Tennis Fixation's 2012 Australian Open Wrap-Up

I'm exhausted. Every Grand Slam final I watch lately is an incredible "instant classic" (to borrow a catch phrase from ESPN). Watching the longest Grand Slam men's singles final in the Open era yesterday just about killed me. And I have no idea how those guys did that. In the last two sets, I went back and forth on who I thought was winning because both players looked totally spent at different points in the match. In the end, Novak Djokovic somehow pulled it off. Congratulations to him on winning the 2012 Australian Open - I have a feeling he's off to another incredible year.

And congratulations also to Victoria Azarenka on winning the women's singles final by beating Maria Sharapova 6-3, 6-0. With her win, Azarenka not only gets her first Grand Slam but she takes over the women's No. 1 spot. I feel like I kind of called this one (on Twitter or Facebook or something - I can't remember). Here's a pic of the new No. 1:

Finally, I can't leave the Australian Open without noting the winners of this year's mixed doubles championships - Romanian Horia Tecau and - surprise! - American Bethanie Mattek-Sands! Here's a cute shot of the champs:

You know I've been a fan of Bethanie for quite some time (just see this post: Happy Birthday Bethanie Mattek-Sands!) and that Under Armor eye black (I think its UA) is the reason why.

What's up next? The French Open begins in April! Hopefully we can make it until then.


Image of Novak Djokovic by AFP/Getty, image of Victoria Azarenka by Reuters, image of Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Horia Tecau by Getty Images



© Kim Selzman 2012 All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: 2012 Australian Open - Fashionable Losers

I am planning on spending my Saturday watching Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka battle it out in the 2012 Australian Open women's singles final. While we already talked about the outfits both of these ladies are wearing, I didn't want to move on without mentioning the outfits of two women who made it pretty far into the draw and looked fabulous (in my opinion) even though they lost.

First up, and pictured above, is Caroline Wozniacki. Going into the Aussie Open, Caroline had held the No. 1 ranking in the WTA for 67 of the previous 68 weeks. But her quarterfinal loss to Kim Clijsters ensured that she will no longer hold that spot (in fact, it will be taken over by whoever wins the Maria/Vika match-up). Despite her status as an Aussie Open loser, her dress was a winner.

Caroline has been the tennis spokes model for Stella McCartney for Adidas for the past few years and, on occasion, her outfits have been less than stellar (see this post, for example, about her 2011 Australian Open get-up: Hey, Caroline Wozniacki - Margaret Court Called. She Wants Her Skirt Back.). But this year's dress was super cute. Highlighted by mesh accents, my favorite part of this dress was the color - tomato red. It really stood out on the blue courts of Melbourne. And was a great color for Wozniacki's fair skin and blonde hair.

The other fashionable loser was Ana Ivanovic, also wearing Adidas. Ivanovic was knocked out in the 4th round by Petra Kvitova. Here's what Ana wore:

This is the Spring "adizero" dress in Ultra Bright (light orange) and Core Energy (looks like tomato red to me)(Dear Adidas - just say peach and red). What makes this dress a little different is the hem, which has a sort of balloon or bloused effect. I always like to see an accent that is distinctive but doesn't highlight a figure flaw. Again, these colors look great on the blue courts and great on Ana. The designers at Adidas got this one right.



Right side image of Caroline Wozniacki by Nicholas Asfouri/AFP/Getty Images




© Kim Selzman 2012 All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: Australian Open 2012 - Update On Serena Williams

I just recently found out the explanation behind Serena Williams' 2012 Australian Open outfit and it's important enough that I wanted to be sure and note it here.

A few days ago, I expressed my dislike of what Serena wore during her Aussie Open matches in this post - Tennis Fashion Fix: Australian Open 2012 - Serena Keeps It "Real." Specifically, I said I didn't like her black headband or her black tennis shoes because I didn't think they matched her blue dress. And I said that I think she could have done much better wearing the outfit as she had shown it off in the days leading up to the Open when the whole thing was completely coordinated. (Since Serena is now out of the Australian Open, you probably won't see her in this outfit again except in replays and photos.)

So here's what I know now that I didn't know then - the headband and shoes were part of the Nike Black History Month Collection, coming out in February to celebrate the 36th anniversary of Black History Month. Serena's decision to wear these items was apparently a choice of substance over style. In fact, Nike chose Serena to debut this collection at the Australian Open (check out this post on the Nike blog for more info - Nike Black History Month Collection for Serena Williams).  And you can expect to see other Nike-sponsored athletes in these pieces throughout the month of February. Here's a quick look at the entire collection:

I think that's a great explanation and certainly justifies her decision to not be so matchy-matchy. I just wish she had worn a black (or maybe red) dress to really tie it all together. Perhaps, however, Nike's decisions about who's wearing what and when are made so far in advance that making it all look good together wasn't a real possibility.



© Kim Selzman 2012 All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: Australian Open 2012 - Maria Sharapova Through To The Quarterfinals!

We've reached the point in the Australian Open where I feel like I have to pay close attention every day because every day someone big gets knocked out. But so far that someone big is not Maria Sharapova.

Maria made it through today by beating Germany's Sabine Lisicki in three sets - 3-6, 6-2, 6-3. Maria next comes up against Russia's Ekaterina Makarova who took out Serena Williams 6-2, 6-3 (remember what I said about someone big getting knocked out every day?). So I'd say Maria has her work cut out for her.

But that's all in the future. Right now, Maria is looking fabulous in her Nike Statement Slam Dress. This dress is white - a great color for surviving Australia's blistering July heat - with Electric Green accents. I love the slashes up the sides and in back. The Lunar Speed 3 shoes and visor in matching Electric Green are also very cute. Here's a few shots of Maria during her match with Lisicki showing off this great outfit:

I hope Maria makes it a little longer because I happen to know she also has a night dress which I would love to see her play in.


Images by Ben Solomon/Tennis Australia




© Kim Selzman 2012 All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: Australian Open 2012 - Serena Keeps It "Real"

Look how cute Serena Williams appeared just days ago in her 2012 Australian Open dress:

She looks like a fashion model! Serena has been on magazine covers, done photo shoots, has her own line of accessories sold on the Home Shopping Network - she knows how to look good when it counts. And she's sponsored by Nike so I'm sure she can take advantage of all kinds of stylists and fashion advisers is she wants.

So how come in her first Aussie Open match, she looks like this:

The dress itself is actually pretty boring but that's not the problem. The problem is I don't like the scarf/sweat band thingy. I don't like the way she's pulled her hair back. I don't like all of the wrist band thingys she's wearing. I especially don't like the black tennis shoes (despite the fact that I'm a fan of black tennis shoes, just not with this outfit).

Here's the deal - I think that when you're a highly-paid spokesperson for Nike, you should wear their apparel in a way that makes other people want to wear their apparel. Sure, I see the cute version she had on pre-match. And I'm all for personalization and making the outfit your own. But the vast majority of people who see Serena in this outfit aren't seeing those cute pre-match photos. They just see the outfit when when they watch Serena's match. They see how well this tennis outfit looks when, surprise, someone is playing tennis in it. And in this case, the outfit ain't looking too great during the match.

I'm sure Nike keeps sponsoring Serena because, frankly, what other American woman are they going to sponsor? But I really don't think Serena is doing her job for Nike. Hopefully she'll stay in the Australian Open long enough to clean this up a little bit.


Image of Serena during her match by John Donegan/AP




© Kim Selzman 2012 All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: Australian Open 2012 - Keep Your Eye On Victoria Azarenka

Wow! Victoria Azarenka is hot! Both her tennis and her outfit are already sizzling down under.

Let's start with her tennis. On Sunday, she won the 2012 Sydney International, taking out defending champ Li Na - 6-2, 1-6, 6-3. Then, she rushed over to Melbourne, took the court this morning and won her first 2012 Australian Open match - beating Great Britain's Heather Watson 6-1, 6-0. And here's the most impressive part of this feat - Azarenka won 12 games in a row in that match. Which means - Watson probably served the first game, won her serve, and then lost the next 12 games. Kind of disheartening for Watson. But what a start for Vika (as she's known)!

I think Azarenka will go far this year - last year she made it all the way to the 4th round. And, as you may recall, the runner up in last year's Australian Open was Li Na, who ultimately lost to Kim Clijsters. So maybe the stars are finally lining up for Azarenka to win her first Slam. (Want to impress your tennis pals with your WTA trivia? Vika is from Belarus - the highest ranked woman to ever come out of that country.)

Whatever, right? Because how cute is her outfit? When I saw the pic above showing her slamming a forehand at Heather, all I could think is how much I love those little slashes up the side of her top. This is the Nike "Spring Tie-Break Graphic Tank" and those aren't actual slashes but a print that looks that way. It comes in "Mega Blue" with white, and white with blue or gray accents. This is part of Nike's Spring Group which also includes this cute t-shirt that I'm sure no one will be wearing during their actual Aussie Open match but you might see on the practice courts:

I had to include that - too cute. My only question to Nike - why "Zero"? I assume anyone who wears this will be a tennis player and we never say Zero - we always say Love. Anyway, I still like it.

I also wanted you to see Azarenka and Watson as they posed with a young fan before their match:

 

Azarenka is wearing the Spring Rally 3/4 Sleeve Top (part of the Spring Group), highlighted by a pretty boat neck, in the Mega Blue. Watson is also adorable in her K-Swiss outfit. Maybe we'll see more of that on some other players as the tournament progresses.




First image of Victoria Azarenka by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images, t-shirt image via www.tenniswarehouse.com and Nike, image of Victoria Azarenka and Heather Watson by Ben Solomon/Tennis Australia



© Kim Selzman 2012 All Rights Reserved

Grand Slam Season Begins With Australian Open!

Well, the Grand Slam season has finally commenced with today's start of qualifying rounds for the 2012 Australian Open. Thank goodness. I was getting bored with college football Bowl games (thanks for nothing LSU).

The good news is that there are several places to keep up-to-date with what is going on down under so you don't miss a single exciting moment of pro tennis. First and foremost is this blog right here - Tennis Fixation - where I will, of course, keep you informed of the latest Aussie Open news, especially who is wearing what and what they could possibly have been thinking when they chose to do so. As a bonus - I've included an Australian Open widget in the sidebar to the right so you can check in on the latest scores, photos, events, etc.

Another fabulous source of info is the 2012 Australian Open web site. The tennis Slams do a good job of improving their sites each year and this year's Aussie Open site is no exception - easy to navigate, tons of useful information, simple shopping, and lots of useless (but interesting) trivia. You can spend hours on it (as I'm sure I will) finding out little tidbits. For example, bet you didn't know that Wilson provides "4,000 dozen" tennis balls for use during the Australian Open (that's 48,000 balls but I'm not sure why they couldn't just say that instead of 4,000 dozen). To visit the site, just click on this link - www.australianopen.com.

Now, if you're like me, you don't want to ever ever be out of touch with what's happening at a Slam. So be sure and download the free Australian Open app for your iPhone or iPad. I've included a screen shot above to show you all of the info you can get from this useful app. Again, the 2012 version of the app is a vast improvement over what they put out last year and I'm sure I'll waste plenty of time fooling around with it when I'm out and about. Just search for "Australian Open" in the app store to get it.

While I've given you some great places to go for Aussie Open info, what I haven't given you is photos and commentary on the "fashion" we'll be seeing on the courts down under. Don't worry - I'm working on those posts. So check back in very soon to see what fashion hits and/or misses we can expect to see on our favorite pros in the next few weeks.





© Kim Selzman 2012 All Rights Reserved

Hey, Caroline Wozniacki - Margaret Court Called. She Wants Her Skirt Back.

Just when I thought I'd seen an end to the bad tennis outfits with Venus Williams' exit from the Australian Open, along comes Caroline Wozniacki.

Take a look:

Image via www.australianopen.com

All three of these women are wearing Adidas. Ana Ivanovic looks fantastic for a change in an outfit that I'm sure many of us would wear. Justine Henin, in her typical androgynous top and skirt, even looks pretty good. Its hard to believe that Caroline Wozniacki is actually the one of these three wearing gear personally designed for her by no less than Stella McCartney. I'm starting to wonder if Stella McCartney has watched a tennis match in this decade. Or in the last three decades. This skirt is just way too high-waisted and 70's looking for my taste. And the top? Well, where is it?

Now perhaps the thought was to make Caroline look ballerina-ish:

Image via www.australianopen.com

Instead, I thing she looks Margaret Court-ish:

Image via www.australianopen.com

Or maybe even Daphne Akhurst-ish:

Image via www.australianopen.com

Now Margaret Court has 11 Australian Open singles and 5 doubles titles of her name, so she's no slouch. And Daphne Akhurst has 5 Australian Open singles and 9 doubles titles. Again, pretty impressive.

Those ladies did that awhile ago. And with those records, as far as I'm concerned, they can wear whatever the heck they want. But - Hello, Caroline Wozniaki - it's 2011. Put the high-waisted, pleated skirt away and, if you can't win a Slam, at least get with the fashion program.




© Kim Selzman 2011 All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: Venus Continues To Baffle Me

Venus promised us more skin for the 2011 Australian Open and she is definitely delivering.

So here's her first round dress:

Images by Ben Solomon

When I saw this, I thought, "Okay, I get it. The see-through mesh panels. The zipper that goes all the way from the top to the bottom on the front. That's more skin." The design itself seems somewhat juvenile but I get where she's going with this.

But get a load of her second round dress:

Images by Ben Solomon

Are you understanding this dress? Because I'm not. There are yellow strips of some kind of shiny polyester (?) fabric woven together to allow quite a bit of skin to show through. I have no earthly idea what is going on with the skirt area, which doesn't seem to have anything to do with the top area, so I'm not going to try and explain that.

Now, as I'm writing this, I'm watching a replay of this second round match and seeing the dress in action is even more uncomfortable than looking at the photos. I see a lot of problems - the color is not flattering, Venus is tugging at the skirt (which I'm starting to think is just a nervous habit she has since she does it with every outfit she wears) and the fit is just atrocious. In my non-fashion-school-trained mind, if you're going to have skin showing through like this, the dress should be very closely fitted. I mean its almost like wearing a bathing suit so it should fit like a bathing suit! Instead, this dress seems to bag around Venus' torso.

I really can't explain what logic, if any, is behind Venus' tennis fashion designs. If she's designing tennis wear just for herself - fine. Wear whatever. You're one of the top two American women playing tennis these days, the top American woman and a heavy contender at the Australian Open, so if you're happy in it, I'm happy for you to be in it. But she claims that this stuff is part of her overall post-tennis-career fashion empire. I just don't see anyone else, no matter how good their game or their body might be, wearing this stuff. Am I wrong? Your thoughts?




© Kim Selzman 2011 All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: Australian Open 2011 - What Would Serena Have Worn?

Image via OPI.com

With the Australian Open starting today(!), the question we all have is, of course, what will the pros be wearing? Well, despite the fact that Serena Williams won't be defending her Aussie title due to ongoing "foot injury" issues, we now know what she would have worn.

First, don't you love the cheesy cover girl pose in this first pic? This is actually a photo from the nail polish pros at OPI touting Serena's "Glam Slam" lacquers, the first two of which were rolled out just in time for the year's first Slam. Keep tuned to Tennis Fixation for an update on these two polishes as well as the entire Glam Slam collection because the whole thing will tie into each of this year's Slams. Anyway, I thought this photo of Serena wearing her Australian Open outfit was too precious to pass up.

But let's get serious.


In this next photo, you can really see the Down Under Smash Dress that Nike put together for Serena.

Image via Nike Tennis Facebook

And here's another view of this dress, minus the 105 mph serve stance.

Image via Nike Tennis Facebook

In my opinion, Nike has done its usual fabulous job with Serena. They've used a really clean palette of white, blue and green that I'm sure would have looked great on the blue courts in Melbourne and will also look great on my cracked, greenish-brownish, need-to-be-painted courts in Houston. Dri-FIT fabric on the shoulders and back of the dress allows for ventilation, darts on the front and back give a more fitted fit (nice lack of vocabulary there), and a pop of Green Apple piping at the waist and a pleated Vibrant Blue skirt make this outfit stand out.

Better than the dress are these too, too cute shoes.

Image via Nike Tennis Facebook

These are the Nike Air Max Mirabella 3 shoes and they have way too many high-performance, technical features for me to tell you about. Who cares anyway? Look at those colors! If I'm wearing something this splashy on the courts, I don't care if my feet are cushioned or well-ventilated or even moving very fast. Love these.

Well, enjoy these pieces here and in your favorite tennis shop. Because you won't be seeing them on the courts in Australia.



© Kim Selzman 2011 All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: Get Ready For "More Skin" At The 2011 Australian Open

Image by Mark Riedy

The 2011 Australian Open starts tomorrow (Hooray!) and just in case you're hoping that Venus Williams will attempt to top her outfits from the most recent French Open (Remember this post? Tennis Fashion Fix: French Open 2010 - Venus In A Black Lace Negligee??), Wimbledon and U.S. Open (just see Tennis Fashion Fix: US Open 2010 - What Is The Deal With Venus?), you are in luck!

Although I have no photo evidence to present at this time (but I'll be searching for some to give you asap), at her most Aussie Open press conference (where this not-completely-flattering photo was taken), she promised "There'll be more illusion, and also skin - more skin this year. So we'll see."

More skin? How much more skin can there be? She's already done the lingerie thing. And the "is she or isn't she wearing anything under that dress" look? What's left? Tennis stripper? On-court string bikini? All I can say at this point is "Yes, Venus, we'll most definitely see."



© Kim Selzman 2011 All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: Australian Open 2011 - Maria Sharapova

The Australian Open is now just days away from kicking off and that means the tennis fashion is starting to roll out. Maria Sharapova introduced her Aussie Open 2011 outfit at a press conference at the Crown Casino in Melbourne. Get a load of the video:



Now, if you don't have the patience to get through a 2 minute video (come on!), here's a photo from the interview:

Image: Ben Solomon

And here's a shot of her posing for photographers:

Image: Ben Solomon

The front of the dress:

Image: Getty Images

And the back of the dress:

Image: Getty Images

This is the Oz Open Ace Dress or the Maria Sharapova Statement Ace Dress (depending on where you look). The colors here are typical Nike: a "Wolf Gray" body with "Peach Cream" highlights.

Now, I want you to know that I actually wrote a whole other post about this dress, concluding: "Maria looks good in this get-up but I won't and neither will most of the tennis-wear-buying general public. I anticipate seeing the dress and probably the rest of the collection on sale at my local tennis shop not too long after the conclusion of the Australian Open." And, after seeing this video and these photos, I'm still standing by that statement.

But, here's the thing - I really do LIKE this dress! Maria looks fantastic in it, like some kind of super-model. I can see why Nike loves sponsoring her. She just SELLS this outfit. I only wish I could put this thing on and look that good. And, while I know that won't happen until I grown another 10 inches, I'm a sucker for the advertising here. I'm definitely going to go to my local tennis shop and at least try this dress on. And I'll consider buying it when it goes on sale.






© Kim Selzman 2011 All Rights Reserved

Australian Open Wrap-Up: Did Anyone Notice Serena Williams?

Well, the Australian Open has been over for several days and I've seen plenty of news stories about Roger Federer winning his 16th Grand Slam title, beating Andy Murray 6-3, 6-4, 7-6. But what I haven't seen a whole lot of is anyone commenting on the fact that Serena Williams won both the women's singles AND doubles titles. Again. Just as she did last year. 

Am I the only person who thinks this is a remarkable feat?  I'm sure if Roger Federer had won the men's singles AND doubles titles, we would hear no end to what a miraculous accomplishment that was.

Anyway, congratulations to Serena who just becomes more and more impressive in my book.  And, let me also point out how much I loved what she was wearing.  I'm sure lots and lots of those dresses will be sold.  The Maria Sharapova dress, on the other hand, will be available at 75% off in just a few more weeks.  (FYI - the Serena dress was also $20 cheaper at my fav tennis shopping spot!)

Here's Serena in her great Australian Open 2010 dress:

And with the trophy:

And again with the trophy after hitting the showers:

And with Venus and the doubles trophy:

© Kim Selzman 2010
All Rights Reserved

Tennis Fashion Fix: Australian Open 2010-Sharapova Already Out!

Look quick! Because Maria Sharapova is already out in the first round of the Australian Open. Here are a few pics of what she wore. Obviously, it was not a lucky outfit for her. But it is different and interesting and cutting edge for tennis as Sharapova's tennis gear always is.

Sharapova looks a little dejected in these photos - probably taken towards the end of the match. I'm sorry to see her go but I'm happy to have the Australian Open underway!




© Kim Selzman 2010
All Rights Reserved