not so mellow yellow

Unlike the pastel shade used by Jelena Jankovic for her Reebok U.S. Open dress, two other players amped up their kits with some neon yellow for the fall hardcourt season. Feliciano Lopez and his Joma Sport outfits continue to impress, following up a bold red Davis Cup uniform with this current bright yellow/grey colorway.

Turning it around: The Spaniard had gone 0-6 since Cincinnati until last week’s ATP stop in Vienna. He reached that semi (falling to Pletzchner) and now faces Rafa Nadal in a quarterfinal match at the Mutua Madrilena Masters Madrid.

And before Venus Williams decided to adopt Borat‘s style, she wore an EleVen dress for U.S. Open day matches that ranks as one of the best designs the American has come up with so far.

It wasn’t lost on us that the dress’ pink logo had matching pink skivvies. We can only hope that Feli‘s kit has the same.

Buy: EleVen store locations here; Joma goods here.

(photos by Getty Images)

fashion focus: fila falls flat for fall

Was it just me, or did I totally see a pro-high fructose corn syrup ad on TV the other day. WTF?!

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming…

The Hungarian Yeti: We haven’t seen much from Agnes Szavay for these summer and fall tournaments, which means we haven’t seen her flaunt Fila‘s latest collection.

Not that she’d have much to work with. The periwinkle blue of the summer colorway didn’t provide enough contrast to bright white of that Cap Sleeve Top (right), and the silhouette of the Heritage Dress wasn’t enough to save it from drowning against the colors of the courts at Flushing Meadows.

That being said, the dress showed promise (save for those unfortunate patches of sweat), and we love the trim on the Cami tank (above, left).

Meanwhile, the super-striped Heritage tee on the guys worn by Janko and Dmitry is the showcase of an otherwise so-so men’s line.

As for the fall collezione line (colorway: white/light brown), you won’t see this anywhere but on your local tennis courts. Check it out here.

Buy: Fila Women’s Summer Heritage Cami Tank, 34.99; V-Neck Tank, $39.99; Cap Sleeve Top, $34.99; Heritage Dress, $53.99; colorway: Periwinkle and Crystal blues.

Men’s Summer Heritage Stripe Top, $36.99; Heritage Crew, $32.99; colorway: Peacoat Navy and Surf the Web (!) blue.

(photos by Getty Images; product images via TW)

tipsy in moscow and metz

Just because we can, here are some pictures of Janko Tipsarevic, dressed in Fila‘s summer Heritage Stripe Top.

Scoreline: He lost to fellow Serb Viktor Troicki in the round of 16 of Moscow and to Paul-Henri Mathieu in the quarters of Metz.

(photos by Getty Images; screencaps by biological at MTF)

tennis’ George Clooney

Butter is back to weigh in on Marat’s current affairs

Where is my favorite Russian? Hmmm… His body is not into tennis (shoulder injury forced a withdrawal from Madrid, replaced by lucky loser Simone Bolelli), and, as everyone has found out recently, his head isn’t there either:

Instead, he’s been knockin back brewskies with some pretty ruskies, specifically pop singer Nastya Osipova.

What do you think? I almost fell off my chair when I watched this! haha… Is it just me, or do we all miss the Dasha-Marat era? I do! I know Tony Kornheiser does! What about the Silvia-Marat love story? Well, like Marat said before:

“If you date blondes for a long time, you would want a brunette. You have to have variety in life! (laughs). Besides, it really doesn’t matter, it needs to be interesting and not boring.” (Marie Claire Russia, 2007)

So don’t worry, Rich, we might not have to stare at Ms. Osipova’s dresses for too much longer. Who’ll be Marat’s next brunette? Ana Ivanovic?

the boobs are back in madrid

Feminism? What’s that? The ladies of the Mutua Madrilena Masters Madrid are back for yet another seven days of bouncin’ and ball-retrievin’.

Thankfully, tourney organizers opted out of last year’s bejeweled tattoos (leave that for Mariah‘s back) and instead focused on more subtle accessories for these fashion models-cum-ballgirls: a muted slate tank top, a cute black mini-brim cap with a tie on the back, and a pair of bright silver Diadoras for some pop.

(photos by Getty Images)

can she put her mouth where her money went?

Jokester or Jockster? Leave it to Andy Roddick to spice up Elton John‘s 16th annual Advanta World Team Tennis Smash Hits event this past weekend.

From Perez:

Joining Elton to help out in this great event were several star players and celebs, including Andy Roddick.

Up for auction to raise money for the benefit was an hour session of private tennis tutoring with Roddick. And, in an attempt to get a higher bid, the recently engaged Andy said he’d take off his shirt during the session. That got the bid up to $11,000! Then, he said he’d do the lesson FULLY nude. That got him a final $15,000 from one very lucky female fan.

Was he actually serious (everyone’s a little bit exhibitionist) or was he just trying to get Elton some cash? Either way, at least he now knows that his dong is worth $4,000.

ladies, adidas has your back

The petal dress that was supposed to be the cornerstone of the adidas Fal women’s line didn’t quite do its thing, being eschewed by Ana Ivanovic in favor of the Edge Group separates. (And even those who have worn the dress, like upstart Caroline Wozniacki, haven’t looked too hot in it.)

In a sea of style points, the company still gets buoyed by the flowy boatneck Edge top, and the bubble skirt and mandarin collars of past collections, so instead of focusing on the negative, we’d like to point out the lovely keyhole detail on the back of the Fall Competition Tank, these days worn by Dinara Safina. (The contrast trim keeps going, even when covered by another layer of fabric!)

And the Competition hoodie pushes feminine boundaries with its deep v-neck and wide ribbed cuffs, while the Fall Court Knit Jacket’s high collar brings high style to performance wear.

Sore Safina: Congrats to Marat‘s younger sis, who reached a career-high No. 2 in the WTA rankings this week after reaching the semis of the 2008 Kremlin Cup (among other great achievements this year). She is the highest-ranked player in adidas, followed by Ana Ivanovic.

After her loss on Saturday, Dinara spoke out against the rescheduled WTA schedule, which forces top players into mandatory events and leaving them with less flexibility to participate in smaller events with significance to them (e.g., hometown tournaments).

Buy: adidas Fall Competition Tank, Mono Pink/White, $37.99; Fall Competition Hoodie, $54.99; Fall Court Knit Jacket, $49.99.

agassi couldn’t get gwen, settles for mariah

I hung out at the Wynn Las Vegas this weekend, and as I was crossing over to do some shopping at the Palazzo I saw some signage for the Andre Agassi‘s Grand Slam for Children — his charity‘s 13th annual event. My invitation must have gotten lost in the mail? Oh well, it left me time to ogle jackets and salesmen at Alexander McQueen.

Gavin and Gwen are too busy filling Roger Federer‘s players box, so Andre and Steffi had to find another musical couple to make besties with, and they settled on Mr. and Mrs. Nick Cannon.

That May-December wedding joined others no the red carpet, including the original Fergie, Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson; Donny Osmond; and Emeril Lagasse. Tommy Haas, who decided that a VIP pass could double as his tie, also lent his support to the evening.

“We put on an amazing party tonight,” said Agassi. “[The party celebrates] many successful years of raising money for underserved children hand-in-hand with our generous supporters and sponsors. And at the same time, it was a party to look to the future and what can be accomplished with the Foundation’s new mission,” which involves transforming education not just in Las Vegas (through the Agassi College Preparatory Academy) but throughout the country.

The 1,900 who attended the fundraiser were entertained by the likes of Natasha Bedingfield, The Killers, Lifehouse, budding Filipina singer Charice Pampengco, Rod Stewart (who performed a duet with Sheryl Crow for the first time, singing “The First Cut is the Deepest”), and comics Ray Romano and David Spade.

There were also two live auctions: a James Rosenquist abstract painting entitled “The Hole in the Center of the Clock – Timekeeper II, A Heart for Andre Agassi, 2008” and a second package included lunch with Oprah Winfrey and a South African adventure. No tennis players were auctioned, and no tennis player boyfriends were revealed.

(photos by Getty Images)

lemaire and lacoste’s fall 2008 — where do we insert andy roddick?

Lemaire, the side project of Lacoste creative director Christopher Lemaire, drew inspiration from the Far East for his current fall collection, constructing winter coats and jackets with the silhouettes of South Asian garments like kramas (scarf) and kurtas (tunic).

The women have pleated high-waisted pants and their own winterwear, including a convertible cape, a kimono trench coat, a leather jacket, and those shawl collars that are all over the place this season.

Browse: See the lookbook at christopherlemaire.com.

—

Lacoste Fall/Winter 2008: And for his regular duties, Lemaire carried that muted palette over for part of Lacoste’s fall 2008 ready-to-wear line, staged in February of this year on a sheepskin (!) runway in New York.

Inspired by Megève, the Alpine resort popularized in the 1920s by the Baronne Noémie de Rothschild (who was fed up with the crowding at St. Moritz). Lemaire began with some snow performance looks in greys and slates…

…followed up with earthy colors that bring pop to otherwise standard cuts of polos, cardigans, and slacks…

…and of course, since this is Lemaire’s intepretation of the classic tennis brand, rounded out with a venture into the whimsical. This winter, he makes good use of purple, pom-poms, and for the ladies, some out-of-this-world puffy boots.

Sit back: Lacoste’s Fall 2008 ready-to-wear at style.com.

Shop: All the goods can be picked up at lacoste.com.

trophy watch: giant balls, david’s peak, jelena’s hat trick, and changing the russian guard

Another Philipp to watch: Sorry, Herr Kohlschreiber — you’ll have to save some space at the table for qualifier Philipp Petzschner, who nabbed his second career ATP title at the Bank Austria-TennisTrophy when he beat beat Gael Monfils 6-4, 6-4 after taking out Wawrinka, Moya, and Lopez in earlier rounds.

In Stockholm, David Nalbandian performed as expected, winning his second title of the year with a 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 victory over Robin Soderling. He’ll head into this week’s Mutua Madrilena Masters as the defending champion.

Marat Safin failed to convert his finals appearance in the 2008 Kremlin Cup into a title (this would have been his first since the ’05 Australian). Meanwhile, props to Igor Kunitsyn and his 7-6 (6), 6-7 (4), 6-3 victory over his veteran countryman for his maiden title. He even prepared a speech that congratulated Marat!

Hot potato: The top players of the SEWTA continue to keep us fans on our toes, making sure that whoever holds the No. 1 ranking isn’t the last woman standing at a tournament. In this week’s episode of “The Consistency Caper”, second-ranked Jelena Jankovic downs Vera Zvonareva 6-2, 6-4 for her fourth title of 2008. Meanwhile, top-ranked Serena is MIA. BTW, this is the third meeting in as many weeks between Jelena and Vera.

(Note: Apparently — see first comment below — this is no longer the case. TSF apologizes for the error. Congrats to victor Jelena, who now has all the spoils.)

It’s in the bag: The flip-flops of Roger Federer (first, he’s out “indefinintely”, next, he’s back on the schedule a week later…) played second fiddle to Rafa Nadal, who received a trophy from the ATP this week in recognition of his No.1 ranking. He’ll pretty much end the year in the top spot barring any missteps.

fashion focus: cibulkova’s lacoste outfit has us seeing spots

Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova adds to her strong year (two finals — Amelia Island and Toronto) by dispatching world No. 5 and reigning French Open champ Ana Ivanovic 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 in the second round of the Kremlin Cup. She showed up the Serb (sorry, Ana) by wearing a simple white Lacoste tennis dress trimmed with slate.

And in her loss to Beijing bronze medalist Vera Zvonareva in the following round, she traded her dress for the Interlock Skirt and a Dot-Printed polo.

Buy: Lacoste V-neck Dot Print dress, $145, lacoste.com.

One more look: See the polka dot detail on Dominika’s polo

not even all the lunges in the world…

Guillermo Canas might have gotten mugged near his parents’ home in Buenos Aires last month, but his attackers left him with his best, uhm, asset.

The Argentine has switches to an orange version of his Topper kit (he was wearing black/red at the U.S. Open), playing at this week’s Bank Austria-TennisTrophy in Vienna.

Score: Canas lost to the pompadoured Fernando Verdasco in the second round 6-1, 6-2.

More: A closer look at his shirt

serbia’s greatest export

Who knew that Victor Troicki could be as animated as his fellow Serbian, Novak Djokovic?

It’s hard to contain his excitement, perhaps, of finally making some noise in these past few weeks; he’s reached back-to-back quarterfinals, first losing to Andy Roddick at the Japan Open 6-3, 6-4 and then to German Mischa Zverev 6-4, 3-6, 7-5.

Now that he’s shown us a full range of facial expressions, we can’t wait to see him battle Nole in the striptease competition.

Rest o’ the draw: The semis — Santoro‘s through after Mathieu retired, and will face either Kunitysn or the gorgeous Chardy. Meanwhile, Kolya and Marat (de facto final?) are duking it out to see who’ll take on Zverev.

More: See more of Troicki’s fun faces

Cultural Learnings of Venus for Make Benefit Glorious Clothing of EleVen

Venus Williams followed in the footsteps of Serena‘s early round Stuttgart exit last week by tripping on her own opening match at this week’s Kremlin Cup in Moscow. The American lost to Flavia Pennetta 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 — but not before showing off her latest EleVen design.

Inspired by Borat, perhaps? Or maybe John Mayer…

(photos by Getty Images)

fashion focus: clavicles and class for nike’s holiday ’08 collection

A quick look: The men’s stuff keep us bored, but the women continue with the refined stylish designs that started with that Serena Bow Dress from the U.S. Open ’07 and the Masha librarian look at the YEC in December.

First, the mens…

A ho-hum collection still featuring the current fireworks/superpower graphics on the Dri-FIT Power tank — the one currently sported by Juan Martin del Potro — and contrast inserts in the Power and Advantage lines. Colors are University (light blue), Obsidian (navy), Comet (red), black, and white.

What we do like is this Federer Master Polo, with the placket stretching all the way down the front — reminiscent of a skinny-tied schoolboy uniform. (Also, it takes us back to one of Patrick Rafter‘s weirder shirts from Wimbledon ’04.)

What do you think of the Master Polo? Tell us!

Dress up your clavicles: The designers in Portland are giving much love to collarbones for this year-end collection, placing the swoosh super-high up on the Resort Polos and the accenting the Heritage Jacket with a similarly placed horizontal detail on the right chest.

Buy: Master Polo, $65; Resort Polo, in White/Dark Obsidian and Matte Silver/Anthracite, $60; Heritage Jacket, Black and White, $60.

Meanwhile, the women are pulling off more classy-but-sexy outfits with their pieces for the season. The standard issue Athlete Dress overwhelms with its constrast straps and collar detail, but makes up for it with a sexy mesh layer for a nightie-like effect. And they’ve brought in the fall versions of the Athlete Short Sleeve top, with its novel v-neck and body-mapped mosaic designs. (The latter is what Li Na wore when she toppled top seed Serena in Stuttgart last week.)

Sharapova: For the holidays, Nike blessed Masha with simple separates. Thick pleats and a wide contrast band on the hem are order of the day for her Day Skirt, and the matching top has a corresponding contrast block across the bust.

Serena: What the Court Tank lacks in detail is made up for by the tiered ruffles (with contrast hem, of course) on the Court Skirt.

Resort: And the Resort Tee, with its metallic and whimsical tennis racquet print, looks like it came right out of the Fila Japan lookbook. (Trust me, that’s a good thing!)

Buy: Resort Tee, Charcoal/Berry, Matte Silver/Marina, and white, $30; Sharapova Day Tank, $65; Sharapova Day Skirt, $65; Court Tank, $60; and Court Skirt, $60; Sharapova and Court separates available in Black, White/Aqua Grey, Berry/Light Taupe, and Aqua Grey/Black.

(images from midwestsports.com)

oh, mirka! how soon will wedding bells ring?

Perhaps the recent wedding attended by Roger Federer and Mirka Vavrinec — that of Roger’s childhood friend Reto Staubli in Mallorca — are getting tennis’ first (second?) couple thinking about walking down the aisle?

After a seesaw 2008 that started with mono and bookended by a fifth U.S. Open title, the world No. 2 has withdrawn from this week’s ATP tour stop in Stockholm.

“In order to [remain at the top of the game], I need to get a proper rest and get strong again so that I am 100% fit for the remainder of the year or next year,” he told the press. “At this point, I am not sure when I will be ready to play again, but I hope to be back at some point before the end of the year.”

With Rafa Nadal also declining to play, this leaves the tourney with seventh-ranked David Nalbandian as the top seed.

So now that Roger’s scaling back tennis, he’s back in Dubai browsing jewelry with Mirka at the Atlantis resort in the Palm Jumeirah. Items considered: a 60-carat D Flawless diamond ring and a more modest 15-carat pink cushion-cut.

I can’t wait to see what they end up with…

(photos via MTF)

let bjorn borg be your pimp

As you may already know, Bjorn Borg and his empire wants us all to live in peace, and one way he’ll make us reach this Zen state is by getting us a little lovin’.

The Swedish style god has ventured into the social networking fray with his very own dating site, Love For All.

How it works: after answering a few madlib-style questions about you and the pot of gold you want at the end of the rainbow (with the help of BB brand ambassador Bibi), a corresponding choose-your-own-adventure video will play with your uploaded face pic superimposed over one sexy bod and your recommended future soulmate’s on the other. The montages will depend on what you jonesed for — eternal love? hot sex? a one-night stand? long-lasting friendship? (Look out for the steamy clay scene from Ghost… and for the dinner with a whole roast pig!)

Once you’ve finished staring into this cyber-crystal ball, you’ll get to ixnay the arrangement and start all over, or if you like what you see, you can download your couple’s photo album, and even chat with your future hubby.

At the very least, if nothing comes of it, it’ll be the first time I’ve seen myself with a six-pack!

Love For All: Visit www.bjornborg.com/en/Love.

(screengrabs via bjornborg.com)

fashion focus: etiqueta negra

Aside from being able to drool over Juan Monaco up close (I didn’t think he could look better in person…), one of the good things I took away from last month’s ATP Calendar launch was the discovery that Juan gets dressed by Argentine label Etiqueta Negra.

Thankfully, a friend of mine recently spent some time in Buenos Aires and filled me in on the brand. Etiqueta produces some well-constructed pieces in classic cuts and silhouettes, using raw materials of higher quality than other Argentinian brands.

Even better, Etiqueta’s SoHo store, which’ll eventually open on Prince and Lafayette, will fit right into the current trend of “concept” shops — i.e., displaying clothes alongside installations of brand-inspiring items (in their case: antique Jaguars and vintage BMW motorbikes).

And in case you weren’t quite sold on their upscale feel, founder Federico Alvarez Castillo chose a greyhound — think racing dog, not mass transit — as the brand’s logo, and is the official outfitter of a polo team.

FYI: Unlike Monaco, David Nalbandian had an official endorsement contract with EN that ended at this year’s Open.

Browse: See Etiqueta Negra’s latest collection. And some images from a recent lookbook

short balls: endorsement edition

Don’t forget to print out your bingo cards for tonight! She’s a piece of work, isn’t she?

Now, for some endorsement short balls…

Consider us tickled: In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October), Canon spokesperson Maria Sharapova announced that the company would donate $150,000 to the American Cancer Society. They’re also releasing a special “pink bundle” — a PowerShot SD1100 IS Digital ELPH, a photo printer, a ribbon charm and a mammogram reminder magnet — available for $279.99 here.

Bottle it up: Fans of Rafael Nadal will be happy to know that he’s signed a deal with Inter Parfums to develop a fragrance line called Lanvin L’Homme Sport. He’s already wearing Lanvin anyway, so he might as well get paid for doing so. (tennis.com via DTL)

He’s top ramen: According to Tennis Week, Kei Nishikori has signed an endorsement deal with Cup noodles — the instant meal that got TSF through much of its childhood. (TW)

(image via Canon)

fashion focus: adidas by stella mccartney, f/w ’08

The fall/winter ’08 adidas by Stella McCartney line dropped right before the U.S. Open this year, and we got a chance to see the merch up close while at the company’s performance store in SoHo (where we also got fitted for some custom Barricades).

McCartney drew inspiration from Victorian-era embellishments for the prints and cuts of the tennis pieces, all made in the Brit’s usual muted pallete. This season’s colors: White, Rubia Grey (black), Dark Concrete (grey), and Pale Salmon (pink).

Note the floral cutout adhered to the bubble skirt of the Tennis Print Dress (with its racerback top).

Here is the season’s skirt with the corset-like Tennis Mesh Tank.

And Stella’s fall warmup jacket features a drawcord around the gathered neckline, making room for the wide turtleneck tee. There’s also a separates version of that Tennis Dress.

Fit to print: This collection got some press time when muse Maria Kirilenko won the Hansol Korea Open last week, besting her runner-up performance at the same tournament from the year prior.

Buy: Cover-up Blouson, $170; Tennis Print Dress, $120; Cover Up Tennis Tee, $100; Tennis Mesh Tank, $90; Tennis Woven Shorts, $80.

Browse: See McCartney’s other designs — for yoga, golf, running, dance, and winter sports — at the adidas e-shop.

(images via adidas.com)