“Game Shapes Towards The Racket”: Roger Federer Explains The Reason Behind Switching to RF97 Tennis Racquet

Published 12/07/2020, 3:30 PM EST

Just as tennis is incomplete without Roger Federer, he is incomplete without a tennis racket. Currently, at World No. 5, he is using Wilson Pro Staff RF97 racket after switching from 85 and 90 versions of the same. In a conversation, the Swiss maestro detailed the transition and the thought that goes behind choosing a racket.

Due to his persistent knee injury, Federer took a year-off from tennis to recover sufficiently. However, he has been quite active from off the court. Recently, the 39-year old also introduced his iconic RF caps – the first time with Uniqlo. As far as rackets go, Roger didn’t get it right the first time.

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“Like an axe or hammer in my hand”: Roger Federer

The 20 times Grand Slam winner started tennis at the age of 8. In the future, Federer and his tennis racket won every ATP accolade. At 14, he took on the Pro Staff 85 following his idols growing up – Pete Sampras and Stefen Edberg. Although well-known in the tennis world, the Swiss maestro wasn’t the chosen one.

“Like an axe or hammer in my hand at the time because I was half the size I am today,” Roger said. Furthermore, he highlighted the advantage of options that the new generation players have today. In opposition of smaller rackets, he said, “But eventually you got to switch to the more solid racket.”

“And, I think every player has different preferences and then your game also shapes towards the racket you play with and vice versa too.” With RF97, Federer has checked all the preferences in his list.

“Everybody can play with it.”: Federer

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The Swiss maestro has been a professional player since 1998. He explained that while the lighter rackets require a lot of power, the heavier rackets give less vibrations.

“I think it’s actually a very versatile racket you know. I think I feel like everybody can play with it,” Federer said about RF97. He added, “It’s just nicer to play, that’s my biggest switch.” Rounding off, the record 8 times Wimbledon winner revealed that his current racket negated all the previous drawbacks.

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“Because I remember with the 85, I used to play and just think every ball I have to be in perfect position not to shank it. And now, that’s obviously very different with the 97,” concluded Federer. Very soon, he will return to tennis to compete at the 2021 Australian Open. Along with his compatible racket, Roger will also sport his RF cap again.

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Purav Joshi is a Tennis author at EssentiallySports. Having a degree in Films, Television and Media Production, he guided his passion for writing and journalism into the sport of aces and rallies. With over 2 years of experience as a copywriter, Purav has authored over 500 tennis articles.

“Game Shapes Towards The Racket”: Roger Federer Explains The Reason Behind Switching to RF97 Tennis Racquet

“Like an axe or hammer in my hand”: Roger Federer

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“Everybody can play with it.”: Federer