more powerful. Defence shots feel much more stable too. Maybe it's the more solid feel that makes it SEEM more powerful.
And that's where the Eurostaff beats the Doppio - the solid, buttery feel (but still with impressive touch).
The Doppio wins on ultra fine touch shots and being able to play without thinking. Never before have I picked up a new frame that felt like such an old friend, and in many a match situation, that's what gets you out of jail. And for the rest of the time, old friends are just such FUN! The Doppio is the trickster, the joker, the wild card. The Eurostaff is its slightly more stable, more grounded partner-in-crime but they are both cut from the same cloth.
Strange that they both appeared in my life around the same time.
I've been alternating between the three of them but the Eurostaff and Doppio are what I would reach for most of the time. The 97 v13 is the most advanced, but only when I'm right on my game and not being pushed back. My eyesight has deteriorated over the last 10 years and I can struggle to find the sweetspot consistently when under pressure. The marginally bigger head size really makes a world of difference in that respect (I feel I can't overstate that), and since everything comes down to self-belief at the end of the day, the confidence I'm feeling with the Eurostaff brings out my inner Federer. Plus it looks sooo sexy.
The other thing is, I notice that I play differently with the Doppio. The two Pro Staffs are so alike in terms of response and it's something that I've become so used to, that I can dial in my normal game and just get on with it. With the Doppio, it's different. I reach for different shots. I'm way more creative, finding bizarre angles and touches and flair that's all extremely mad fun...but I'm not sure whether I'm actually more deadly when I play like that though. Sometimes all you need to do is put away the point and with the Pro Staffs I tend to do that more efficiently.
Time will tell. There's still a long way to go in terms of experimentation and comparisons between these exceptional tennis rackets. I want to add a little lead to the Doppio at 3 & 9, which I still haven't tried, to see if I can find a tad more stability against heavy balls without losing its special whip and touch... The Eurostaff, I've already added a bit at 12 to bring its swingweight up to my norm. Perhaps another gram wouldn't hurt but it already has enough plow and that rock solid feel. I think I'll string the crosses 1-2lb higher just to tame the launch angle a bit and make low slices easier.
@danbrenner you were right - one of the best Wilsons ever, no question, especially for so many of us who are looking at player-tweener territory.
@powerplayer it's not exhausting to use at all. It's breezy, easy-peasy, but with punch and no harsh stiffness or vibrations.
And no-one should be put off by the factory quoted balance of 30.5cm (12HL), I think that's just an error.