(See also: pickleball.) Seizing the opportunity, workout and athleisure brands big and small are now giving us the latest iteration of the tennis dress - a best-of-both-worlds version, marrying the Evert-Tinling level of style with Nike-caliber comfort and technology. The United States Tennis Association estimated in January of this year that tennis - a sport that inherently requires more than six feet of social distancing between opponents - has grown by 33 percent since 2020, and by over 1 million players from 2022. So yes, by the early aughts, these dresses were refreshingly lightweight and moisture-wicking but also not anything one would think to wear beyond the baseline. Players on and off the pro circuit were usually limited to uniform scoop-neck designs by the major sport brands like Nike and Adidas. And even then, Williams “pushed the envelope and went outside the norm” with her tennis attire, says Traci Green, head coach for Harvard’s women’s tennis, making Williams the exception rather than the rule. Materials got more innovative over the subsequent decades - even the classic Lacoste polo dress became more breathable - but tennis fashion didn’t really feel exciting again until Serena Williams took over the scene in statement pieces like the sheer black Nike dress she paired with high black Nike Shox boots for the 2004 U.S. Kerkorian recalls those dresses being “soaking wet and stretched out down to the knees because of the weight of the sweat holding them down.” Designer Ted Tinling, who helped Evert achieve her icon status, favored ultrafeminine dresses that often relied on “polyester and sequins and just really heavy material,” says former professional player and current ESPN pundit Alexandra Stevenson. Open match against Billie Jean King, high style came with the price of torturous fabrics. Back in Chris Evert’s day, when she was competing in expertly tailored and fancifully detailed looks like the lace dress she wore to her 1971 U.S. Although the tennis dresses of the moment may look and feel nice, they’re a relatively new phenomenon. Susan Bloch, a former runway model in the ’70s and ’80s and lifelong devotee of the sport, agrees: “Put on a pair of sandals, and you look perfectly fine to go out to lunch.” “I do find myself walking around, running errands, and having brunch in my tennis clothes,” says Lisa Bonder Kerkorian, a former professional tennis player with a career-high ranking of nine when she was on tour in the ’80s. But tenniscore has not been wasted on actual tennis players. Given the resurgence of preppy Y2K-era clothes à la Gossip Girl, as well as the nonstop rise of more contemporary athleisure styles like the ubiquitous Outdoor Voices Exercise Dress, people everywhere are dressing themselves like they’re ready to hit the court. In the words of East Hampton–based tennis coach Justine Rusk: “You never know who’s a tennis player now.” And, of course, numerous models (and brands) have taken tennis courts by storm for photo shoots. Many megainfluencers, like Aimee Song and Tasha Franken, can be seen lightheartedly practicing their forehands on social media. Photographer and Gallery Girls alum Angela Pham posts herself in weekly tennis outfits, like a white scalloped dress from high-end label Marysia, which has increasingly adapted its signature swimsuit styles for racquet sports. Brother Vellies’s Aurora James called herself a “tennis girly” in a July 2023 interview with Vogue. If you actually play tennis, it can be disorienting to see (and see and see and see) the dresses you wear on court worn by so many fashion people. Photo-Illustration: The Strategist Photos: Retailers, Getty
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