Professionals using Painted Rackets?

[mongoose]

We always hear of tennis professionals using rackets painted to look like a newer model by their manufacturer eg. Andre Agassi has always been using the original Head Radical Tour painted to look like the new Head Ti Radical so that Head company can boost their sales for the latest model.
I wonder if badminton companies do the same! I mean, is Candra Wijaya really using the Muscle Power 100? He could be using the same racket all the while (could probably be an Iso 200!) but Yonex just paints his rackets the same as the latest models they release so that people will buy them.
Anyone thinks this is possible in badminton?

[cooler]

no

[vince poon]

I agree with cooler because if that the case, Yonex would advertised the new racquet model with their sponser player but they don't. Even this day I still not sure what model the top players are using except it a Yonex model. And racquet is too small (narrow) to tell which model is which, so advertising new model on them is pointless.

[Byro-Nenium]

I never knew that Tennis rackets used by the professional players were painted...... hmm......

[cooler]

Yes, i know one other famous tennis player had done that.

[mongoose]

Oh, many of them do! Mark Philippousis uses a racket painted to look like a Dunlop MW 200G, Magnus Norman uses a Wilson PS 6.1 painted like a Hyper PS 5.0 (so does Nicolas Kiefer!), Marat Safin now uses a Head Prestige that is painted to look like the new Intelligence Series racket (Gustavo Kuerten too!).

[OJ]

I don´t think Yonex are painting any rackets. Peter Gade for instance is still playing with the iso slim 10 right? And the model isn´t even manufactured in europe anymore. If Yonex paninted rackts, Gades´ would certanly be the first ones to be repainted.

[Brett]

Tony, that's pretty interesting. Where did you find this information? I subscribe to Tennis magazine and I don't remember seeing anything about this practice in there - is there a racquet sports magazine out there with a better inside scoop?

I guess the racquet didn't help Kuerten today at the Australian Open.

[mongoose]

Hi Brett,
Check out the message boards at www.tennis-warehouse.com. Loads of info there!

[Brett]

Thanks Tony.

[May]

That's ryt.vince poon wrote:
>
> I agree with cooler because if that the case, Yonex
> would advertised the new racquet model with their sponser
> player but they don't. Even this day I still not sure what
> model the top players are using except it a Yonex model. And
> racquet is too small (narrow) to tell which model is which,
> so advertising new model on them is pointless.