Maria Sharapova is one of the most popular tennis players in the world and even today, people still want to know what racket did she use.
She has won numerous tournaments and is considered to be one of the best players in the game.
But what makes her so successful? Many people attribute her success to her powerful swings and her aggressive playing style.
Okay, but we are here for the racket – so what about it? and what type of racket does Maria Sharapova use?
In this blog post, we will take a look at Maria Sharapova’s racket and discuss some of the benefits that it provides.
Who is Maria Sharapova?
I guess you already know who she is – right?
But before I will talk about her racket, it’s still good to remember how great a tennis player she was before she retired on February 2020 – I promise I will make it short:
Maria is a former world No. 1 tennis player that was born in Nyagan, Russian SFSR, the Soviet Union on 19 April 1987.
She turned pro in 2001 and stayed No. 1 in the WTA for 21 weeks.
During her amazing career, she won 36 WTA singles titles, including five Grand Slam singles titles.
She was also the runner-up at the 2007 French Open and the 2008 Australian Open.
On top of that, she won the 2006 WTA Tour Championships and was a three-time runner-up at Wimbledon (2004, 2005, 2014).
Not to m38 million dollar silver medal in singles at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
Phew… that was a lot, ah?
But as you can see, Maria Sharapova is one of the most successful tennis players of all time and has achieved a great deal in her career.
Her prize money totaled more than 38 million dollars and she has endorsement deals with some of the biggest companies in the world, such as Nike, Porsche, and TAG Heuer.
So yeah – Maria was pretty darn good at tennis 🙂
And let’s not forget she is also famous for her grunt. Just saying!
What racket did Maria Sharapova use?
Well, that’s a tricky question with a long answer. Maria’s career was more almost 20 years, and she changed many rackets during that time.
I was talking with my friends from the court the other day about her rackets, to check what people think she used:
And it was surprising to learn that 50% of the people think she played with Prince rackets, while the other says it was Head tennis rackets.
But who’s right? is it Prince or Head? The answer is that they are both right!
Sharapova used Prince rackets in the first half of her career and Head rackets in her second half.
Maria’s Prince rackets
Her long “romance” with Prince rackets started around 2003, when she started playing with the Prince Triple Threat Hornet for several matches, until the US Open.
After being so successful and famous, Prince gave her a special racket for her needs that was designed especially for her – The Prince Shark OS.
Several years later, she changed again to Prince O3 White Racket in 2006 and 2 years later she could be seen playing with the Prince O3 Speedport Black.
Read here my best prince tennis racket suggestions.
Maria’s Head rackets
In 2011, she got a better offer from Head and started to endorse their HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP tennis racket until her retirement.
So to sum up, her best-known racket that she use (and her last) was the HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP racket.
But wait – did you think I finish? no – Maria was full of surprises!
Because as I said, she endorsed this racket, but her real racket was the HEAD Youtek Radical Pro racket!
Why did she endorse a different racket than the one she used?
It happens a lot in the tennis world and it’s not the first time that a player endorses a racket that he doesn’t use-
Many players still doing it today and the main reason for the comfort of the player:
When a pro player signed an endorsement deal with a racket company, he usually plays and tests their racket for some time to get used to it and make sure it meets his needs.
But sometimes, the player just can’t get comfortable with the new racket and goes back to using the brand’s older rackets.
It’s not that he doesn’t like the new racket or the company, it’s just that he is more comfortable with the old one.
So what’s the brand is doing in that case? very simple: they repaint the player’s old racket to look like the new one and he continues to play with it while promoting the new at he doesn’t use.
It’s a win-win situation: The player is happy because he plays with a racket that he is comfortable with and the company is happy because their new racket is being promoted by one of the best players in the world and they can actually “sells” it for the public.
Pretty sneaky, huh?
What are the differences between the HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP and the HEAD Youtek Radical Pro racket?
Well, there are several differences between those two rackets, and for neatly, if not the similar head size, all the rest is completely different.
The Youtek is much more flexible than the Graphene Touch racket, it has a thinner beam width and it’s even much heavier.
It’s funny by are different – I used that player-endorsing racket that at least has some similarities to their original rackets, but in this case, it’s just two completely different rackets.
What are the HEAD Graphene Touch Instinct MP racket specifications?
The racket length is 27 in, the strung weight is 314.68 kg, the balance is 33.02 cm, the swing weight is 313 and the stiffness is 69.
The racket has a head size of 100 sq in, a beam width of 23 mm / 26 mm / 23 mm, and it is made of graphene touch/graphite.
The power level of the racket is low-medium, the stroke style is medium-full and the swing speed is medium-fin blues in blue color with a Head Hydrosorb pro grip type.
The string pattern of the racket is 16 mains / 19 crosses with the main skip of eight and a half inches.
The string tension of the racket is between 48 to 57 pounds.
What are the HEAD Youtek Radical Pro racket specifications?
The head size is 100 sq in, the length is 27 inches, and the strung weight is 11.6 oz.
The racket has a beam width of 21.5 mm and it’s made with graphite/D30 material.
The power level of the racket is low, the tension is between 52 to 62 pounds and the string pattern is 16 mains / 19 crosses.
The racket comes in Orange/Silver color.
Can I buy Maria Sharapova’s tennis rackets?
With a deep search online you can still find them – but why would you want to?
If you are a beginner player, it’s better to start with an easier racket and work your way up, and if you are an advanced player – there are much better options out there that will fit your playing style and needs.
Head is a very good brand and they have a much more updated line of rackets that are suitable for all levels and playing styles.
So make sure to visit my best Head tennis racket’s honest review to help you find the one you need.
Or check my guides about tennis rackets by level or by need.
In conclusion
There you have it, everything you need to know about Maria Sharapova’s racket and what racket did she use in her matches.
I hope you enjoyed reading this blog post and if you have any questions – make sure to leave a comment below and I will answer as soon as possible.
If you want to know more about rackets that other players are using, check my tennis rackets by players page.
Bye for now and see you soon in my next blog post! 😉
