Wilson Players Prevail in Basel
CHICAGO — Wilson players were front and center in the finals of the 2011 ATP Indoor Basel Tournament in Switzerland yesterday. Roger Federer claimed his fifth Basel title, while rising star Kei Nishikori, a wild card entry, earned the biggest win of his career Saturday, knocking off top-ranked Novak Djokovic 2-6, 7-6(4), 6-0 in the Swiss Indoors Basel semi-finals. The win put Nishikori in the record books as the first Japanese player to defeat a World No. 1.
Nishikori, now ranked 25th in the world, is playing with a new racket Wilson has begun showing to tennis retailers that will ship to market in January 2012. “This is the first time it has been used in a tournament, clearly helping Kei reach a higher level of play,” said Renaud Vallon, tour director for Wilson. “We have seen a consistently high level of play that is producing solid results,” continued Vallon. “Our performance technology is spanning the tennis generations from Roger, who is playing with a racket that provides a classic feel for a precise style, to Kei, who is now using a new model, ideal for his powerful style of play.”
The 21-year old has had a breakthrough fall season, where he not only scored his second Top 10 win (over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga) and made his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final, but he also passed Shuzo Matsuoka as the highest-ranked Japanese player ever.
Federer, a Wilson player since the beginning of his career, uses the Wilson Six.One Tour BLX racket. Federer, who once served as a ball boy at the Swiss Indoor Basel, became the first player to win five titles at his hometown tournament.
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