Serena Williams has racked up a complete of 23 Grand Slam singles titles over the past twenty years, placing her in elite firm on the very prime of the game.
The American has lengthy been one of the crucial recognised model ambassadors for the Wilson Blade line of racquets, however which particular mannequin does she use, and might you purchase it? Let’s have a look.
What Racquet Does Serena Williams Use?
Together with Roger Federer, Serena is without doubt one of the few gamers with sufficient clout to get her personal Autograph racquet, and she or he makes use of the Wilson Blade SW102 Autograph, which launched in 2020.
Whereas a career-long consumer of Wilson racquets, Serena has solely used the SW102 for the reason that center of 2020, after a year-long collaboration with Wilson Labs.
The brand new Blade SW102 Autograph racket is 2 inches smaller in its head dimension than her earlier body. Though a minor change, the decreased head dimension allowed us to change the racket’s flex factors alongside its string mattress and body so as to add the extent of management Serena Williams was in search of with out impacting the facility of her play. We took the identical stiffness and really feel she cherished in her earlier racket and re-engineered it right into a smaller geometry. With a smaller body, you naturally add management. Ron Rocchi, Wilson
What Specification is Serena’s Racquet?
The Wilson Blade SW102 is a 28-inch racquet, which is 1 inch longer than the usual 27-inch frames that almost all gamers use. This gives a barely prolonged attain but additionally permits the technology of extra energy.
When it comes to how Serena’s specification differs from the retail mannequin, the one distinction is Serena makes use of a 4 5/8 grip dimension, which isn’t bought at retail.
The spec that basically stands out on this body is the excessive swing weight; this body shouldn’t be straightforward to swing and is on a par with what you discover most ATP gamers utilizing, besides Andy Murray, who’s round 380 kg.cm2 swing weight which is uncharted territory.
You may see the specs of the SW102 under.
Serena’s Wilson Blade SW102 Specification
Head Measurement
102 in2 / 658.06 cm2
Size
28in / 71.12cm
Strung Weight
11.4oz / 323g
Steadiness
13.18in / 33.48cm
Swingweight
349 kg.cm2
Stiffness
69
Beam Width
22.5mm / 22.5mm / 22.5mm
Composition
Countervail/Graphite
Grip Measurement
4 5/8 (L5)
Grip Kind
Wilson Professional Efficiency
String Sample
18 Mains / 19 Crosses
Why Does Serena Use the Blade SW102?
Serena has all the time had a penchant for the outsized racquet, and that is an outlier in comparison with many of the prime girls who’re utilizing between 98 and 100 sq. inch frames.
It’s an attention-grabbing selection for her to make as most gamers utilizing prolonged racquets and bigger head sizes are usually extra diminutive in stature. In distinction, Serena is tall, muscular and has a whole lot of pure energy, so that you’d count on her to be utilizing a extra management oriented racquet that’s a skinny beam and headlight in steadiness.
As an alternative, she has a really excessive swing weight body (most girls would wrestle to manoeuvre this racquet successfully), thick beam and a really forgiving head dimension that’s designed to supply a ton of energy.
The SW102 is troublesome to get transferring, however when you get momentum, the ball will completely fly off this body, and you may see why she’s been in a position to overpower nearly everybody on tour for the final 20 years.
Apparently as you will notice under, Serena has just lately moved from 104 to 102 sq. inches head dimension, which, though a negligible change, will supply her barely extra management.
Has Serena Modified Racquet Specs In Her Profession?
Each Serena and Venus began life on tour utilizing Yonex frames, the previous utilizing the Yonex Tremendous RQ 300. In 1998 they each switched to Wilson.
Serena gained her first slam in 1999 utilizing a Hammer 6.4 Stretch OS 110. She briefly performed with a nCode 3 OS 113 paint job earlier than switching to the brand new Okay-Blade Workforce 104 in 2007.
Serena caught with a 104 sq. inch Blade till 2020 after which switched to the SW102 Blade.
I like my earlier Blade tennis racket, and it’s been an enormous a part of my sport, however I knew I wanted to make changes. A tennis racket is such a delicate factor. I talked with Wilson about wanting extra management and what that would appear like, and importantly, really feel like. So, we set to work. I’m actually into expertise and attempting new issues out. And whereas the method was lengthy, we finally designed precisely what I would like for my sport. I’ve had this new racket in my arms for many of this 12 months, and it simply feels proper. Serena on her swap to the SW102
Serena Williams OId Blade 104 Specs
You may see Serena’s specs for her previous Wilson Blade 104 under.
Head Measurement
104 in²
Size
27.7 in
Unstrung Weight
312 g
Strung Weight
330 g
Steadiness
34cm / Round 1pts HL when strung
Swing Weight
366 kg.cm2 (strung)
String Sample
18 x 19
Dampener
No
Grip Fashion
Customized grip pallet (Head form) + Tournagrip
Grip Measurement
4 5/8 in (L5)
Stiffness
61
What String Setup Does Williams Use?
Like Federer, Serena additionally makes use of a hybrid setup with Wilson pure intestine within the mains and Luxilon 4G within the crosses. She strings at a high-ish pressure, normally round 63-65lbs.
Serena has used this setup since 2012, when she modified from a full mattress of Wilson Pure Intestine. She initially tried Federer’s setup with the Luxilon Alu Energy Tough within the crosses however didn’t like the texture.
Wilson then really useful Luxilon 4G to her, which was model new on the time, she appreciated the softer really feel, and that’s what has been in her racquet for the final 9 years.
This setup is nice to play with, you get the pure intestine properties, which is energy, pressure upkeep and really feel, after which the polyester can mood the facility by serving to impart extra spin on the ball.
Can You Purchase Serena’s Racquet?
CHECK BLADE SW102 LATEST PRICE
You may get the Wilson Blade SW102 Autograph from just about all main tennis retailers and just like the RF97, the retail mannequin is the body Serena makes use of.
Do you have to purchase it? Perhaps however I believe the use case for a body like that is just for a tiny variety of gamers so I might advocate demoing the racquet first.
You’ll must be bodily robust because it’s a really excessive swing weight. Additionally, you will have to play with a extra compact swing with an emphasis on hitting flat to actually reap the rewards of the facility it might generate. Stringing at a better pressure like Serena may even be helpful.
Should you’re a quick arm, topspin baseliner, whilst you’ll like the facility whenever you hit by means of the ball, over the course of a match it is going to most likely result in too many errors as you gained’t get the required management from the SW102.
What do you guys consider the Wilson Blade SW102 Autograph? Let me know within the feedback.