Andy Murray’s move from adidas to Under Armour is the highest-profile shift this off-season.
But it’s not the only one.
Here’s a roundup of changes, swag and surprising sponsorships.
Kits
Monica Puig has gone from adidas to Ellesse.
Although she wasn’t wearing anything that looked like the promotional pic at right this week in Auckland.
Meanwhile, Ellesse has added Feliciano Lopez to Tommy Haas on the men’s side, along with ageless veteran Pat Cash.
They definitely have the market cornered on veteran hotties.
Now, the verdict on the kits themselves? Well, generally the men’s stuff has been great – clean lines, fresh colours. But it’s not that tough to put together the men’s kits; there aren’t a zillion options. Shirts and shorts.
Here’s what Lopez looked like in Abu Dhabi:
Here’s what Puig looked like in Auckland. We rate this kits on the basis of “how would average, normal people look in them (i.e., me), and would they buy them?
This gets an absolute thumbs’ up. It’s fresh, clean, flattering to all body types and if the colours on the first dress are a little too reminiscent of last spring’s Fila collection by Hilfiger, it’s not too egregious. It’s on the buy list.
Now poor Elina Svitolina, in Brisbane this week …
This is a very attractive young woman. But definitely not a clothes hangar. She was the first Ellesse women’s rep of their new tennis life. So why do they have to put stuff on her that’s 1) ugly. 2) doesn’t even match 3) forces upon her patterns your grandma would reject for her kitchen curtains and 4) make her look chunky?
And what’s with all the banana/canary/whatever yellow? The skirt above is a pretty good ripoff of some of Lacoste’s 2014 skirts. But here’s the thing – the yellows and the blues don’t even come close to matching. Seriously?
Poor Svitolina had to endure this pretty much the last two seasons. Some of it was not terrible.
To wit:
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Some, however, was an abomination.
To wit:
[slideshow_deploy id=’17982′]
It’s fairly clear that the message is this: no patterns. Monochrome, preferably darker shades. Not too busy. Clean lines. Also? She rocked the shorts.
Ellesse, get on it, please?
And, if you want a throwback, re-make this little number, which Svitolina wore for a sort of promotional throwback Vine.
Open Court had this one a few years ago – in both white and black, with a matching tracksuit (which we still have). Without the ab gap, of course.
What else?
Up-and-coming Serb (and thoroughly charming young’un) Jovana Jaksic will now be sporting Nike.
Meanwhile, the last few weeks, players have been getting their shipments:
TENNIS RACQUETS
On the tennis racquet side, Lucie Hradecka’s coach has noticed some changes in Auckland:
T’is true:
Barthel this week:
Barthel last year:
That wasn’t all.
Also true:
And still more …
Perceptive fellow.
On to more sponsorships:
Wawrinka’s shades are everywhere …
Aussie Nick Kyrgios, who is not Malaysian, only half of Malaysian descent through his mother and doesn’t live there, is the country’s new ambassador…
Luxury cars galore …
Aussie Sam Groth is back on the Kia bandwagon.
A year ago, when they would run his commercials on Channel 7 in Oz as he was getting his butt handed to him by Vasek Pospisil, the fact that this journeyman was getting this kind of endorsement while Pospisil, a seeded player, had nothing of the sort, was just one of those tennis inequalities.
Since then, Groth has made somewhat of a name for himself as a viable ATP-level player. So good on him.
Last but not least, 18-year-old British player Isabelle Wallace, the 37th-best junior in the world a year ago (she lost in the third round of the junior French Open this year to Montreal’s Françoise Abanda in two close sets) and currently ranked No. 697 on the WTA Tour, has a watch sponsor.
They’re hardly Rolexes. But that model goes for about $500. Nice work if you can get it.
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