What tennis racquet does Roger Federer use? Federer has been with Wilson beginning with the Pro Staff. After the Prostaff Original 85 was discontinued, Federer’s racquet of choice was the flagship Wilson Tour 90. Now Federer uses the Wilson Six.One Tour BLX. This version of the 90 gets Wilson’s new BLX technology, which involves weaving Basalt fibers into the composition for improved vibration resistance. Wilson claims its BLX treatment allows a smoother signal to reach the player after impact for cleaner feedback and the “perfect feel.” Feel is good for the tennis player who plays with control and has a variety of shots in their game. The ability to switch from top spin, to slice, to flat strokes takes feel in your stroke. You can sum this racket up in 3 words: Touch, Precision, and Spin. Like its predecessors, the Wilson BLX Six-One tour 90 tennis racquet offers excellent plow-through. Users in various tests mentioned they were able to generate a lot of pace and penetration with this racquet.

What is plow through? More “plow through” equals to less vibration on your arm. Plow through can actually be expressed numerically as the proportion of a racket’s mass actually involved in striking the tennis ball. Depends on balance, swing weight, mass, and where you tend to catch the ball on the racket face – really the distribution of racket mass as related to the tennis ball. Everything from slice to topspin was zinging. Some users struggled with this line of racquets from Wilson, but this type of racquet may fit players with a two-handed backhand. Having both hands on the racquet worked well with the plow through and one reviewer felt it seemed much more manageable and easier to maneuver. Another reviewer the racquet felt more muted or dampened when compared to the Wilson KFactor and nCode racquets.

Technical Specifications:

• 90 square inches,16 x 19 string pattern, 12.5 ounces (strung)
• Length 27 inches 69 centimeters Head Size 90 square inches 581 square centimeters
• Weight 12.5 ounces 354 grams Balance Point 12.375 inches
  31 centimeters 9pts Head Light Construction 17.5mm Straight Beam Composition Karophite Black / Basalt String Pattern 16 Mains / 19 Crosses

The Six- One tour is clearly a player frame. With its thin flat beam, relatively high swing weight and head light balance this frame screams aggressive all courter. While it is more forgiving than the original Six- One tour retail frame it still demands long fast fluid groundstrokes, efficient service motion, and clean volley execution to get the most from it.

So is there more to the changes in this racket than a paint job? The surprising answer is yes. This may be the most linear racket on the market. There is a perfect progressing of power that is directly linked to how hard you hit a shot. A lot of non player frames that provide extra pop are harder to control on touch shots.

This racket allows you to hit drop shots consistently just a few feet from the net if your technique allows. Roger Federer has added the drop shot to his match play since 2009 and the engineers have tuned the equipment for those players with stroke variety. The spin production makes these shots even more deadly. Federer just never had a chance to play Nadal much in 2009 due to Nadal dealing with knee problems. It appears that the sweet spot is slight larger that the K-factor but this may be the Basalt fibers at work removing harsh unwanted vibration. At the net the maneuverability is very good despite the frames weight. Bad volley technique such as long backswings will be an issue for all but very physically strong players. The nearly perfect feel of this racket allows you to absorb the power of hard hit passing shots and take the offensive. It is great at drop volleys as well.

Serving requires solid technique and requires you to make all of the power. If you are looking for extra heat on your serve don’t expect this frame to give it to you. Accuracy is incredible. It is possible to hit all of the angles and to do so consistently with this frame. But if your technique falters it is not going to be pretty.

From the baseline the spin capabilities and precision allows you to dictate play from the first shot. The ability to hit with lots of topspin, chip, slice and flatten out shots is very nice and quite predictable. This is where the Basalt fibers are most evident. The feel of the ball on the strings is a good as ever but the frame is better damped. One of the few rackets that does not need a string damper. Along with good topspin generation, this is a perfect frame for hitting low biting slice shots as well.

The experts at Tennis Express have suggested the Six-One tour is a bit like taking a Mercedes -MacLaren F1 Car for a spin. If you are highly skilled at tennis, this racket gives to superb feedback on every shot and the things you can accomplish with it are nearly limitless. If not, your best bet in both cases is to sit and pose, at least that way you can look the part.

While this is one of the best Wilson tennis racquet frames on the market, it is tailor made for an advanced player with nearly perfect technique. If you have a tendency to hit the ball a little late but still would like a BLX tour frame, look at the review for the BLX tour 95.

Due to the small head size it is wise to string (especially with poly strings) at the lower end of the tension range as a starting point.

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