By Jackie Roe, TW Social Director
Evening, TWibe! The Deuce Club is jam-packed this week, so let’s dive right in.
I have the results of the AO Sucide Pool, and it looks like we couldn't have asked for better TW representation . . . both the men's and women's pools were won by TWibers! Congratulations to Fatboy, who's the women's SP champ, and Jacko, who was one of the two champs on the men's side! No one beat the draw, but the survivors still did a bang-up job:
AO '11 Women's SP Champion Fatboy's picks: Petkovic - Jovanovski - Cibulkova - Pavlyuchenkova - Sharapova - Peng - Wozniacki - Radwanska - Li - Zvonareva - Clijsters - out of picks
AO '11 Men's SP Champion Jacko's picks: Nishikori - Berankis - Monfils - Garcia-Lopez - Wawrinka - Melzer - Berdych - Ferrer - Federer - Murray - Djokovic - out of picks
Awesome job, guys. You guys get a framed photo of any player, right? Who are you choosing?
I have a melange of AO-related goodies for you (I hope you think they're goodies, anyway), starting with an AO fashion rundown.
I usually talk fashion in the first DC during a Slam, but I stayed away from the topic last week, assuming you'd already heard and read enough about it. Not a wise move! Seems some of you missed the tradition—and I missed hearing your impressions, too!—so here's my fashion report, a week late. Share yours in the comments!
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Generally, I liked what I saw, especially all of the bright colors; the greens, pinks, and yellows contrasted nicely against the surroundings. What year was it when seemingly everyone was dressed in blue and blended in with the courts? Was it just last year? I'm glad there was less of that, though I will say I didn't mind del Potro's blue in the least—good to see him again, in any color.
An interesting color-related observation from my sister: She doesn't like it when the players wear colorful shorts, favoring blacks, whites, and greys instead. Something about how they’d look ridiculous if they wore that outside of the tennis court. That never even occurred to me! I don't object to it, as long as the bottom matches the top. What do you guys think?
!Justine Thumbs up
Ivanovic: Loved the green and purple color combination
Sharapova: Liked the orange sherbet and grey (at first I saw lilac—am I colorblind?) and that it's toned down from what she's worn in the last few Slams; could do without all of the straps, though
Henin (I'll miss you, Justine!): Again, nice color combination; athletic, no frills but still feminine
Azarenka: Somehow always ends up looking awkward despite having a great figure, but this pink number is flattering since it elongates her upper body
Dulko: Unlike some, I really liked the Lacoste kit; it’s unique but not in an outlandish way, with the visible drawstring and the sexy-but-not-scandalous keyhole opening
Benesova: Another eye-catching color combination, with the white and salmon (or is it more coral?); something about its simplicity that drew me to it—I'd want to wear this myself!
Kuznetsova: Midnight blue, white, and red Fila kit was sporty, functional, and fit her perfectly
Scheepers (why was I watching Scheepers again? ;)): Huge thumbs up on her K-Swiss black skirt, because it actually moved! More of that, please.
Federer: Cheery; coined him Sunny Side Up Fed. Another analogy—he’s the sun and the clouds against the blue sky. I need sleep.
Murray: I like seeing color on him (that wasn’t meant to be a joke), though the green and white is somehow more appealing than the green and black
Berdych: As with Fed, loved the yellow—bright and summery, popped on the screen.
Ferrer: His Lotto was more of a highlighter/radioactive yellow (compared to Berd’s Nike)—I thought it'd come across as offensive, but instead it was pretty striking
Lots of guys were in the color-bombed Adidas kits, and I actually didn’t mind them, even though it looked like a Fruit Roll-Up exploded on them. I did prefer the white version I saw on Monaco to the watermelon one Verdasco sported—less of an assault on the eyes.
Thumbs in the middle
Jankovic: Her dress fit her well, but the shade of pink was a little too bubblegummy for my taste. And what was with the jagged hemline?
Pennetta: Not terrible, but it felt a little too casual—like something you’d sleep in. And horizontal stripes are tough to pull off.
Safina: Sailor Moon.
Petrova: Not good, but not nearly as bad as we’ve seen in the past, right? So she gets a pass. Still, the tiered ruffled skirt has got to go.
Clijsters: Fine, I guess, but as Jenni said, is she trying to find out who stole her lucky charms?
Simon: Liked that he had a different look than usual, but not so keen on the clashing greens (shirt stripes vs. shorts).
Raonic: Simple, classic Lacoste look was a nice change of pace from the loud colors—but a tad boring
Thumbs down
Wozniacki: That skirt! I don't think you could've made it more unflattering if you tried. In the words of Jenni (again), she looked like an upside-down cupcake.
Venus: The blue number was too, too, short, and the material looked cheap—on Twitter, one compared it to a bathing suit, another to wrapping paper. The yellow outfit was even worse, if that's possible. I could’ve warmed up to the silky, iridescent skirt, but that lattice top was exquisitely tacky. (Click here for more on Vee’s fashion.)
Rezai. Always Rezai.
Roddick: I guess thumbs down is kind of harsh, but I really didn’t like that his shorts were black. Should’ve been blue to match the collar/detailing on his shirt.
Nieminen: On Twitter I said his shirt looked like “Mondrian meets vomit”
Sorry I don’t have photos, TWibe . . . hope some of these kits are still fresh in your memory so you can share your own fashion dos and don’ts!
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Next up: I thought it’d be fun if you shared your favorite quote from this year’s AO. The ones I found most amusing are below:
Q. You called me a stalker the other day.
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Yes.
Q. Have you had a problem with a stalker before?
MARIA SHARAPOVA: Not until you, no. I don't know why you're here today. That shouldn't have happened. You even have a sign. Oh, goodness (laughter). That's wrong.
