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Reilly Opelka’s Racquet Setup

One of the tallest players on tour, towering at 6’ 11” is Reilly Opelka. The twenty-five year old is one of the top ranked Americans and has been hanging in the top 50 of the ATP rankings for a few years now.

Though he might not be seeded in every tournament, he’s more than a dangerous floater. He can erase break points and coast through service games with his powerful serve and has improved his movement and tactics in the past few years.

His off-court interests like fashion and tennis commentary make him relatable and likable as well!

Let’s take a look at the American giant’s racquet of choice. 

  • Endorsed Racquet: Wilson Pro Staff 95 Pro Labs
  • Actual Racquet: Wilson 6.1 95 16×18 Pro Stock
  • Strings: Luxilon ALU Power 120 at 45 pounds

Pro Staff 6.1 95 

Reilly is officially endorsing the Wilson Pro Labs 6.1 95 racquet, according to Wilson’s website. However, that racquet comes in 18×20 string pattern, and Reilly is clearly using the 16×18 version.

This does afford a bit more power than the dense pattern, but it’s likely just a matter of that’s what he grew up playing with. It’s a great racquet for a big-hitting player like him.

The 6.1/Pro Staff line has always been known for providing excellent control which allows Opelka to hit precise targets on his serve.

The mass and stiffer response in the hoop of the frame allow some extra pop for its headsize while still supplying excellent feel. It’s a classic racquet and oozes command of the ball. 

Florida Tennis Briefs: Opelka at BNP Paribas Showdown, MatchDay, More |  Category - News | | Nature Coast Tennis Foundation
  • Reilly with a BLX Amplifeel 6.1 95 as a junior player

Reilly oddly still plays with the “Tuxedo” paintjob of the pro staff line from a few years ago and has not upgraded to the newer all-black version of his frame like other 6.1 endorsees on tour Daniel Evans and Kyle Edmund.

With his penchant for fashion and style, he may just like that paint more than the blacked-out scheme. It’s almost certainly still the BLX layup under his paint but impossible to know for sure. 

Specs

Reilly’s specs were reported by a professional stringer in 2021 as:

  • Strung mass: 365g
  • Strung balance: 31 cm
  • Strung swingweight: 335
    • These numbers are estimated from unstrung measurements and include overgrip and dampener

This is effectively a stock spec Wilson 6.1 95 with a more headlight balance. The swingweight is lower than the average of some models, but because Wilson’s Pro Room prepares his racquets from a batch of frames each year, they likely pick pieces with a low enough swingweight to get them matched.

He uses a thinner gauge string too which adds less to swingweight than a thicker one. His 4-5/8” grip also has more material than smaller ones which can impact the balance. 

Strings

Reilly used to use different combinations of Luxilon ALU Power. He used ALU Power 125 in the mains with ALU Power Fluoro crosses and at one point used ALU Power Rough in the mains with the same crosses, all at 50 pounds. 

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  • Reilly’s racquet on the stringer at a professional event

There’s a story that he was practicing next to Simona Halep who was trying a thinner gauge of her normal ALU Power string. She hated it so much that she sent her racquet off mid-practice to be restrung with her usual and her coach passed off the reels in her bag to Reilly’s coach.

Reilly has used that string since – ALU Power 120 (formerly ALU Power Feel) – at 45 pounds in his Wilson frames. 

Conclusion

Reilly uses a racquet that we used to be able to buy off the shelf with no customization apart from whatever is done to match his frames. Yes, it’s a demanding racquet, but there isn’t any special sauce he adds.

He gets plenty of control and feel with a little bit of extra pop compared to other frames in its class, and that’s more than enough for somebody with as much inherent power as Opelka. The 6.1 95 is a great fit for Reilly, and I don’t see him changing it any time soon!

If you’re interested in other ATP players’ racquets, I listed all the top 100 players’ racquets in this post.