Tennis is serving! How the US Open went high fashion

Carlos Alcarez in Barbie pink, Naomi Osaka crowned with rosebuds – tennis is becoming a hot ticket in the fashion world. And this time it is emerging not heritage brands dominating play

It has been one of the breakout stories of the US Open: not the surprising second-round exits, nor the at-the-net spats, but the freshly shorn head and Barbie-pink tank top of the winner, Carlos Alcaraz. The outsize reaction to the Spanish phenomenon’s new look is the latest example of the final grand slam of the year attracting attention not just for sporting prowess, but for the style moments it serves.

Take, for instance, former champion Naomi Osaka, who crashed out to Amanda Animisova in Thursday’s semi-final, but not before sparkling under the night lights in a custom Nike indigo zip-up jacket embellished with Swarovski crystals, worn over a bubble-hem minidress. For her opening match, she wore a rose headpiece. (Also present throughout Osaka’s tournament: a series of bejewelled Labubu dolls, created by accessories line A-Morir, with monikers including “Billie Jean Bling” and “Andre Swagassi”.) The getup was “really elaborate”, Osaka admitted in a press conference, but it’s the kind of statement outfit her fans have come to expect and appreciate.