Lately, I’ve been writing a lot about the place of watches in the football realm. I was curious to find out what watches the big football players wear. Now, my focus goes to tennis, as the “relationship” between watches and this iconic sport seems to be no less strong. In many instances, people get themselves watches simply because their football, tennis, or basketball idol wears them. They want to resonate with the person they love and value for his sports achievements.
At least, this is my case. Apart from my respect and love for the Patek Philippe brand, I got myself an Audemars Piguet replica. And guess the reason. It’s not only because the watch indeed is a marvel, but because it’s a watch of choice for Elon Musk. Besides his controversial personality, I appreciate his ambition in making impossible things possible. And my Audemars Piguet imitation is like a tribute to his contribution to space missions and other crazy projects he runs.
Back to our muttons, if you are a tennis admirer, you possibly find this piece of information interesting for you. Matter-of-factly, the relationship between the watch industry and tennis dates back to 1978. To be honest, I didn’t have any idea that the watch industry supports tennis to such a huge extent. But, let’s take it slowly.
A little bit of background
“Rolex is everywhere” doesn’t sound surprising to you, for sure. So, it won’t surprise you much knowing that Rolex was the first watchmaking brand to support this beautiful sport. In 1978, this brand became the official timekeeper of the most eminent tennis tournament in the world: Wimbledon. What connected these “partners” together was the embracement of high precision and immaculate time-keeping. Rolex decided to support this sport because there is so much in common in tennis with Rolex basic principles: grace, perfect execution of tasks, and confidence.
So, I dare to say that, on the whole, tennis and watches form a harmonious match. If you look closer at the development of both vectors, you will discover that both the watch industry and the tennis sport have had a similar evolution. Both of them continuously evolve in performances and attention from the public. Both of them benefit from high attention from the press, and both of them mutually support each other in advertising campaigns. Not in vain the relationship between the tennis and watch industry lasts for more than four decades and continues to flourish every year.
What watches do tennis players choose?
Just like in football, there are remarkable figures in tennis that all tennis enthusiasts love and support. More than that, there is such a term in tennis known as “the Big Four”. This term refers to the 4 most epic figures in this sport that made history throughout their career on the tennis ground. It’s about the following players: Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, and Rafael Nadal. I bet you know much more about them than I do if you are a seasoned fan of tennis. Either way, I tried to find out what watches they prefer and which are their horological tastes. If you feel like resonating with these and other players I’m going to mention here, feel free to consider any of their watches’ imitations, just to be on the same page with your tennis hero.
Roger Federer opts for Rolex
Obviously, it must have been a Rolex for the iconic tennis pro. Federer has been proudly wearing several Rolex models in various press appearances during his career. Matter-of-factly, the partnership between the big brand and the big tennis player is considered the longest one between a tennis representative and a watchmaking brand. Either way, the matching is as perfect as it could ever be: a watchmaking master has partnered with a tennis master.
Rolex Oyster Perpetual Datejust II is the first Rolex timepiece noticed on the big player’s wrist. Sometime later, the press spotted an Everose Daydate with a black dial and diamonds instead of hour markers. He was wearing this model while celebrating one of his wins.
The third Rolex on his wrist was a GMT Master II when he got the silver medal for his performance during the Summer Olympics. He has actually been spotted with the same Batman during the Australian Open some years later after the Olympics.
On top of his Rolex collection is his 1981 Daytona ref 6263. That’s probably his most valuable timepiece and not because of the price tag, but because it was a gift from his beloved wife to celebrate his 30 years.
Stan Wawrinka opts for Audemars Piguet
The partnership between Wawrinka and the big brand has lasted for almost 10 years. The collection of choice of this iconic player is the bold and expressive Audemars Piguet Royal Oak. When saying “collection” I actually refer to the fact that the player has been seen wearing different variations from the line. One of them was a Ref. 26470ST. Great taste, Stan!
Novak Djokovic opts for Seiko
Matter-of-factly, Djokovic also manifests a special appreciation for Audemars Piguet’s watchmaking brand, as he has not once worn it during press conferences. Still, his relationship with Seiko became stronger in 2014, when they both partnered to create the Limited edition Seiko Astronomical SSE143 model. This timepiece revolves around the black motif and a ceramic bezel, all sporty and imposing. In the watch’s design, there can be noticed tennis motifs. For instance, the yellow highlights from the watch suggest the four cities that host the Grand Slam tennis tournaments. On the whole, the Seiko model on Djokovic’s wrist is highly functional and utilitarian. The watch adjusts automatically to any time zone on the Earth due to the GPS networks and solar power system.
In contrast, if it’s about formal surroundings, Djokovic opts for a more elegant Seiko model. It’s about a unique Kinetic Perpetual caliber timepiece with a spectacular design. I refer to the premier Novak Djokovic Special Edition timepiece that the big player designed along with the remarkable watchmaking brand.
Andy Murray opts for Rado
For many tennis enthusiasts, Andy Murray is the idol of the game. Rado watchmaking brand has been sharing this belief since 2012, appreciating his distinctive playing technique and spectacularly intelligent tactics. More than that, Rado has always believed that Andy Murray like no other can represent the watch brand because he illustrates the same ambition for perfectionism as the brand does. Without further ado, Any array has become the Rado ambassador.
One of the star’s watches is no other than a Rado D-star 200 I stainless steel case with a two-tone ceramic bezel. Running on a Vqljoux caliber 7753, this chronograph is water-resistant for up to 200 meters. It’s not a diver watch, but it was initially planned to be a diver. While many of the design elements changed until the watch concept was finished, the water resistance profile remained unchanged.
Another remarkable time-keeping piece from the Murray collection is the Rado Hyperchrome self-winding chronograph. The watch is as phenomenal as the player is. Murray has always been a master on the tennis ground. But once his partnership with Rado has been officially announced, his achievements have been recorded at even higher levels. To prove that, know that Murray was the first British player to win the Wimbledon tournament since 1936. And that happened right after the partnership announcement. Rado seems to bring him good luck.
Rafael Nadal opts for Richard Mille
To be honest, I can’t say much about tennis. But I know a thing or two about its most fabulous players and Rafael Nadal is the one I resonate the most with. Apart from being one of the most ranked players on the field, he also runs a tennis academy in Spain, the country where he grew up. What I most appreciate in this player is his focus and concentration. But, let’s talk about watches now!
Unlike Roger Federer and his partnership with Rolex, Rafael Nadal is loyal to another Swiss watchmaking company- Richard Mille. I don’t know if you feel the connection and chemistry between Naval and Richard Mille watches the way I do. Naval is all like a rocket when he is performing on the tennis ground. All his movements and steps are full of precision and tactics. And that’s exactly how I see Richard Mille watches.
The Nadal watch collection comprises several Richard Mille models. RM27-02, RM27-03 (which, by the way, was adapted specifically to meet Nadal’s needs), and RM27-04 are the most iconic of them. And the scarcest to the market, by the way, as all of them have been released in a pretty limited number.
Either way, every one of these watches contours perfectly the player’s dominating and “win or die trying” personality.
Bottom line
Beg your pardon if I omitted any of your favorite tennis players. You can leave below the name of your beloved tennis player and we can discuss his watch preferences in the comments. There is one thing I realized when researching information for this post. Watchmaking brands don’t only look for high-rated figures to promote their watches. They want those figures to resonate with their brand philosophy. By me, the above-mentioned personalities illustrate perfectly the pillars and concepts of the brands that choose them. And that’s the power of marketing.
In another train of ideas, I’m happy to discover that the watchmaking industry extends over such eminent sports as tennis. And that’s great seeing how it supports bright minds like Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal. Now you know that your favorite watchmaking brand is a loyal partner of a masterful and beautiful sport like tennis. That’s another reason to get yourself a replica watch from it.