Updated 13th March 2025
Brandon Nakashima, an American player with a career high rank of 33 (archived in March 2025), and one ATP title, but what is Nakashima’s racquet and gear?
Brandon Nakashima’s tennis racquet
Brandon Nakashima switched from his Babolat Pure Strike to a Yonex Ezone 98 in 2023. But what is Brandon Nakashima’s racquet now?
2023 was not quite Brandon’s year. After reaching a career-high ranking of #43 in 2022, he struggled in 2023, dropping to #134 in the ATP Rankings. His 13-20 win-loss-record wasn’t particularly inspiring for a Next Gen Finals winner.
Is it the racquet? No, we cannot really blame the racquet for the results. However, making a racquet switch is a big deal. And it might feel great for the player during the first two weeks, but then some bad results might creep in and then the doubts start. It is more of a mental thing than what the racquet brings to each stroke. And as a player you do need to build a connection to your new racquet the way you did with the old one. This takes time.
Testing new racquets
Nakashima has been testing the Yonex VCORE 98 and the Percept 97 (not sure which model). The Percept is more in the line of his old Pure Strike, although the Pure Strike is stiffer. The VCORE 98 is more spin-racquet and will give him a higher launch angle and more spin potential. UPDATE 2025: He is committed to playing with the Yonex VCORE 98. We are unsure if he is still using Babolat RPM Blast as his string setup, though.
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Bio and Career
Brandon Nakashima was born on 3rd August 2001, in San Diego, California. “B-Nak” which is his nickname, started playing tennis early with his family members. His younger brother, Bryce, is also a pro tennis player, and the pair teamed up in doubles at the 2024 Atlanta Open.
He enrolled at the University of Virginia at 17, earning the 2019 ACC Freshman of the Year award with a 17–5 singles record before turning pro.
Nakashima’s career highlights include winning his first ATP title at the 2022 San Diego Open, defeating Marcos Giron in the final, a significant moment in his hometown. That same year, he claimed the Next Generation ATP Finals title, going undefeated against top under-21 players, including Jack Draper and Jiri Lehecka, becoming the first American to win the event.
His Grand Slam performances have been strong, reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon in 2022 and the US Open in 2024, where he upset players like Holger Rune and Lorenzo Musetti before falling to Alexander Zverev. As of early 2025, he has claimed seven top-20 wins, including victories over Holger Rune, Andrey Rublev and Taylor Fritz.
Statistically, Nakashima has won two career titles, one at the ATP level and one Challenger level title (2024 Tenerife Challenger), and earned around $5 million in prize money. His 2024 season was a breakout, with over 60 wins, an important comeback after an injury-plagued 2023 that saw him drop out of the top 100. He reached six ATP semifinals, including Acapulco in 2025, where he again defeated Rune.
Currently, Nakashima has achieved a career-high singles ranking of no 33, and a career-high doubles ranking of no 240.
Stats and Info
- Plays right-handed with two-handed backhand
- Favourite shot: backhand
- Favourite surface: hard-court
- Tennis idol: Roger Federer
Social Media
Fans can follow Brandon Nakashima on his Instagram profile @brandon_nakashima where is has around 41K followers.
I knew I wasn’t going crazy when I remembered him with an EZONE last season. Just saw him put up a battle against Tabilo and noticed the racquet switch. He seemed to be finding pace and precision with the VCORE today. Hope he finds his best results with the switch soon.