Stefanos Tsitsipas addresses mysterious racquet at Indian Wells after rumors involving Carlos Alcaraz's equipment

Stefanos Tsitsipas, who is competing at Indian Wells, recently opened up about his renewed success. He also touched on the rumors involving a racquet used by Carlos Alcaraz.

Tsitsipas has reached the fourth round of the 2025 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells with straight-set victories over Thiago Seyboth Wild and Matteo Berrettini. The Greek is contesting the title after a remarkable campaign in Dubai, where he clinched the title after two failed attempts in the final.

This was also Stefanos Tsitsipas’ first-ever ATP 500 title, having fallen short in each of his 11 previous title clashes in the category. With the win, he ended his 10-month-long title drought and reentered the world’s top 10—a position he was deprived of during his poor run of form.

Speaking about what changed, Stefanos Tsitsipas noted that he was playing with “more freedom.” During his appearance on the Tennis Channel at Indian Wells, he said:

"More freedom. More freedom to not get the sweet spot; just getting the ball on my racquet. I feel like I can just do more – I have more options and that allows me to play more freely; that allows me to get even more creative than before on court."

Interestingly, what stood out during Tsitsipas’ campaign in Dubai was his mysterious racquet. The former World No. 3, who famously uses a green Wilson Blade racquet, competed with oddly painted black racquets—the strings painted in Wilson stencil. Many fans and experts alike speculated that Stefanos Tsitsipas was using Babolat Pure Aero—the racquet owned by Carlos Alcaraz.

A few eagle-eyed members of the tennis community also claimed that Babolat’s engraved logo was visible through the racquet's paint job in behind-the-scenes footage.

The 26-year-old also changed his string pattern from 18/20 to 16/20. Addressing the curious change, he said:

"A lot is going on with my racquet – things that I also cannot disclose yet."

"But it adds definitely to that freedom that I just spoke about. I feel like there’s a notch that I’ve added to my game in terms of speed; in terms of RPMs; in terms of power. There’s just – I don’t know how to describe it – an upgrade to my tennis, which keeps adding as well to my confidence." Stefanos Tsitsipas said.

Tsitsipas isn’t the only player who's experimented with their racquet in recent times. Newly crowned Australian Open champion Madison Keys switched from Wilson to Yonex just weeks before her run in Melbourne, focusing mainly on changing the string pattern.

Meanwhile, a week before Tsitsipas’ triumph in Dubai, Andrey Rublev broke his 9-month-long title drought in Doha. The Russian was said to have altered his racquet’s weight during the campaign. Carlos Alcaraz, too, made a similar change ahead of his Indian Wells title defense.

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Stefanos Tsitsipas on his mysterious racket at Indian Wells: "I can hit shots that I couldn't before"

Stefanos Tsitsipas pictured at the 2025 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells - Image Source: Getty

During the aforementioned conversation, Stefanos Tsitsipas revealed that he’s been able to expand his skill set, thanks to the crucial changes he made to his racquet and string pattern.

"I feel like I can hit shots now that I couldn’t before. I feel like I can return without having to get the ball right in the middle of the racquet," he said.

"So even if I miss my a little, I still get a decent return. Knowing that I can hit harder is definitely a very satisfying feeling and makes me very joyful," Tsitsipas added.

With his victories against Matteo Berrettini and Thiago Seyboth Wild at Indian Wells, Tsitsipas has extended his win streak to seven matches. The two-time Grand Slam finalist, whose all three Masters 1000 trophies have come at the Monte-Carlo Masters (2021, 2022, 2024), is chasing his first hardcourt title in the category during the fortnight.

He faces Holger Rune for a spot in his second quarterfinal at Indian Wells on Tuesday, March 11.