SecondDespite the devastating setbacks he suffered in the final months of his career, Andy Murray’s thinking remains crystal clear. After facing a serious layoff with a serious ankle injury at the Miami Open in March, Murray sensed an opportunity.
Before returning home from Florida, the 37-year-old limped into a sporting goods store and browsed through a stash of racquets. He walked away with a ridiculous amount of gain. 10 frames, scales, a swing weight machine and a roll of lead tape to help with weight adjustments.
During the six weeks he was out of action, Murray pored over the racket, tinkering with it and testing which specs were best. He eventually contacted Yonex to work with their racket pros.
When Murray arrived in Bordeaux for his first day of training ahead of last week’s ATP Challenger Tour, he caused a stir in the tennis world by training in the Yonex Ezone 100.
“I’ve tried a lot of different racquets. When I could I tested them with the Hawkeye and I like the Yonex. I’m really happy with this racquet and I think it will work for me as long as I play ball Helps.
Over time, top players develop close ties with manufacturers they recognize. Murray has used Head racquets throughout his career and is essentially a representative of the Head Radical series. For some, seeing Murray brandishing Yonex is like Harry Kane randomly showing up at Stamford Bridge as a Chelsea player.
When other players learned of Murray’s transformation, their shocked reactions were hilarious. Stefanos Tsitsipas was shocked and needed some time to digest the news. Taylor Fritz needs to be heard twice. Yonex spokesperson Tommy Paul said, “Wow, this is crazy,” and stared silently into space. “I mean, that’s awesome.”
This has been a long time coming. In the second half of 2021, Murray began to consider a different head racket and tried a few before returning to his trusty old weapon. Murray, then and now, uses an electronic line-calling system that provides players with data on pace, spin and more to select a racket. Murray bases his decisions on numbers rather than feelings, which reflects his attention to detail.
This time, he was determined to see how newer technology would suit his game: “I’ve been playing with the same racket for 20 years, and things have changed in that time,” he said. “The game has changed too. I’ve always used the same rope.
Switching to any other brand would be shocking, but it’s also worth noting because of how different these two racquets are. Murray’s newly modified Yonex Ezone 100 is much livelier than his PT57A clubhead, which is larger and has a different shape. As his movement and defensive abilities decline, he may want to inject more power into his game.
Newsletter Promotion Post
The racket feels like an extension of the player’s arm, so they become sensitive to the slightest changes in the racket. Cameron Norrie has been using the same type since he was 12 years old. Some players regularly blind-test a large number of racquets: “I’ll line up and put all the racquets in the same position, and then I’ll choose the one I like,” Coco Gauff said. “I did it two years ago. I ended up choosing a racquet that I was already using. I don’t know [it was my one]. It shows that I am happy with where I am.
Fritz played with a very light stick. In his late teens, he decided to gain a little weight, five grams: “Then I had the worst year ever,” he laughs. “I hated it. I went back.
“Who knows what [the problem] possible. If you change the racket, one shot may feel better, and the next shot may feel worse. I’m happy everything is the way it is for me, so I’ve never really been one to tinker with it.
At the end of 2022, after a breakthrough season that ranked among the top 30 for the first time, Paul, currently ranked 14th, switched from Wilson to Yonex VCORE 98. In January, he reached the semi-finals of a Grand Slam and participated in the Australian Open for the first time. “It’s all the noise, not me,” he said with a laugh.
Many people don’t adapt that easily. It often takes time to adjust to the nuances of a new frame and to hit the ball freely under intense pressure. There may even be a period of discomfort.
“Breaking that pattern and doing certain things in a different way disrupts your rhythm,” Tsitsipas said. “It disrupts your flow. It makes you think. Once you start thinking a lot, it becomes a problem because you can’t focus on what’s going on in front of you.
That might be an acceptable trade-off for a player considering long-term growth, but Murray’s pursuit of a Grand Slam title may make him more resistant to major change. Now, he’s changed not only in the middle of the season, but also in what he says may be the final months of his career. It could also be a sign that he wants to find a reason to continue playing.
While many pros say they would consider making changes, few will do so mid-season. Iga Swiatek considered testing a new racket after the 2023 season, but even that was too risky. Tsitsipas said he has made minimal changes to his specifications over the years: “It works relatively well for me.
“I’ll probably be more open to it towards the end of the year. We’ll see. These are the times when you try to try some things and try some changes, but definitely not during the season. That’s something I wouldn’t be too open to trying.
After sticking to the same frame for 20 years, Murray finally made a brave move. It’s an extremely bold and unusual move, but it’s perhaps another glimpse of the drive this transcendent talent still possesses, one who remains passionate about his craft and determined to keep improving. The question is whether he wants to.
