Alcawrath
Professional
Yep, and let's be honest, Rune was Sinner's toughest opponent at AO this year. I think Rune is having an underrated winter/ early spring
Tsitsipas Blacked out racket!
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DariaGT
Professional
I mistook that the highlighted line meant the Blade and Prostaff are 1st and 2nd then the Ultra?
If so then the "Blade" which is part of the topic is his best seller?
Either way none are the same Blade PJd Pros Stock Wilsons used on the tour.
The Ultra (depending which model as there is a 97 (H19 mold but soft and light) and a few other
listed Ultras that are 97+ based on Destiny/PDs etc yet again none are tour specs/construction.
As for PD being dead, and rightly so since pretty much every old skooler has bought at some stage
a PD of some sort in the past which were very popular since Moya and Fog (soft drives)
but were stiff frames. These consumers problems expected them to be fine with old dead poly
past a few hours of play and strung around 50lbs. Yet not on the tour uses a PD or any Poly strung
racquet with old strings @ recommended tensions 45-55lbs for more than 8 games.
These injured ex-PD users complain that PDs are stiff and caused their injuries, when strings like
Alu Power and RPM are carelessly used past 1-2 hours of play which is dangerous.
Partly to blame was Babolat as their retailers never recommended to re-string more often to avoid injuries.
This issue was never present with PK Destiny the originator of the PD which has its own dampening tech
still keeps the rawness of feel but lower ra68 and 24mm beam. Babolat bought the Destiny mold from PK
and went from Soft Drives that Moya and Rafa used and finally after 20+ years PA98 is their finest product.
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robdogg
New User
needs a dampener. Only thing missing nowwhat happened ? racket lost today. did stepanoe see his opponenet using his same racket and got psyched out ?
DariaGT
Professional
pretty sure Rune like Alcaraz molded themselves with 100 inch Babos
as Rafa did initially with the Soft Drive
and Moya kept for his whole career.
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pico
Hall of Fame
5g at the throat!
VanDerVaart23
Semi-Pro
Best comment ever
Rabbit
G.O.A.T.
Sorry that should have read “behind “ not being. Autocorrect strikes again.
DariaGT
Professional
Nothing wrong behind being incorrect from autocorrect!
Those pro-wilson shop and customers are in a private retirement community?
Recently I worked in a gated Pro-Fed community for a week and even before
I could feed a ball I had their Wilson Pro Tennis/Golf/Pickled Shop and most
of the locals trying to shove one of the "W" products from every angle.
On review of the match, Stef was hitting well just not serving as he should,
hit a FH on the run seemed tired or spent. His backhand was mostly deep
and effective but passing shots off that side are still unreliable.
Could have easily vultured more points at the net but will take time as he
is no Fed and never will have that silky style with great court craft but he
could watch 2010 Michael Llodra @ Paris on developing a better transition
game and more sneak attacks but needs to be a proper servebot.
If his serve does'nt go up another notch and put himself in more authority
situations at the net, hell be stuck in rinse and repeat.
Those pro-wilson shop and customers are in a private retirement community?
Recently I worked in a gated Pro-Fed community for a week and even before
I could feed a ball I had their Wilson Pro Tennis/Golf/Pickled Shop and most
of the locals trying to shove one of the "W" products from every angle.
On review of the match, Stef was hitting well just not serving as he should,
hit a FH on the run seemed tired or spent. His backhand was mostly deep
and effective but passing shots off that side are still unreliable.
Could have easily vultured more points at the net but will take time as he
is no Fed and never will have that silky style with great court craft but he
could watch 2010 Michael Llodra @ Paris on developing a better transition
game and more sneak attacks but needs to be a proper servebot.
If his serve does'nt go up another notch and put himself in more authority
situations at the net, hell be stuck in rinse and repeat.
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strange_doood
New User
why do you think that i meant you? by "you" i was meaning "one" as it is often done in the english language.
tele
Hall of Fame
I think you can probably imagine why someone to whom you were directly responding might think "you" was referring to them, but maybe not. either way, my apologies for the misunderstanding.
konstantinos kalfountzos
Hall of Fame
The Blade gives you a 3-6, 3-6 upcoming loss to climb over. With the Aero, worst case scenario the opponent will break him once.
DariaGT
Professional
he lost to Rune 4 and 4 as in the past not 3 and 3????
Either way would have liked Stef at the clay of the Golden Swing as Rio, Buenos Aires and Chile
would really test his once awesome grinding abilities which seem long gone.
Even Norrie beat Raz at Rio Final! Now only 3 PS98 left instead of 4 or is Fils still using the PAVS?
konstantinos kalfountzos
Hall of Fame
He's won Monte Carlo back-to-back, so he's proved he's good on clay.
We'll see. I'm pretty sure he's gonna be signed by Babolat, once he officially breaks-up with Wilson.
You see and hear him talking about the benefits of the new racket.
I hate when people excuse every loss with injury (I’m thinking of fans of a specific player ) but I’m confused how none of the very few Alcaraz losses that were actually caused by injury ever gets “excused”. He was injured in that final, couldn’t move and still hitting winners left & right to make it close.
TennisManiac
Hall of Fame
Never. That racket stinks
FriedlyNurse
New User
As a recreational player, I have the Wilson and also the Babolat racket.
I find the Babolat racket much better. You can generate significantly more power with it. It's more comfortable to play. I think the Wilson racket simply requires perfect hitting.
I can understand if he wants to change rackets. I think, without being a professional, but while the difference between the rackets and the entire playing style is already significant for me as an amateur player, the difference is certainly even more significant for the professionals.
I find the Babolat racket much better. You can generate significantly more power with it. It's more comfortable to play. I think the Wilson racket simply requires perfect hitting.
I can understand if he wants to change rackets. I think, without being a professional, but while the difference between the rackets and the entire playing style is already significant for me as an amateur player, the difference is certainly even more significant for the professionals.
pico
Hall of Fame
Another thing I wonder about is the string pattern change - is it moving away from the 18 x 20 that has helped Tsitsipas as well? is the 18 x 20 pattern going dead as well on the tour? I can't think of many young guns that are using one though Shapo made the switch to a custom Ezone 18 x 20.
LeftyMagic
Rookie
this has to be part of it. it’s 18x20, hes using 4g, and you all know which version of blade it is but it didnt have a massive sweetspot. look pro golfers mess w hybrids and fatter irons in the longer irons this is no different. hes experimenting with a unanimously more user friendly frame. its not a magic wand but it might make his natural game easier to play. everyone’s tinkering not just us holics….he fixed the trajectory, opened the sweetspot and its worked well for now.
AgressiveBaseliner89
New User
Rackets are not worse or better, they are just different.
PA98 will punish you for bad shots even more than Blade. Because it is more powerful and the effect of deviation from missing the sweet spot of the racket is increased.
Blade has lower maximum speed and spin of the shot, but less chance of disrupting the shot
SpinToWin
Talk Tennis Guru
Not that simple. The Blade punishes off center shots with fluff balls more so than the PA.
Passingshot78
Rookie
Some rackets are definitelly worse or better than others.
am1899
Legend
Although the new racquet gives Stef a little more firepower, this match confirmed his weaknesses are still alive and well. Indeed Rune played an excellent match to bring Stef’s weaknesses to the fore. A lot of work for the philosopher to do if he still thinks he’s a top 3 level player. Lol.
Sure but he had tried 16x20 Blades and other string patterns as well over the last year or so
AgressiveBaseliner89
New User
Not that simple.
Your point is true if we're talking about a defensive ball from the corner of the court.
But if you hit hard with a full PA swing and miss the sweet spot you will kill the bird at a height of 25m from the ground.
The blade (especially v9 18x20) is much more stable and reliable in attack and requires less skill.
I just want to say that the extremely widespread opinion that babolat is better at everything than Wilson is very controversial and provocative. I hope to cause a lot of problems for fans of Babolat with my v9 at the tournament next Saturday.
SpinToWin
Talk Tennis Guru
I don’t think I ever said it’s better at everything? But the idea that the wilson is more stable is just flat out wrong. More predictable perhaps, but at the level they’re playing at you need to put pressure on the opponent, so that’s not enough. Your hyperbole regarding off center contact is not helping frankly.
The Blade punishes off centre contact with floaters more than the Babolat, that’s a simple fact. Stef’s problem in recent times has been that he’s been insufficiently able to impose his offensive game onto his opponents. He couldn’t get into offensive positions in return games, and sometimes struggled to do enough damage on his own serve games. He was swinging very hard yet not doing enough damage. And then he started shanking left and right due to the pressure/speed he had to swing at to get depth. It’s quite natural that he’d transition away from a frame like the Blade (especially with 4G) given the issues he was encountering.
Also I’ll add, assuming a top pro player is in an offensive position to rip the ball, off centre contact usually isn’t a huge concern for them. They will make solid contact a majority of the time.
TNNSDR
Semi-Pro
I don’t notice much of a difference between a 1.30 mm string gauge in a 16x20 (or 18x19) pattern and a 1.25 mm gauge in an 18x20 pattern. Personally, I’ve never been able to find the right level of control in 16x19 frames, except for the RF97. Since the courts are getting ridiculously slower nowadays, I understand that it's not much about control anymore and the young guns have to adjust their equipment accordingly.
robdogg
New User
Looks like Bublik has joined the bandwagon
https://www.instagram.com/share/_1E0koLPm
https://www.instagram.com/share/_1E0koLPm
strange_doood
New User
well, many thx, and i had a look at many pictures online, but for me it's unrecognizable whether these are pure aero 98 or pure aero vs 2020 grommetsyeah, the vs has wider 'spin' grommets for the 6 center mains that allow for more string movement along the plane of the racquet face. yes, feel free to search getty images. here's one to get you started:
naturalexponent
Legend
sure. if you're able to compare them irl it's easier to tell. take a look at the below after you've taken a look at a PAVS up close, then see how carlitos's throat grommets look almost rectangular here on the PAVS (picture from circa 2021) vs. his current racquet and yeetsipas's aero.
strange_doood
New User
wow, the pure aero fever is rising again ) he's beaten Vukic & Hijikata each in 3, not bad, but nothing extraordinary yet
strange_doood
New User
sure. if you're able to compare them irl it's easier to tell. take a look at the below after you've taken a look at a PAVS up close, then see how carlitos's throat grommets look almost rectangular here on the PAVS (picture from circa 2021) vs. his current racquet and yeetsipas's aero.
yep, thx, these ones (at your pic) look definitely like the PAVS ones. and these ones from the AUSOpen 2025 look round like the PA98 ones. so Carlitos seems to really have switched to the PA98. you know when? could also be that he still uses the PAVS frame with a slightly different flex (as tested by the TennisSpin guy with his buddy) but with the PA98 grommets for more control, who knows... anyway, the flex could be really tailor-made which we can't verify.
strange_doood
New User
btw, these muscles... he was still a skinny guy a few years before, at 12, 13 i think. wonder what they are feeding him. same medicine like Rafa's i guess, or just a lot of hard work behind themsure. if you're able to compare them irl it's easier to tell. take a look at the below after you've taken a look at a PAVS up close, then see how carlitos's throat grommets look almost rectangular here on the PAVS (picture from circa 2021) vs. his current racquet and yeetsipas's aero.
Rosstour
G.O.A.T.
btw, these muscles... he was still a skinny guy a few years before, at 12, 13 i think. wonder what they are feeding him. same medicine like Rafa's i guess, or just a lot of hard work behind them
Ok I am glad someone else said it. I'm tired of being the "look, roids" guy....but c'mon,ok.....what are we looking at
Dude's right arm looks like a bodybuilder before a show
CiscoPC600
Hall of Fame
Not even close, these baseless accusations are silly. You must not lift at all.
Rosstour
G.O.A.T.
This is pro sports....it's never baseless to be suspicious when there is this much money on the line
Those veins are pretty abnormal in this sport. Even Rafa didn't have webs like that and he probably had the biggest hitting arm we've seen
DariaGT
Professional
I agree but Rafa could beat 99% of the field on one foot both on clay and HCs and especially Norrie who only got him once at the nothing United Cup where
he was just coming back and still playing poorly losing to double Mac at the AO. 2024 retirement Rafa was awful yet still pipped Norrie at Bastad 4 and 4.
Tell us how you go
The tour is the answer not which is better for consistent results, day in day out which favors the Head copy by Willy PJd like the retail Blade 98.
I have see all ages and no pro levels using the noodle v8 and V9, as it is easier to play more consistent daily while Babo swingers are roller coaster.
Rafa till recently was the only player to be consistent with the APD and Mannarino also considering his limitations.
Everyone else that swings APD/PD are not consistent but have amazing days and pop that is hard to ignore.
I agree as the stats for maneuverability vs stability show the Blade is more maneuverable than the PA98, while the PA98 is more stable.
The sales stat for TV reveal the Blade 98 v9 (not prostock used by the tour) pips the pa98 in sales, yet pa98 is retail+prostock like Yonex.
I see the retail blade as a noodle that has the best of all worlds for non pros to play closer their usual level day in day out.
While Babolats based on the original PK Destiny that became Aero/PD can only be mastered first by Moya for a short stint then
by Rafa for almost 2 decades while the rest of Aero/PD users have roller coaster results (excluding Thiem and Norrie since not Aero/PD based).
The tour users who use the blade PJd "non retail prostocks" all play very similar flatter big swinging tennis while the Aero/PD can get that little more
pop and spin with less effort and looser wrist action. These racquets is where the tour is heading as the 3rd best seller after the PA98 is the Ezone 98.
Sadly it is harder to finish off a point or troll as a top 10 without the stability, pop and spin which also provides extra clearance for defence.
Fed found this and it took him with his talent and tennis brain many years before he could win Slams again without his 90 incher.
I still think for Stef the serve is still the issue more than his BH as now his OHBH has a little more of everything yet still needs Fed's blocked and Fedal chip returns.
as even Rune mentioned what his plan was to defeat Stef:
Steff will always struggle with Rune and Meds when they are in form with these further slowed down conditions.
They can stand way back and just get every serve back that is not of servebot quality.
We saw that with Sinner vs Meds AO a couple of years ago how Skinner had to hit his spots or get trolled to death.
Meds vs Zverev also a battle of Trolls with one running out of steam on the FH as always and Meds turning it around.
These slower conditions sure will bring an even balance I suppose again of Trolls vs Aggressors yet I really enjoyed
SinRaz crushing it for the last 2-3 years vs the common troll by design Tennis since circa 2001.
Now we have 2 PA98 users left, one more of a troll the other a full aggressor YET no Green Willy in sight!!!
the last Green Willy swung by Demon was not even H based but still Blade faked propaganda Green!
Taken out by Cerundolo wielding the 30 year old based PT57A which Wilson copied with the "H".
So for that I salute Stef for a frame spec that could give him a little more of everything.
We have Medstroll with TF then aggressor Draper with Dunlop "PK Destiny/PD" taking out agressor Shelton with Yonex 98.
One can see its troll/counter puncher vs Aggressive play creator evenly balanced as planned.
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AgressiveBaseliner89
New User
No problem. I'll keep you updatedРасскажите нам, как у вас дела?
Тур — это ответ, а не то, что лучше для получения стабильных результатов изо дня в день, который отдает предпочтение копии Head от Willy PJd, как и розничному Blade 98.
Я видел игроков всех возрастов и непрофессионального уровня, использующих noodle v8 и V9, так как играть на них проще и более стабильно, в то время как любители игры на Babo — это американские горки.
До недавнего времени Рафа был единственным игроком, который соответствовал требованиям APD, а Маннарино также учитывал его ограничения.
Все остальные, кто колеблется в APD/PD, не последовательны, но у них бывают потрясающие дни и популярность, которую трудно игнорировать.
Я согласен, поскольку статистика маневренности и устойчивости показывает, что Blade более маневренен, чем PA98, в то время как PA98 более устойчив.
Статистика продаж на ТВ показывает, что Blade 98 v9 (не тот, который использовался в туре) опережает pa98 по продажам, хотя pa98 — это розничный+товар, как и Yonex.
Я рассматриваю розничный клинок как нечто лучшее из всех миров, позволяющее непрофессионалам играть ближе к своему обычному уровню изо дня в день.
В то время как Babolats, основанный на оригинальной PK Destiny, которая стала Aero/PD, может быть сначала освоен только Moya на короткое время, а затем
Рафой на протяжении почти 2 десятилетий, в то время как у остальных пользователей Aero/PD результаты получаются хаотичными (за исключением Тима и Норри, поскольку они не основаны на Aero/PD).
Игроки тура, которые используют лезвие PJD "не для розничной торговли", играют в очень похожий плоский теннис с большим замахом, в то время как Aero/PD может дать немного больше
Щелчок и вращение с меньшими усилиями и более свободным действием запястья. Эти ракетки — то, куда движется тур, поскольку третий бестселлер после PA98 — это Ezone 98.
К сожалению, без стабильности, щелчка и вращения, которые также обеспечивают дополнительное пространство для защиты, сложнее набрать очко или попасть в десятку лучших.
Федерер нашел это, и ему, с его талантом и теннисным интеллектом, потребовалось много лет, прежде чем он смог снова выиграть турниры Большого шлема без своего 90-дюймового удара.
You gave a comprehensive commentary and explained very clearly the difference between the perception of rackets of ATP players and amateurs. I also noticed that recreational players Babolat are unstable. They often lose matches with a lot of unforced errors, but sometimes you just understand that they are unstoppable.
For me personally, it is more difficult psychologically and scarier to play with recreational players who are good at Wilson control frames than Babolats.
yourtennisfit
Professional
Yeah, what could possibly happen in a man's body between the age of 12/13 and 22?
It's as if his whole body composition and hormones would change - if only medicine would have a term for that
Come on, let's not be ridiculous. A young guy that trains for hours a day, eats well and gets all the support from physios, supplements etc
This is not a lot of muscle for that and I think you might have never seen a bodybuilder
SpinToWin
Talk Tennis Guru
Eh? My dude you clearly haven’t put a foot in a gym. You don’t have to be a bodybuilder or on roids to have that amount of muscle mass/definition.btw, these muscles... he was still a skinny guy a few years before, at 12, 13 i think. wonder what they are feeding him. same medicine like Rafa's i guess, or just a lot of hard work behind them
Coolhwip
New User
Agreed. His veins are a combination of having muscles and a low body fat percentage. You can tell by how defined his jawline is. Your veins also show when under stress or exerting force (striking a tennis ball) as well as having less water weight.
SpinToWin
Talk Tennis Guru
yeah, it’s wild how much the casual audience mistakes being shredded with large amounts of muscle mass.
strange_doood
New User
you might be right guys, was just wondering and asking questions.
@SpinToWin: "My dude you clearly haven’t put a foot in a gym." ridiculous baseless assumptions, pal )) i have bigger guns than Carlitos, so watch out, dude
but let's return to the main topic...
powerful rackets on a CLAY court should be played with good technique(pros),flexible rackets-everything else
CiscoPC600
Hall of Fame
Anyways, to steer this back to being on topic, I didn't think Tsitipas played bad. At least based on the highlights, it just looked like Rune was more clutch on key points. I don't think Tsitsipas will be that down with himself given the number of matches he's played, traveling, new racket, new conditions, etc.
FlatShot_V
Rookie
Do we think he'll return to the blade or hold onto the blacked out PA for Miami?
pico
Hall of Fame
Black Racquets Matter!
CiscoPC600
Hall of Fame
Hold on to the PA.
Coolhwip
New User
With his praise of the PA and how he has seemingly lost confidence in his former Blade by trying out so many racquets, it's difficult to see him revert back.
strange_doood
New User
Bublik has beaten Moutet in 3 and won 3 in a row which is extraordinary now
saw him play yesterday. was 2:6, 2:4 down. played with much less power, almost all serves below 200 kph, no aces, no straight out winners as usually, but with more spin and control. was mostly on the defence. never saw him play that many slices and stops. didn't seem to have any chance. but then smth changed. he turned up a gear and Moutet switched one down. the difference seems to be much less power but more confidence and precision. also, higher jumping spinny balls are less easy to put away for the opponents. not sure if this would work vs Alcaraz, Sinner, top 30 guys. i hope so.
