Stan Wawrinka's Timeless Grind: New Watch and Shanghai Wildcard

The collaboration began in 2023 when Wawrinka met NORQAIN founder Ben Kuffer for what was supposed to be a quick coffee. “We ended up talking for two or three hours,” he said.

“I was super impressed by the quality of the brand, how they built it, and the story behind it. As a Swiss person, I’ve always loved watches. We’re lucky—we have so many great brands. But with NORQAIN, I was surprised by the quality compared with the price. For me, it was amazing. That’s one of the reasons why I wanted to come into the story with him.”

This wasn’t just a signature slapped on a product. Wawrinka was hands-on, pushing for innovation the same way he once pushed through grueling five-setters.

“The bracelet is the first degradé they’ve done,” he explained, pointing to the subtle color gradient. “We even put tennis ball material into the stripe. Everything was pushed to the highest level. It’s the same as being an athlete—you push yourself, your body, to be the better version of yourself. With Ben, it was the same. He always tried to go to the limit with what they could do.”

And yes, it works on court too. “The shock resistance is super high,” Wawrinka said. “They tested it to a higher standard. That was important to me—that I could play with it. I can train, I can compete. It was really important to me to have it on court.”

For a player who has built his legacy on precision and timing, the symbolism of a watch makes perfect sense.

When deciding where to launch the watch, there was really only one option. “We had a few ideas, but when New York came up, it made the most sense,” Wawrinka said. “I won here in 2016, and the city is so international—people are attracted to it. Like you say, it feels like a little circle. Of course, I keep playing, but I’m closer to the end. Soon it’s going to be the end of the first chapter of my life.”

There was no sadness in his tone—just honesty. At 40 years old, Wawrinka knows he has already left a mark on the game: three Slams, a Davis Cup title, Olympic gold in doubles, and the respect of peers who understood how tough it was to beat him on the biggest stages.

When I asked him about timing—a natural link between tennis and timepieces—he didn’t hesitate. “The two best timing for me were Novak and Roger,” he said. “Such amazing timing. Every time they were playing, everything was clean, the right moment. At the top of their careers, it was amazing just to watch them play.”

And to play against them? “It was really difficult,” he admitted with a laugh. “But also amazing. As an athlete, you like the challenge—even if you lose. Because they’re so good, they force you to keep pushing yourself. I beat them a few times, not many, but those matches were always the biggest challenge. You go out of the court, even if you lose, and you know you’ve been part of history.”

That word again: pushing. It’s the thread that runs through his career, his watch design, and even his late-stage willingness to compete on the ATP Challenger Tour.

For a player whose prime intersected with the Big Three, Wawrinka also relishes the chance to measure himself against the next wave. “The last time I had that feeling was in 2019 at the Australian Open, playing Jannik Sinner,” he recalled. “He was already top 100, already so good for such a young age. You could clearly see he would end up super good. I’ve been lucky to play against different generations—it’s always a great experience.”

Few players can say they’ve shared the court with Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic in their primes and crossed paths with Alcaraz and Sinner before they became household names. Wawrinka can. That’s the benefit of staying in the grind long after some of his contemporaries have stepped away.

That grind isn’t just symbolic. Shortly after Wawrinka presented his NORQAIN collaboration in New York, news broke that he’d been awarded a wildcard into the 2025 Shanghai Masters. It’s one of the premier events on tour, and the invitation is a nod to his enduring legacy as well as his ongoing competitiveness.

“I keep playing,” he said, “but of course I’m closer to the end. I’m just happy I can still compete, still enjoy it, still be part of the sport.”

That joy is evident. Whether it’s going deep in Challenger level tournaments or earning opportunities like Shanghai, Wawrinka is reminding the tennis world that passion doesn’t fade even if the ranking slips.

That’s why his story matters now as much as it did in 2016. Wawrinka doesn’t need to prove anything. His place in the record books is secure. But when he walks onto a court—be it in Saint-Tropez, Umag, or Shanghai—there’s a collective recognition: this is a three-time Slam champion who made his mark on one of the sport’s most competitive eras and is still competing with a smile.

“I’m proud of this watch, proud of the process, and happy to still be out here playing,” he told me as we wrapped up. “That’s what matters.”

In tennis, there are some players who burn bright and fade fast, and there are players who linger long after the spotlight has shifted. Wawrinka is different. His career—like the watch he just designed—is built to last.

Time, as it turns out, is still very much on his side.