Tsitsipas Blacked out racket!

Raf.spin said:
Yea me too
I stuck with Blade V6 for 6 years and only this year I started changing.
And look at the result ‍

IMG-4499.jpg
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As a former fellow V6 user that switched this March, I went to the Aero 98. I actually had a brief stint with the ezone 98 which I think helped me get adjusted to the even whippier and spinny nature of the Aero. I tried going straight from blade to aero but couldn't make sense of the aero. It made far more sense after using the ezone for a bit though.

My playing also shot up a level after switching. The power and spin of the aero is honestly fantastic, but I can still hit block the ball back like I could with a control racket. The blade was a fantastic stick to develop my technique though and will be sorely missed. I"m hoping the upcoming Bilson 98 will get me back to a wilson though
 
MasterSlice74 said:
As a former fellow V6 user that switched this March, I went to the Aero 98. I actually had a brief stint with the ezone 98 which I think helped me get adjusted to the even whippier and spinny nature of the Aero. I tried going straight from blade to aero but couldn't make sense of the aero. It made far more sense after using the ezone for a bit though.

My playing also shot up a level after switching. The power and spin of the aero is honestly fantastic, but I can still hit block the ball back like I could with a control racket. The blade was a fantastic stick to develop my technique though and will be sorely missed. I"m hoping the upcoming Bilson 98 will get me back to a wilson though
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I’m using Pure Aero 100 now with 2g at noon and 2g in the throat.
I told myself “this js the only stick in existence” so that I stop changing.

I think Tsitsi should have stuck with Pure Aero 98.
It would have benefited him more in the long term. Specially that he wasn’t using 4G with that setup, but RPM Blast.
 
TennisD said:
Wow based on the cover image here (and some of the 2026 Aero images posted elsewhere on this board) I'm more convinced than ever that this is a Bab, which is interesting. Doesn't look that similar to whatever Khachanov is using, either.
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You are Right, the throat looks veeery 2026 PA like
 
Holic said:
Wins the only tournament in the past 2 years with the PA98, proceeds to change back to the blade 18x20.
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Guys.. It is not the racket. His back injury is serious. Ivanisevic already said that Tsitsipas is out of shape too. This probably has to do with his back injury limiting him physically and mentally. That combined with the drama of his dad being his coach and his relationship with Badosa are all distractions that collectively have greater influence than a stupid racket.

TLDR: quit believing a racket or strings is what makes the player. It helps marginally--not exponentially. Plenty of historical examples.
 
TennisD said:
Wow based on the cover image here (and some of the 2026 Aero images posted elsewhere on this board) I'm more convinced than ever that this is a Bab, which is interesting. Doesn't look that similar to whatever Khachanov is using, either.
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Agree across the board here.

Khach seems to be using an 18x20 nishiskori 98. My guess from closeup.

Stef’s frame seems like a babo, rounder head, 16/20…
 
I heard a weird rumour that Babolat didn’t want to make a deal with tsitsipas on aero 98 but instead they wanted him to be the new face of strike line and promote that line….. that’s why the deal didn’t concluded.
 
Blade_X said:
I heard a weird rumour that Babolat didn’t want to make a deal with tsitsipas on aero 98 but instead they wanted him to be the new face of strike line and promote that line….. that’s why the deal didn’t concluded.
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So he rather get less money from Wilson to use their stencil and bags?
He doesn't like strike colors?
I think we should leave that as unrealistic rumour
 
If Babolat needs a face of the Strike... plenty of current Babolat sponsored players to offer incentives too.. 2026 isn't far away either to grab some players from other sponsors when the contracts have expired...
 
Looks like aero 98 again.

Rewatched today’s match and zoomed in.
Unless Wilson made an aero clone, it’s a babo.

Just can’t tell if it’s the 23 or the leaked 26. Throat almost looks like the leaked 26 but cannot tell for sure.
 
dl32 said:
Buttcap was red, but I’m sure it’s not hard to fake that
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This is actually some prototype Wilson frame that’s supposed to drop soon. Colton Smith was testing the same frame recently. Looks like a similar mold to their Kobra racket, which was their answer to the Babolat APD awhile ago. Looks like Wilson’s about to bring it back to capitalize on the spin market. Guessing they’ll have a 16x19 100 and this 16x20 98.
 
dl32 said:
Looks like aero 98 again.

Rewatched today’s match and zoomed in.
Unless Wilson made an aero clone, it’s a babo.

Just can’t tell if it’s the 23 or the leaked 26. Throat almost looks like the leaked 26 but cannot tell for sure.
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are you sure? I looked at it as close as I could on tennistv and the throat doesn't quite look like an aero to me.
 
Just spoke with a friend with in at Wilson.

Stef’s frame is a Wilson and same with Khach. They are making it in 16x20 and 18x20 for the 98 pro stocks. Not sure if 18x20 will come to Market. I should be able to see what specs are for the base pro stocks soon.
 
dl32 said:
Just spoke with a friend with in at Wilson.

Stef’s frame is a Wilson and same with Khach. They are making it in 16x20 and 18x20 for the 98 pro stocks. Not sure if 18x20 will come to Market. I should be able to see what specs are for the base pro stocks soon.
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While I'm inclined to believe that they did cook up a Wilson proto for him sometime between the beginning of the year and now, nobody at Wilson would admit it to you if he was just playing a blacked out PA still lol. Also based on close-ups his frame and the one Khachanov is playing are clearly different molds, specifically near the handle. Since Stef has decided to win at least one match this week we'll likely see some close-up shots, the grommets will tell an interesting story.
 
TennisD said:
While I'm inclined to believe that they did cook up a Wilson proto for him sometime between the beginning of the year and now, nobody at Wilson would admit it to you if he was just playing a blacked out PA still lol. Also based on close-ups his frame and the one Khachanov is playing are clearly different molds, specifically near the handle. Since Stef has decided to win at least one match this week we'll likely see some close-up shots, the grommets will tell an interesting story.
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look at the throat, the PA throat is very apparent. I don’t think it’s that.
 
SpinToWin said:
look at the throat, the PA throat is very apparent. I don’t think it’s that.
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It looks a lot like the upcoming 2026 PA, where they've made changes in the throat shape. Either way, at least what he was playing in Toronto does not look like what Khachanov is playing.
 
dl32 said:
Looks like aero 98 again.

Rewatched today’s match and zoomed in.
Unless Wilson made an aero clone, it’s a babo.

Just can’t tell if it’s the 23 or the leaked 26. Throat almost looks like the leaked 26 but cannot tell for sure.
dl32 said:
Just spoke with a friend with in at Wilson.

Stef’s frame is a Wilson and same with Khach. They are making it in 16x20 and 18x20 for the 98 pro stocks. Not sure if 18x20 will come to Market. I should be able to see what specs are for the base pro stocks soon.
Click to expand...
It is Wilson Python, before Wilson Cobra
Click to expand...
 
TennisD said:
While I'm inclined to believe that they did cook up a Wilson proto for him sometime between the beginning of the year and now, nobody at Wilson would admit it to you if he was just playing a blacked out PA still lol. Also based on close-ups his frame and the one Khachanov is playing are clearly different molds, specifically near the handle. Since Stef has decided to win at least one match this week we'll likely see some close-up shots, the grommets will tell an interesting story.
Click to expand...
I think most people think he definitely dabbled with a PA98 after that Alcaraz session. Wilson probably convinced him to stick around as they had something in the hoper.

Purely a guess here and maybe why he went back to the blade until he tried a layup he liked in this new mold.
 
dl32 said:
I think most people think he definitely dabbled with a PA98 after that Alcaraz session. Wilson probably convinced him to stick around as they had something in the hoper.

Purely a guess here and maybe why he went back to the blade until he tried a layup he liked in this new mold.
Click to expand...
I think it's very, very clear that he won Dubai with a PA98. He's looking for answers overall and clearly trying different things but contracts are complicated and, whether or not he's playing with a real Wilson prototype (something we'll be able to see in the coming weeks) frankly I don't think Babolat wants him, needs him, or sees any real reason to sign him.
 
That photo may be the Wilson prototype but he was playing with the PA98 and was using it when he won Dubai as has mentioned.
 
Can someone post side by side pics of Tsitsipas current frame, the one he used in Dubai, and Khachnakov's racket? That might help resolve the dispute. Idk where to find these pics lol.
 
PA98, if your arm can handle it, is really an insane frame. It generates one of the heaviest and fastest shots. It’s a timing killer.
 
dl32 said:
PA98, if your arm can handle it, is really an insane frame. It generates one of the heaviest and fastest shots. It’s a timing killer.
Click to expand...
I have PA100 2023, I can’t say the same.
Is the difference between 100 and 98 that big?
For example the Head Speed Pro 2022 gives me heavier shots and serves.
 
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