PARIS: On tennis’ greatest stages, they have told stories inspired by sakura, cherry blossoms in Japanese, symbolising beauty, renewal and the fleeting nature of life; they’ve highlighted Harajuku, a street in Tokyo, runway for frills and bows. The most talked-about was the dramatic jellyfish-motivated ensemble she wore at the Australian Open in January, walking onto court in a large white hat with a veil and a matching parasol.“I don’t talk a lot, so this way I can talk through my clothes,” the 28-year-old Japanese said at Roland Garros. “This means I can be as loud with colours or patterns or fabric as I want.”On a blazing-hot Tuesday in Paris, with temperatures topping 30 degrees for the third consecutive day of the French Open and volunteers moving around the grounds carrying 500 ml water bottles priced at 3.80 euros (about INR 420), 17-year-old Parisian Moise Kouame stunned former world No. 3 Marin Cilic 7-6 (4), 6-2, 6-1 on Court Simonne-Mathieu in his debut. On Court Suzanne Lenglen, sixth-seeded Daniil Medvedev fell in a wildly fluctuating contest, losing 6-2, 1-6, 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 to Australia’s Adam Walton.Into that setting walked Osaka for her Roland Garros opener against Germany’s Laura Siegemund. The four-time major champion arrived in a sweeping black two-piece, waistcoat and skirt. After the toss, she peeled away the blacks that were created by Kevin Germanier, a Swiss fashion designer based in Paris, to reveal a layered brown dress, streaked with gold sequins running vertically down the fabric. Under the relentless Paris sky, she resembled a moving chandelier.Someone in the crowd shouted: “Love your dress, Naomi!”The spirited Siegemund, 38 and ranked 47, is trouble wherever she lands in the draw. For the heavy-hitting Osaka, a decade her junior, the sternest examination came in the second set when she trailed 3-5. The 16th seed raised her level at precisely the right moment to close out a 6-3, 7-6 (3) victory.By the end of the near two-hour contest, it felt as though Lenglen had reserved its loudest applause for her outfit.“I feel like the Eiffel Tower at night when it’s sparkly,” she said during her on-court interview.Later, at her post-match exchange, the Japanese was asked if it was tough to switch into match mode after an entry like that.“I don’t really feel like it’s too much of a big deal to do that. I could see where people would think I feel a little stressed or whatever. I think that’s kind of the thing about it,” she said. “I feel Grand Slam walk-ons are the only time that I possibly feel like I’m an entertainer.” Osaka is helping restore fashion’s theatre to the sport.“I feel like we lost that a little in tennis,” she said. “I grew up with Serena’s and Venus’s (Williams) grand reveals. I literally can look at a picture and probably tell you what year that outfit came from. I am a little dramatic when it comes to my fashion sense.” If Osaka expressed herself through clothes, world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka leaned into diamonds. The Belarusian wore a layered necklace, strands of garnets and diamonds, which she reduced to two, to complement her black dress.“The diamonds, I don’t really feel the heaviness of it, but I can imagine how it looks from the outside,” she said, adding, “There’s supposed to be the third necklace, but I was, like, it’s kind of too much probably, so I decided to keep it to just two (strings).”The top seed, who reached the final here for the first time last year, underlined, “If I feel good about what I’m wearing, or how I look on court, I tend to perform much better.”Sabalenka must have felt very good indeed, if the 6-4, 6-2 scoreline was anything to go by.
