Stan Wawrinka bid farewell to the EFG Swiss Open in Gstaad this week, according to an ATP roundup published by Deadspin. The Swiss veteran, one of only a handful of men to win three different Grand Slam titles, made his final appearance at the clay-court event that has long been part of his home-country calendar. It is the kind of send-off that quietly marks the end of an era in men's tennis.
For most fans this is a sentimental moment. For anyone who plays with - or sells - tennis gear, it is also a practical inflection point worth paying attention to.
Why Wawrinka's retirement matters beyond the nostalgia#
Wawrinka built his entire game around the Wilson Pro Staff frame, one of the most storied rackets in the sport. The Pro Staff line - historically an 85-97 sq in head, relatively heavy, thin-beamed, and demanding - was already a niche choice compared to the bigger, more forgiving frames most club players reach for. Wawrinka made it look viable, even thrilling, partly because his one-handed backhand was the best advertisement any racket manufacturer could ask for.
When a high-profile player retires, two things tend to happen in the pre-owned market. First, there is a short-term sentiment spike: fans who idolised the player go looking for the frame they used, often for the first time. Second, over the following months, supply quietly grows as coaches, hitting partners, and club pros who stockpiled the same model to work alongside their charge gradually move units on. Neither effect is dramatic, but both are real and predictable.
The Pro Staff 97 and its variants have been a fixture of the used tennis market for years precisely because the frame is genuinely good and because Wawrinka kept it visible at the highest level well past the point when many players had switched to newer designs.
What to look for if you want to buy#
If the Wawrinka farewell has you curious about his frame, here is what is worth knowing before you browse:
| Model detail | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| Wilson Pro Staff 97 (315 g unstrung) | Demanding weight; suits intermediate-advanced players who already generate their own pace |
| Head size 97 sq in | Smaller sweetspot than modern endurance frames; rewards clean contact |
| Thin beam (~21 mm) | Low power, high feel - a control-oriented tool, not a game-improver |
| Typical pre-owned condition to check | Grommets, throat area for hairline cracks, grip size (often 4 3/8 or 4 1/2 on tour frames) |
If you find one listed at a fair price, check the string bed too. Tour-spec frames often arrive pre-owned with polyester strings already past their best - budget for a restring before your first hit.
The seller angle: now is a reasonable time to list#
If you have a Pro Staff sitting in a bag you have not touched in two years, Wawrinka's farewell press is a genuine, if modest, tailwind for listing it. Retirement stories drive search traffic. Players who have been on the fence about trying the frame read an article like this one, go looking, and often buy within a week of that first search.
The window is not long - a few weeks at most before the news cycle moves on - but it is real. List yours on EpicRackets while the name is still in the headlines, price it honestly against condition, and include the string details. A buyer who knows what they are getting is a buyer who does not ask for a refund.
For anyone on the other side of that transaction, browsing the EpicRackets tennis listings right now is worth ten minutes of your time. Retirement moments concentrate supply and attention at the same time - which is about as close to ideal buying conditions as the pre-owned market ever gets.
