Babolat vs Wilson Tennis Racket Comparison

Picking the right tennis racket is usually an emotionally driven decision. You hardly find a quality difference between Babolat Pure Aero and Wilson ProStaff. Different types of players need different types of rackets, but for recreational players, the decision usually depends on what they like in terms of design or brand awareness. We looked at Babolat and Wilson tennis rackets trying to find out which one is better. This is not an exhausting comparative review based on hours of playing with different types of Babolat and Wilson rackets. I think that for beginners the choice is pure emotion. Do I like more Babolat or Wilson? Babolat versus Wilson Tennis Racket Comparison written by me.

For the record: This post contains affiliate links, and we will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on these links.

My Wilson racket choice

WILSON CLASH

Wilson Clash is the latest model from Wilson. Version 1 was introduced in February 2019, and Version 2 in March 2022. Clash offers a unique combination of power, control, and spin for all intermediate and advanced players.

View at Wilson store or Read my Review of Clash

My Babolat racket choice

BABOLAT PURE STRIKE

Babolat Pure Strike offers new sharp control combining the exceptional feel and dynamic control.

View on Amazon

Wilson versus Babolat comparison
[companies, design, product range]

Product Range

Generally, both companies have rackets for all types of players. You can pick either racket more oriented on the spin, control, or power depending on your preferences. It is impossible to say which racket is better or best as it depends on your real needs. I like Wilson Clash [Version 2 is available here] as it responds to all my needs. As a middle-aged lazy moving player who needs an optimal combination of power without effort and maximum control, the Clash is the racket that maximizes my potential.

Babolat

PURE AERO

PURE DRIVE

PURE STRIKE

EVO

Spin

Power

Control

Transition

VIEW BABOLAT PURE AERO TENNIS RACKETS ON AMAZON

VIEW BABOLAT PURE DRIVE TENNIS RACKETS ON AMAZON

VIEW BABOLAT PURE STRIKE TENNIS RACKETS ON AMAZON

VIEW BABOLAT PURE STRIKE TENNIS RACKETS ON AMAZON

Wilson

CLASH

SHIFT

ULTRA

BLADE

BURN

PRO STAFF

Power and Control and Spin

Power and Spin

Power and Spin

Spin and Control

Power

Control

Read our review of WILSON CLASH 100 tennis racket

Read more about WILSON SHIFT tennis racket

Read our review of WILSON ULTRA 100 tennis racket

Read our review of WILSON BLADE 104 tennis racket

Read our review of WILSON BURN 100 Countervail tennis racket

Read our review of WILSON PRO STAFF 97LS tennis racket

SHOP WILSON CLASH v2 at official Wilson store HERE

SHOP WILSON SHIFT at official Wilson store HERE

Shop WILSON ULTRA at official Wilson Shop HERE

Shop WILSON BLADE at official Wilson store HERE

Shop WILSON BURN at official Wilson Store HERE

Shop WILSON PRO STAFF at official Wilson Shop HERE

Companies background

Babolat

Babolat VS S.A. is a French company owned by the family Babolat with headquarters in Lyon, France. Babolat was established in 1875 by Pierre Babolat, who invented natural gut tennis strings. Babolat produces rackets, apparel, shoes, and other equipment for tennis, badminton, and padel. The company is still run by the Babolat family and CEO is Eric Babolat. Babolat is the leader in connected sports technology and in 2015 it introduced the first connected tennis racket.

Wilson

wilson tennis ballsWilson Sporting Goods Company has headquarters in Chicago, IL. It is a fully owned subsidiary of Finish Amer Group Ltd. from 1989. Wilson was established in 1913 as part of the meat producer Ashland Manufacturing Company. Wilson focused on the special use of slaughterhouse byproducts. In 1914 it produced e.g. tennis strings. The name Wilson Sporting Goods Company was adopted after a series of acquisitions and mergers in 1931.

Currently, Wilson family brands consist of Wilson itself, Louisville, DeMarini, Atec, Evoshield, and Luxilon (tennis strings – check our guide on how to choose the best tennis strings). Wilson produces sportswear and equipment for Baseball, Tennis, Golf, Football, Basketball, Soccer, Volleyball, Softball, Badminton, Racquetball, and Squash.

Check the full range of Wilson products at the official Wilson store.

Design

Babolat

The Blue and white combination is characteristic of Babolat tennis rackets. But you can fairly often see also yellow and black color combination, or red and white. Blue and white, or white and black, or blue and black combination is less common but you can still recognize the usual double stripe.

Wilson

We can say that Babolat rackets are nice. But Wilson rackets are just spectacular. The current design with the black frame is stunning. I like the simple but modern look of Wilson rackets. I prefer the full black frame version, but rackets with a colored stripe on the racket head (green, orange, or red) are beautiful too.

In my eyes, the design trophy belongs definitely to Wilson, but I know that this is an absolutely subjective evaluation.

Players

Many recreational players make a decision about tennis rackets due to sympathy for some pro players. To have a racket of the same brand (and even type) as your favorite player makes you feel irrationally fine on the tennis court. Babolat and Wilson both have one trademark player everybody knows. Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Nadal plays with Babolat Pure Aero and Federer with Wilson Pro Staff. But there are many more players using Babolat and Wilson rackets. Check just a few well-known names below or click on the full list of players.

RAFA NADALSTEPHANOS TSITSIPASGARBINE MUGURUZASIMONE HALEP
Racket: BABOLAT Play AeroPro Drive



Buy on Amazon

Dress: Nike

Shoes: Nike Zoom Vapor Cage 4



Buy on Amazon
Racket: WILSON Blade 98 CV



Buy on Amazon

Dress: Adidas

Shoes: Adidas SoleCourt Boost



Buy on Amazon
Racket: BABOLAT Pure Drive



Buy on Amazon

Dress: Adidas

Shoes: Adidas SoleCourt Boost



Buy on Amazon
Racket: WILSON Blade 98 CV



Buy on Amazon

Dress: Nike

Shoes: Nike Air Zoom Vapor X



Buy on Amazon

The full list of players using Babolat rackets

The full list of players using Wilson rackets

Generally, Wilson is the most used racket brand on ATP and WTA tours, and Babolat is the second most used racket brand.

My subjective pick is …

I like the Babolat family’s history of inventing and producing a narrow scale of products for racket sports. I like Babolat for keeping the company in private hands and doing what they have done for the past 150 years. They have my sympathy.

I like Wilson’s plain black design of tennis rackets. It is just simple but beautiful.

I respect Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. They both are synonymous with sportsmanship, great tennis, and humility. But I like Roger a little bit more.

So Wilson slightly prevails over Babolat in general not playing characteristics.

But when it comes to the court I tried a lot of Babolat and Wilson rackets and all of them have their positives and cons. Some of them are for aggressive players, and some of them are for players who play it defensively. For my age and performance (senior, eager but still intermediate player trying to look like a pro but still making too many mistakes) Wilson Clash seems like the top choice. It is the racket that can hide and smooth your shortcomings. The racket offers ultimate control of the ball but still enough power. A full review of Wilson Clash is here. Detailed comparison with Babolat Pure Aero here.

My subjective pick would be: Wilson Clash – you can buy it here

Posted in Babolat, Reviews, Reviews, Tennis Rackets Comparison, Wilson and tagged , , , , .

Tennis Pro Guru

Simon is the leading editor of TennisProGuru.com from 2015. He is an avid tennis player from age of 5, however, he never reached the pro level. Still, he likes playing tennis on different courts, with different rackets, and against different opponents. In his free time, you can find him watching all possible tennis matches he can find on the web or tv. Challenger or Grand Slam? It does not matter, just tennis matters.

He currently plays with:
Racket: Wilson Shift 99 V1
Strings: Babolat RPM Blast
Grip: Head Xtreme Soft
Shoes: Asics Gel Dedicate 7 (for hard outdoor and indoor courts) & Asics Gel-Game 5 Clay (for clay courts),
Balls: Dunlop Fort All Courts and Head Championship
Bag: Axiom Backpack

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