I love tennis, but the Australian Open is by far the hardest Grand-Slam to get into. Last night, Roger Federer played James Blake at 3:30 AM Eastern US time. That's an impossible time to watch a match! I look forward to seeing it, but it just isn't as much fun when I already know who won.
Last night I was able to catch a live day match (well, daytime in the Outback), between Anna Ivanovic and Venus Williams. It wasn't a great match. They both started out pretty lackluster. Errors and double faults were high. I think Ivanovic only had two aces by the end of the match.
Now I respect the fact that this is a sport, and we should care about their skill and not their clothes, but pro tennis is a game about individuals, and unfortunately that means we pick our favorites based not just on talent, but on external things like style and personality and looks. Hey if we based these things completely on skill, then Jelena Jankovic would have just as many multi-million dollar endorsement deals as Maria Sharapova.
So anyways, what I wanted to talk about were their OUTFITS.
Venus is looking great, even if she isn't necessarily playing that way. She has obviously decided to take her tennis game seriously, dressing for movement and eschewing the big uncomfortable jewelry. Last night she wore a very cute old-school tennis set, with a multi-colored polo shirt, adorable white tennis skirt and matching visor. Classic! Even the cut on the shirt panel inserts was flattering.
Since last year, Venus has been looking fitter too. The difference in size between her and Serena is the most telling. Serena is fat and sluggish, and has been acting out on the court, getting frustrated when she loses, talking trash, and being a poor sport in general. Venus has been classy all the way. I'm worried that she is so skinny, but she is extremely tall, and that probably makes her look tinier. I wish I was 6'1". I could use some
illusion.
The only concern I have is that those puffy capped sleeves are looking a little Ren-Faire. Maybe someone should offer her some meat on a stick.
Venus' opponent last night was Anna
Ivanovic, an up-and-coming Serbian with a huge forehand. The baseline battle that was expected never really materialized, although like most tennis matches, the effort level did rise as the match went on. I like Ivanovic. She's fun to watch with her big groundstrokes and power game, and she does a lot of interviews and is polite to the press and fans. Plus, her mom's name is Dragana. How bad-ass is that?
Ivanovic is sponsored by Adidas, and imho Adidas totally failed her last night. I HATE this outfit!
How do you take one beautiful, fit tennis player, and make her look flat-chested, broad-shouldered like a linebacker and chubby to boot? And also make her look like half her lunch ended up on her shirt? Good going guys!
What the hell are those bizarre panels on her chest? They serve no purpose and definitely aren't keeping the headlights off or anything! What is with the weird poofy skirt hem? I hope the bubble skirt trend gets run over by a bus. That yellow insert in the center ends up looking like the remnants of a mustard covered hot dog. the entire thing is too thin and makes everything look like a flaw. It didn't really stand up to sweat either, making it a particularly poor choice on a day when the court temperature was almost 110 degrees.
Adidas, you used to be cool. What happened man? I don't want to have to abandon you for Umbro. lol soccer shorts :)
I also picked up this Threadless select shirt "Diodes are a girl's best friend". I've never payed the $25 bones for a "select" T before. I wonder if they print on different t-shirt stock.
