Inside story on how Roger Federer and Serena Williams picked their rackets
It’s not often you get to learn about the trade secrets of the world’s biggest sporting icons, but we got a glimpse into the world of Serena Williams and Roger Federer on the Served with Andy Roddick podcast.
Tennis fans around the world are still fascinated by the legacy of Williams and Federer, even though the legends who won a remarkable 43 Grand Slam titles between them are now among the ranks of former players.
We all saw the end result of the preparations of Williams and Federer, but the preparation that went into their brilliance on court was meticulous and we got a glimpse of that from Ron Rocchi, Wilson’s Racket Innovation Manager.
Former world No 1 Roddick asked all the right questions as he gleamed details on how the two icons worked with him to find the perfect racket, with Williams taking a very different approach to Federer.
Rocchi used to spend a day with Williams at her home in Florida in the first week of December as they went through a range of Wilson rackets, with her instructions always clear.
“She said to me if you give me a racket with all the power in the world I will learn to control it,” said Rocchi of Williams.
“It floored me because I had never heard that before. It was true because I would walk her up the power scale and she as an athlete could adapt.
“Looking at how she played the game that power was such an integral part of how she played, her power had to be big, she had to start with that big power game.
“I did put a traditional, really thin-beamed, low power racket in her hand and in about seven minutes she adapted to it
“She didn’t miss a ball for about half an hour but she hated it. She was like I can’t hit that opening before my opponent gets there, it’s just the ball isn’t going. I was like yeah but you didn’t miss a ball for 30 minutes. She was like it’s not the one for me.
“Serena could always feel the smallest differences in rackets. If she needed more help on control, she would switch rackets and that is not normal for a lot of players.”
Federer’s approach had a little more of a long-term vision, as he was always looking for a new racket he would use at a future date in his career.
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“What struck me with Roger was he was always thinking way ahead,” said Rocchi. “He wasn’t looking for the racket he would play with next year. He was always looking two or three years ahead.
“Every time he switched, that process started to two before he switched.
“Working with Roger, he was very sensitive to his equipment, but he wanted to understand the ‘why’, but just what the result was.
“He didn’t need to go into the technology of a racket, but just wanted to feel it.”
Rocchi went on to suggest a trend in the modern game is seeing players move to smaller grip sizes, with the responsiveness of modern string and racket technology giving players more scope to try other variations in the frames they are using.
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