towels for roland garros 2011

French Open towels aren’t as solid this year (the Lacoste ones are better), but if we had to choose, we’d go for this one of the Eiffel Tower. The other honorable mentions

practice makes perfect: novak djokovic

Nole switched to his French Open kit during the warm-up tourneys leading to the year’s second major, so no need to rehash (here it is, in case ya need a refresher). So instead, here’s a few looks at his practice gear.

BTW: Nole has dropped only one set (to del Potro) in his run to the semis, which included a retirement from Victor Hanescu and a walkover against Fognini (who injured himself in that marathon vs. Montanes). Djokovic will play Roger Federer tomorrow.

Too much red! Aside from this olive green tee, a Stepanek-esque polo/shirt ensemble

flashback: stan the man

Gettin’ down: Stanislas Wawrinka needed to remind Jo-Wilfried Tsonga about who was seeded higher at this year’s French Open, and it wasn’t easy: it took Stan about four hours to log the third-round 4-6, 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (7-5), 6-2, 6-3 victory over Tsonga. He lost the subsequent round — a Swiss-fest against Roger Federer. (Read up: Roger and Stan’s career head-to-head; Pt. 2: French Open Men’s Singles Draw)

Buy: Lacoste Forest Hills Gym Bag; white, empire yellow, flame scarlet, and blue aster; $160; lacoste.com.

(photos by Alexander Klein/AFP/Getty Images)

ground attack: nike.com’s french open landing page

For the curious, Nike.com’s French Open landing page looks like this. They also used Maria‘s image, seen without text below.

(Nike website screengrab via nike.com; maria image courtesy of Nike)

fashion focus: in lotto, schiavone keeps the frills to a minimum

While we wouldn’t have picked Francesca Schiavone as the woman who could best showcase the uber-feminine clothes from this season’s Lotto drop, the Italian is keeping up her end of the sponsorship bargain during this claycourt season: she’s backed up her decision to lay low during the last Fed Cup tie with a quarterfinal appearance in Rome (losing to Stosur) and a semifinal defeat in Brussels (to Caro). Now she has a chance to defend her French Open title in the finals against Li Na, played tomorrow. (Draw: RG Women’s Singles)

TSF loves the skort in particular, with its super-bunched hem and bow off to the side. (We first noticed this on Pironkova back at Indian Wells.) Schiavone’s done a good job mixing up the skort’s three colors — pearl (grey), dark navy, and white — with the irid cocktail (light salmon) and dark navy pieces. We’re also glad she’s opted for the more subtle ruching of the cap-sleeve top, leaving the messy criss-cross design of the tank back in Rome. All that extra fabric is doing nothing for her flat-chestedness.

Buy: Lotto Missy Skort, €30.17; Polo, €34.03; Tank, €30.17; Dress, €45.29; Cap-Sleeve Top, €30.17.

More: Images from her 2011 Roland Garros looks — plus two from Rome — all

want: wear the clay without getting dirty

Let’s leave the grime to the pros, ok?

What an entertaining semi! Schiavone played Bartoli, with the defending champ taking out the hometown fave 6-3, 6-3. She’ll face Li Na in the final; their combined age makes this the oldest women’s final since Tauziat and Novotna played Wimbledon in 1998 (via Christopher Clarey, that one).

Swatch comes up with the Jeux d’Elite Roland Garros watch — the same shade as the tourney’s clay courts — and puts it in a tennis ball case. Buy: € 67,00 at storerolandgarros.com.

(image via storerolandgarros.com)

fashion focus: adidas adiace (roland garros)

Stanislas Wawrinka needed to remind Jo-Wilfried Tsonga about who was seeded higher at this year’s French Open, and it wasn’t easy: it took Stan about four hours to log the 4-6, 6-7 (3-7), 7-6 (7-5), 6-2, 6-3 victory. And it doesn’t get any easier: up next is a Swiss-fest against Roger Federer. (Read up: Roger and Stan’s career head-to-head; Pt. 2: French Open Men’s Singles Draw)

Tsonga was the only ATPer clad in the Roland Garros-branded adidas adiAce line. On the men, they produced a slim-fit polo with flattering color-blocking (not that Tsonga needs help in that department). And you know how we love a popped collar, so the quarter-zipped stand-up collar on the polo is a nice touch. The colorways: Intense Green with white and Medium Lead; Medium Lead with Intense Green and Ice Grey.

On the women, they’ve used a maroon colorway on a scoop-neck dress with a pleated skirt. The accompanying wristband and warm-up jacket — accented with a neon (“Aero”) red — round out the collection. Also of note: a few graphic tees and a white, ruffled top for the ladies. See our picks below; browse (and buy!) everything here. What do you think of the adiAce goods?

(Tsonga photos by AP Photo/Michel Euler and Thomas Coex/AFP/Getty Images)

practice makes perfect: roger federer

Roger Federer has reached the fourth round of the 2011 French Open after brushing aside Janko Tipsarevic 6-1, 6-4, 6-3. Even from a different perspective — i.e., the buzz words these days are “Nadal” and “Nole” — it’s safe to say that this man can still play some good, clean ball: so far this week, he’s used his efficient serve to rack up only two break points after three rounds of play.

Nike Air Max Redux Men’s T-Shirt, $20, nike.com.

(photo by AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

happy, happy, joy, joy

For the curious: Steve Darcis is the tennis face for clothing brand J&Joy, whose logo is embroidered on the Belgian’s polos at this year’s French Open.

Gael force: Darcis couldn’t upset a second Frenchman — he took out Michael Llodra, the tournament’s 22nd seed, in the first round — in his match against Gael Monfils. Darcis lost in straight sets. (Draw: See how the rest of the guys are doing)

Lookbook: Just the basic stuff from this brand. Nothing to write home about visually, so let’s hope they make it up in fabric choice and quality construction. See more images from their Spring/Summer 2011 line

fashion focus: lacoste’s 40th anniversary with roland garros

Lacoste and Roland Garros put their heads together for a small collection in time to celebrate their 40th anniversary. Men’s and women’s pieces include polos with embroidered anniversary logos, screenprinted tees (two with photos from a 1973 ad campaign), and custom packaging.

The power of the Euro: Oh, that conversion rate… You can look at the goods at the Roland Garros Store

(images via storerolandgarros.com)

monfils wears k-swiss fading stripe in purple

Purple, please: Roland Garros 14th seed Gael Monfils booked a spot in the fourth round by taking out Belgian Steve Darcis in straight sets. He’ll go up against David Ferrer — the Spaniard we predict will go all the way to the semis. Yep, that means a potential win over Roger Federer. (Draw: RG Men’s Singles)

With the Nike men toning down their attire, Gael and K-Swiss have stepped up by using purple and showing off the Frenchman’s guns this spring. The color always reminds us of Serena‘s clay dress from 2007. More info: K-Swiss Fading Stripe Series.

More: A few more on-court pics of Gael going up against Bjorn Phau and Steve Darcis

kolyateral damage

Shirtless: Croatia’s Antonio Veic did his part to make a name for the qualifiers who reached the third round of this year’s French Open (the others: Leonardo Mayer, Lukasz Kubot, Lukas Rosol). In the process, Veic took down 28th seed Nikolay Davydenko 3-6, 6-2, 7-5, 3-6, 6-1. Veic next plays Nadal. (Draw: RG Men’s Singles)

More: A few more shots of Veic in (and out) of his Lotto gear, plus Kolya in his Dunlop kit. Nothing to see there, really. It’s just for my records…. See it all

goerges keeps it classy

No better way to dress up your Nike clothes than with some pearl studs and painted nails. Too bad Julia Goerges couldn’t run away with a first set win over Marion Bartoli, eventually losing 6-3, 2-6, 4-6 to the 11th seed.

Draw: Things are all kinds of crazy in that top section of the draw, with both Caro out (upset by Dani Hantuchova) and Stosur going down to Dulko. See how it’s all playing out.

Clothes: Julia wore the Nike Maria Sharapova separates from this season.

(photo by Alexander Klein/Getty Images)

practice makes perfect: andy murray keeps it real

French Open: 4th seed Andy Murray is through to the third round with wins over qualifier Eric Prodon and Italian Simone Bolelli. Up next is Michael Berrer. (Draw: RG Men’s Singles)

Buy: adidas Originals Stan Smith Printed T-Shirt, $46.16, asos.com.

(image via Getty Images)

flashin’ the pearly whites

Just as we were scratching our heads to figure out what the eff happened to Arnaud Clement, the scowly Frenchman (he and Kolya Davydenko should start a club) showed flashes of smileyness after beating Italian Filippo Volandri in four tough sets to open his 2011 French Open campaign. Unfortunately, Clement’s wildcard didn’t do him so good: he fell to Michael Berrer in the subsequent round. (Draw: RG Men’s Singles)

Clothes: The Lacoste kids are still wearin’ the same Striped Tennis Polo that they’ve been using all clay season long.

(photos by Alexander Klein/AFP/Getty Images)

sharapova survives scare

Maria Sharapova‘s trying to consolidate that title win in Rome, but not without trouble: she had a slight hiccup in second round while facing French wildcard Caroline Garcia, going down a set and 1-4 before grinding out the 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 victory. Up next for Masha is Yung-Jan Chan of Taiwan. (Draw: RG Women’s Singles)

Meanwhile, her eponymous accessories collection at Cole Haan dropped a blue nubuck version of the Air Bacara flats. (Flashback: Maria’s Cole Haan Spring 2011)

Buy: Air Bacara Ballet by Maria Sharapova by Cole Haan, $138, colehaan.com.

And speaking of her off-court dealings, one of TSF’s favorite writers, Eric Wilson, sates his Masha fa(n)scination with this article in the NYT Style Section.

(match photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images; Air Bacara image courtesy of Cole Haan)

nole’s spring tacchini kit in action

Novak Djokovic switched to a new Sergio Tacchini uniform as he hit the clay in Rome earlier this month. We thought that it’d be hard for him to top that black/orange kit — we consider that the best of that season, btw — but this current Serbia-inspired design is playful but not too juniors. From what we can tell, a coat of arms appears on the front lower-left corner of the polo and of course “Nole” printed on the back. The mass-market version has his initials where the coat of arms would be.

Rolling through Roland Garros: Nole’s still undefeated this year, having beaten Thiemo de Bakker and Victor Hanescu (ret) in the opening rounds of the French. He will face 25th seed Juan Martin del Potro in the third round. Draw: RG Men’s Singles.

Browse: Polo (“Nuell”), crewnecks (“Nur”), and warm-ups (“Nettuno”) from this collection available at Tennis Express.

We also hadn’t posted a pic of the “night” colorway (in black). Here’s a few looks of both versions

jelena jankovic goes back to pink

Jelena Jankovic continues on her bright-hued fashion path with a bright pink stop at this year’s French Open. (She wore pale pink to start out the year in Australia.) The floral pattern on her Anta dress is the same as the one she’s worn this spring (but in green). We might have opted for something other than the purple shoes — perhaps some yellow, to tease out that accent color from her dress? — but we’re loving how it looks against the clay.

Tennis: Jelena’s through to the third round after beating Alona Bondarenko and Vera Dushevina in straight sets. Her opponent will be the currently on-fire Bethanie Mattek-Sands. (Draw: Women’s Singles)

More: Two more pics

french fashion focus: sharapova looks to steel and diamonds

Paris, Je t’aime: The French Open dress on Maria Sharapova was inspired by the City of Lights, marrying Masha’s ideal for unrestricted movement with the theory behind the Eiffel Tower’s construction: the structure is lighter that it seems.

And so they created this lightweight yellow Line 9 dress (referring to the Paris Metro, we assume). Note the top mesh layer on the skirt, which adds to the visible flowiness as Maria moves around the court, and the diamond cut-out on the back. All the lines along the body harken to old methods of corsetry now applied with modern techniques. She keeps going back to corsets, that one.

For the curious, she’s wearing a Nike Luna Speed 3 shoe.

Buy: Nike Line 9 Knit Tennis Dress, $120, tennisexpress.com.

Girl’s best friend: The Tiffany & Co. drop earrings that she’s wearing this week have rose-cut diamonds set in platinum. Buy: Tiffany cobblestone earrings with rose-cut diamonds in platinum; $3,200; tiffany.com.

Brackets: At the French, seventh-seeded Maria took out Mirjana Lucic 6-3, 6-0 in the first round and next faces Caroline Garcia. How far do you think she’ll go? Remember, she took a title in Rome. You can see the rest of her section of the draw here.

Photos: See more pics of of her Nike dress and shoes

shirtless: maxime teixeira

Frenchman Maxime Teixeira won the battle of local wildcards at Roland Garros, beating Vincent Millot 6-2, 5-7, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-1 in the first round. Unfortunately, he now faces third seed Roger Federer. (Read: How TSF sees the ATP draw playing out.)

(b)Asics: See all the pieces from this Spring’s Asics line — a crew, a polo, shorts — at Tennis Express. Note: the colors are “Real White” and “Diving Blue.”

(A cause des Garçons via Down the Line!)