Nick Kyrgios. He’s the closest thing to the current bad boy of tennis, heir apparent to John McEnroe’s often dramatic displays of emotion and loss of temper. As explosive as he can be, his tennis is even more so. Sporting a booming serve, heavy forehand, steady backhand, and delicate touch, he’s a threat on any surface (even his much-hated clay).
His ability as a tactician is impressive, and he’s spent nearly all his career without a coach. A Wimbledon finalist with a doubles grand slam title to his name from the 2022 Australian Open, Kyrgios’ potential to achieve is evident.
He’s easy to love because of his incredible skill and fiery personality. He also runs a foundation and has often taken time to hit balls with young fans and engage fans on social media. He knows how to work a crowd, sometimes to a fault.
Some find him easy to hate because of his temper and conduct on court. Wherever you land on that spectrum, his skill is not up for debate, and the entertainment value is sky high.
Let’s talk about his equipment.
Here’s Nick Kyrgios’ current racquet setup:
- Endorsed Racquet: Yonex Ezone 98 2022
- Actual Racquet: Yonex Ezone Xi 98
- Strings: Yonex Poly Tour Pro 120 – Softer, pro exclusive version – at approx. 55 pounds.
What Racquet Does Kyrgios Use?
Like many pros, Nick has not switched racquets since he came on the tour. He began using the Yonex Ezone Xi 98 as a junior player and has continued using it under various Ezone paintjobs since.
Nick has said on Twitter in response to a fan question that his racquet weighed 325g. We can assume this is the unstrung mass. He’s also said that he doesn’t add weight to his racquet because he’s strong enough as an adult to not need it.
As seen when regripping his racquet – on court or not – Nick has chosen a leather grip over a synthetic one.
Assuming Nick is being truthful about not adding any weight to his sticks, we can reasonably assume that he is using a stock Ezone Xi 98 at 310g, removing the 10g Yonex stock grip, adding the ~20g leather grip, slapping an overgrip (5g) on and heading to the courts.
Specs
His specs estimate out to 343g strung, 31.8cm balance, and 323 swingweight. That’s quite a light racquet for a professional player, especially when it comes to swingweight.
Nick’s wingspan gives him great leverage on his shots, and a lighter swingweight complements his whippy forehand quite well.
So, though he may benefit from a heftier stick his racquet is already quite powerful, and his biomechanics don’t necessitate extra power from his frame.
Strings
Nick strings his racquet with Yonex Poly Tour Pro 120 at around 55 pounds. It’s reported that his version of Poly Tour Pro is a softer, pro player exclusive version not offered at retail.
He previously played Luxilon ALU Power Fluoro before switching to the Yonex string.
Does He Really Not Add Weight?
Because Nick is no stranger to shattering racquets on the court, we’ve been able to see plenty of up-close photos of his frames. Recently, after his loss in the quarterfinals of the 2022 US Open to Karen Khachanov, Nick busted two racquets.
We were able to see some lead tape under his bumper guard on these frames. Whether this is applied in order to match target specs from the Yonex factory on a light frame or actually to increase swingweight, we won’t know until somebody can get their hands on one of his frames and measure the swingweight.
Nick may not even know about it if it’s applied by the factory, as he doesn’t seem all that meticulous about his gear.
How Does His Racquet Fit His Game?
As always, this is a question that can go both ways: Does Nick’s game reflect his racquet, or does his racquet fit his game? I would lean toward saying that both of these statements are true.
Assuming his swingweight is not astronomically higher than 323, his rapid acceleration, classy touch, and general ability to his any shot are only helped by his maneuverable yet heavy-enough racquet. Likewise, a headlight racquet with some mass feels like a scalpel in the right hands.
Combine the surgical specs with a powerful hoop, and it’s a modern players racquet through and through – perfect for Nick, though I’m sure he’d play well with just about anything.
If you’re interested in other ATP players’ racquets, I listed all the top 100 players’ racquets in this post.