Berrettini's outfit banned by Wimbledon bosses for not being white enough

Matteo Berrettini has revealed that he has been banned from wearing a special walk-on outfit at Wimbledon by All England Club chiefs; watch the ATP and WTA Tours live on Sky Sports Tennis and Sky Sports+, streaming service NOW and the Sky Sports app

>Matteo Berrettini's outfit for his clash with Arthur Fils was banned by Wimbledon chiefs for not being white enough.

>Former Wimbledon runner-up Berrettini is sponsored by fashion brand Hugo Boss. The Italian had posted promotional images of his outfit, which included a beige jacket, on Instagram, but he was not permitted to wear it.

>After he lived up to his dark horse tag with an impressive second-round win over 20th seed Arthur Fils to earn a first Centre Court triumph since 2021, Berrettini said his outfit was a "little brownish" so Wimbledon "didn't let me do it".

>Berrettini was asked if he had the option to wear an outfit on court, the Italian said: "There was an option actually, but I got refused by Wimbledon.

>"It was not white enough. It was a little bit off-white. Then on the colour, it was a little bit brownish.

>"I seen it once, so there was an option, but they didn't let me do it. It's okay."

>A post shared by Matteo Berrettini (@matberrettini)

>Berrettini was asked whether his outfit could yet be seen, he added: "No, you could see it actually on my social media. I posted about it.

>"I did a shooting with that. Yeah, unfortunately I couldn't go on court with that."

>Wimbledon has a strict all-white dress code for players, stating on their website: "Competitors must be dressed in suitable tennis attire that is almost entirely white and this applies from the point at which the player enters the court surround."

>A post shared by Taylor Fritz (@taylor_fritz)

>Taylor Fritz, who is also signed to Boss, has been walking out for matches in a flamboyant tailored suit.

>Fritz admitted his outfit put more pressure on him to perform as he made his way onto court for his second-round match against Patrick Kypson.

>"I think people are going to be torn," the American said. "I think some people are going to like it and some people are going to think that anyone who is dressed up to walk out is doing too much.

>"[You feel] maybe not more nervous, but you show up in a full outfit and get snipped in the first round, you kind of look stupid. You look really stupid, honestly."

>Novak Djokovic wore a fetching white blazer for his first-round match against Wu Yibing.

>The 39-year-old, who has been tied with Margaret Court on 24 major singles titles since the 2023 US Open, is aiming to become the most successful Grand Slam singles champion in tennis history.

>Naomi Osaka turned heads during her matches at SW19 by wearing an all-white 'Kill Bill' inspired kimono.

>"When I think about Wimbledon, it's obviously the all white,' four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka said.

>"When I think about that, I think about my cultures, my heritage, which is Japanese and Haitian.

>"Then if I dive deeper into like Japanese culture, I think about the most iconic silhouette, which for me is a kimono. You don't have to see the colour of a kimono to know that it is a kimono."

>A post shared by British Vogue (@britishvogue)

>Spain's Jessica Bouzas was warned by an umpire earlier this week after part of a black undershirt became visible beneath her white playing kit.

>"A problem here is that they are very strict with many things," she said. "I think it was a bit of black here, and you can't do that, so I will have to sort it out."

>Andre Agassi famously boycotted Wimbledon between 1988 and 1990 because of the dress code before returning in all white and eventually lifting the title in 1992 as he beat two former champions in the form of Boris Becker and John McEnroe en route to the crown.

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