If the races is a nightclub, the tennis is a long lunch with spectators in silk dresses, sneakers and tailored shorts
Something is happening sartorially at the Australian Open. In addition to the on-and-off-court partnerships with some of the world’s most recognisable fashion brands (Rolex, Louis Vuitton and Polo Ralph Lauren), Melbourne Park visitors are dressing up.
The men are in tailored knee-length shorts, leather loafers and softly textured button-downs. The women are in pretty mid-to-ankle-length dresses and sneakers or flat sandals. While the crowd’s look at the country’s biggest sporting event (the organisers expect it to inject more than $600m into the economy) is undeniably preppy – plenty of jumpers are tied around shoulders and T-shirts are tucked into high-waisted trousers – the energy is decidedly more inclusive than a cordoned-off country club. Even though almost everyone looks as if you threw them a racket they’d happily take to court.