Everything old was new again at the 2024 US Open. Many of the players, like Naomi Osaka, Coco Gauff, Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton, aced the style game with throwback looks—from not-so-mellow yellow to super-short shorts.
Here are the top throwback ‘fits, kits and accessories, along with a couple of bespoke outfits.
1. Not-so-mellow yellow
The eighties are back—at least in terms of the Day-Glo yellow accents worn by many of the players. Among them, defending champion Gauff brightened her sky-blue New Balance dress with a tennis-ball yellow headband, wristbands and piping. Compatriot Peyton Stearns wore bright yellow shorts under a filmy white skirt and, like Coco, a neon yellow wristband.
Not to be outdone, Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk was brilliant in an all-yellow dress with a full skirt and strappy back, and her countrywoman, Lyudmyla Kichenok, kept the vibes going deep into Week 2 as she and Jelena Ostapenko won the women's doubles title.
2. Candy-colored kits
Many of the male players explored their softer side, sartorially speaking, donning a candy shop’s worth of pinks, purples and baby blues. Cast your mind back to the “My Little Pony” palette and you’ll be in the right neighborhood.
Home hope Tiafoe, never one to shy away from a bold kit, declined to offer an opinion about his lavender singlet, trimmed in magenta. After his Round 1 win, he flipped the question to the stadium.
“I mean, do you guys like it?” Tiafoe asked. (They did.) His round 3 opponent and fellow American Shelton rocked On’s version of Tiafoe’s Nike number—similarly hued singlet and shorts. Stylish Italian Flavio Cobolli wore the On kit as well, but his version had short sleeves, one of them black.
On the women's side, Iga Swiatek showed off her version of the On two-piece: first in white with ombe accents, before the pink-and-blue version made its debut in the quarterfinals.
3. Shorty shorts
It’s news to no one that men’s tennis shorts have been moving ever higher up the thigh, a look reminiscent of John McEnroe’s itsy-bitsy bottoms, circa 1980s. Among modern-day men, Tomas Machac, from the Czech Republic, takes the prize for the shortest shorts, all the better to show off his strong quadricep game.
He is rivaled by fellow “quadzilla”—Dane Holger Rune—who had to pack up his brief briefs after being bounced out in Round 1.
4. Bandanas for days
Speaking of McEnroe, Diana Shnaider’s signature echoes that of the American tennis legend, who was seldom seen without a headband across his forehead, often a bandana.
When asked, Shnaider revealed that she packed six or seven of them for the Flushing fortnight, consulting her mom about which she should wear from day to day.
5. Surprising slits
One of the more ubiquitous dresses was a long-sleeve Adidas number with controversial cutouts running from the collarbone to the armpit. Seen on Jessica Pegula, Elina Svitolina, Elena-Gabriela Ruse and others, the purple-and-black Pro Wow dress, as it’s called, “was inspired by the hard courts of New York,” said a statement from the brand.
Bucking the trend: custom looks
And then there are the players who opted for bespoke kits. Among the most notable was Osaka, who wore a customized “brat” green Nike dress with tulle, ruffles and a big bow, along with an evening version of the look in black.
Caroline Wozniacki did her own thing, too, sporting an Adidas jacket that was emblazoned with her bio, more or less. On it: an Aussie Open trophy (she won there in 2018), the number one (her world ranking in 2010 and 2011), the number 30 (for her career titles) and her children’s names.
Parting shot: The lady in red
Aryna Sabalenka not only stunned with her custom on-court Nike look, but after seven victories, slipped into a bold, red dress to celebrate with her third Grand Slam singles trophy.
