Maria Sharapova’s Tennis Racquet

I recently got a question about what HEAD tennis racquet Maria Sharapova is using. She is currently endorsing the HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP but what is really underneath the paint?

The HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP shares some of the characteristics with the racquet that Sharapova actually uses, but what is actually underneath the paint job is the HEAD Youtek Radical Pro. The Youtek line of racquets is discontinued from HEAD tennis and what’s currently available is the HEAD Graphene Touch racquets that you can read more about in this post.

So let’s look at the racquets in a comparison – the one she uses the HEAD Youtek Radical Pro and the one she endorses, the HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP. If you’re interested in what racquets other tennis professionals use, check out this list.

First of all, the Youtek line of racquets are more flexible than the Graphene series that followed it. Also, the beam width is thinner (usually means more softer and less powerful) and the racquet is heavier with a closer to even balance which makes for a quite significant change in swing weight. From 338 on the Youtek Radical Pro to 313 on the HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP.

As you can see, besides the head size of 100 sq inches, they’re not close to the same racquet and if you go to the shop expecting to get a similar racquet to Maria Sharapova when you buy the HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP, you will be disappointed.

To add to this, Maria Sharapova has her racquet customized somewhat, I’m not sure to what specs, but I’m sure it takes it even further from the Graphene Touch Instinct MP.

HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP Racquet Specs