From Babolat to Wilson: Andy Roddick goes in-depth on his new racquet

It started with a tweet.

Back in February, Andy Roddick innocently asked his large social media following if they had any suggestions for a new racquet. He was thinking of playing more frequently than the occasional exhibition, and felt his old racquets in the garage were long past their best-by date. Not knowing much about the current racquet landscape, Roddick thought he’d crowdsource for recommendations from his knowledgeable audience. He was not prepared for the response.

“I was stunned,” says Roddick. “I was expecting like a hundred responses and it just kept going. Everyone has an opinion about a racquet.”

Including me. I was one of the countless people who flooded Roddick with their racquet advisory services. I promised access to my stock of demos and whatever wisdom I could provide. However, my proposal was left hanging, outmatched by a better offer.

“No offense to you or your expertise, but “Racquet Ron” is pretty good.”

Roddick is of course referring to Ron Rocchi, Wilson’s long-time Racquet Innovation Manager, and all-around tennis equipment guru. After evaluating the flurry of responses, Wilson’s invitation of setting up a dream day of racquet testing with their various options was too good to pass up. Roddick sent Rocchi some of his old racquets for comparison, and discussed what things he was looking for now versus when he was on tour. Rocchi then devised a sampling for Roddick to playtest to potentially discover his new stick.

“I had never experienced a buffet of options before,” says Roddick. “Just having all those discussions and nerding out, we ended up getting to a place where going into the selection I knew it was probably going to be one of three models. But I also wanted to feel all the other models. Just to kind of put the verbiage to what I was feeling. It was pretty obvious when I started hitting it that the Shift was going to be the one that I left with.”

In second place?

“I probably would’ve gone with the Pro Staff,” he says. “I actually liked it way more than I thought I would. I always viewed it as a Roger-type racquet where you had to have this otherworldly talent to wield it in a certain way. I’m pretty certain even I could’ve been a good volleyer with it during my career. It was a pleasure to hit 15 minutes of feel shots. But on my forehand I have to work a little harder to create that spin mechanism and I want that lazy spin easily accessible at all times.”

That is one of the big assets of the Shift. Still in its first edition, the newest Wilson frame is aimed at aggressive baseliners looking to hit a heavy, penetrating ball with lots of spin. The source of which is the racquet’s unique bending profile. It’s designed to experience minimal torsional twisting at contact so there’s ample power and energy back into the ball. At the same time, the frame has a fair amount of lateral flexibility. This combines high-end stability with a higher launch angle to accentuate the spin on the ball.

For Roddick, it added a user-friendliness that put the Shift over the top.

“I like the little bit of extra help. I call it the late save,” he says. “A lot of times with the Shift I’ll hit it and it’s not perfect and I think it’s a lost ball, and all of a sudden gravity finds it. You’re not having to choose between spin or depth—both are available. I’m weird because my shots on either side are very different. I have a spinnier forehand and I can’t hit topspin on my backhand if you were threatening my life. To find a racquet that suits both of those is pretty rare.”

Giving way to age, Roddick’s stock model Shift is a bit lighter than what he swung during his playing days. The weight is also distributed a little differently; still on the head-heavy side for that “whip around effect” but a little more balanced. Partnering with Wilson has also allowed him to dabble with Luxilon—what he calls “Pandora’s box of strings.” Since he was a gut-hybrid user on tour—he felt it was the best setup for his serve—the stiffness of stringing with all Luxilon has meant dropping his string tension as well.

“I had never experienced a buffet of options before,” says Roddick. "It was pretty obvious when I started hitting it that the Shift was going to be the one that I left with.”

He also has several “testing” frames that he cycles through to try out Wilson experimental product. Whether it’s a racquet prototype, a future version of a current model or string idea, Roddick puts it through its paces and gives Rocchi his feedback. Along with his regular playing, it has Roddick back on the courts 3-4 times a week. His body is holding up, although he refrains from showing off his trademark serve.

“Unfortunately with the serve there’s a morning after effect,” he says. “There are certain players where you’re like they’ll be serving that way when they’re 60. I’m not that guy. Mine was a little too violent. It crushes my back whenever I do it.”

Which is why he laughs at the notion of a comeback. Otherwise, he’s pleased with his level and enjoying being back on the courts regularly for the first time in a very long time.

“We all face our own mortality as we face the other side of 40. I realized I probably have another 10-year run where I can be athletic and do I want to let that go? It’s just fun to be out there and feel like I can play tennis again.”