By Cheryl Jones and Mark Winters
It is Australian Open time. The first of the 2017 Grand Slam tournaments is roiling and broiling. But, it is Melbourne…so what else is new?
The tennis season is off to a colorful beginning as tennis fans anxiously watch the way the “names” are playing. The major focus is on the men who are returning from medical sabbaticals. Roger Federer is back, and so is Rafael Nadal. Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons, Victoria Azarenka, Petra Kvitova and Maria Sharapova are not. But, there is, as always, more going on.
Watching players who could make an impact during the year with significant results on the men and women’s tours is part of Melbourne’s unveiling. Catching a glimpse of the new fashions sported by the competitors is another aspect, (though one that is often overlooked), of the Australian Open. In the past, women have usually been the focal point of the fashion frenzy found at the Grand Slam tournaments. Now, both women and men sport innovative colors and combinations for their sponsoring company’s entry in the showy world of the latest colors and design.
Each of the four majors gives “Tennis Fashionistas” a two-week period to see what the clothing and shoe manufactures are showcasing. It is a real opportunity, with the players serving as models, to call attention to just introduced products by apparel giants such as adidas, ASICS, Nike, Under Armor and several others. Though different company logos adorn the blouses, shirts, shorts and so on, the combination of patterns and hues, are often similar.
Last year at Roland Garros, adidas opened eyes and earned approval and some vocal chagrin with the “Zebra Look.” Many thought it was a fashion
catastrophe, that is similar to what used to be the norm in Tijuana, (Mexico), with burros painted white with stripes, so that the animal resembled a zebra. Others believed it was a bold move like the faded denim look pioneered by Andre Agassi. The look, in time, carried over to both men and women’s clothing.
Melbourne has premiered Federer sporting the Nike version of the “Zebra”. The swoosh look is much more ordered and appears more like a geometry lesson that’s been turned into a crazy quilt. The women of Nike follow the company line in similar dresses and blouse and skirt combinations. Actually, it isn’t reminiscent of matching bowling shirts but more like updated costumes for Dancing With The Stars.
Serena Williams, who could be the Naomi Campbell of tennis fashion, is wearing a “Subtle Zebra” with a less glaring black and white blouse and stair-step length skirt that rises up on left side, almost like a sarong. Some of the other women who wear Nike apparel are in the Vintage Denim Agassi Skirt.
Angelique Kerber, who was the answer to “Who was the adidas pastel Tennis Player of 2016?” was trotting about the courts in much more subtle combinations (until she crashed out of Melbourne). Actually, this year there are shades of Orange that are reminiscent of the Day-Glo era of days gone by. There are stunning examples of the deep-sea blue being worn in Melbourne. The standard red, white and blues are still scattered here and there on the courts. In fact, some of the adidas’ women players are sporting a bandeau top with a puffy, swirly princess style that releases a skirt constructed of various colors that are reminiscent of car lot advertising banners swaying in the wind.
Not every player has a clothing/shoe contract, but that doesn’t always mean they are lacking in their ability to have design magic. Before hooking up with Under Armor, Bethanie Mattek-Sands swore she shopped for her clothing in thrift stores. Actually, it was quite believable after watching her court performances. Now, her court wear still includes those iconic knee-high stockings that she explains are compression hosiery for circulation issues.
There is little deviation in the styles of each of the clothing manufacturers. If the “in” color is tangerine, even the men’s shorts are glowing shades of orange. If it’s pink – well, can we remember Rafael Nadal’s shorts?
It’s no wonder that the search for something unique can be next too fruitless. Obviously the top players have contracts with clothing manufacturers. They are bound by those contracts to model their sponsor’s fashions. Vania King, the talented Wimbledon and US Open doubles winner with Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan, was ranked No. 349 at the beginning of last year’s Australian Open because she had been injured and was occupied with rehab. Moving forward with her quest to be back in the game in 2017, after recovering from a variety of issues, she is now ranked No. 80. In Melbourne, she is wearing a line of clothing designed by her older sister, Mindy, who knows the game very well. Mindy and her twin, Ivana, played college tennis. They come from a family of tennis players.
The line is called MINX, and Mindy King explained, “MINX is actually a play on my name. My family calls me ‘Min’ and when I started dating the man who is now my husband, Will, my online username was Minx so MINX was born. The logo is a three-pointed crown that ties to our last name King. Each crown point stands for one of the three King sisters.”
She said of the year-old line, “It’s been great that people like the product once they see it, but it’s hard to compete with adidas, Nike and the other big companies without big bucks behind it. So I am just focusing on homegrown awareness (in Long Beach, California) of the brand and once we get that we’ll start to expand to different types of products that include menswear, etc.” Others may envy the simple but beautiful lines of MINX, but the colors (fuchsia and rich shades of blue) are what stand out – vibrant and chic.
It’s summer in Australia. Europe and North America will have to wait for a bit before the season changes. In the meantime, “Fashionistas” following the color and cut showings in Melbourne can plan some shopping before looking forward to the next major tennis style presentation that will take place in Paris at Roland Garros.
