We’ve got the actress and model Zendaya to thank for this recent revival of knife-pleated skirts, cable-knit sweaters and tennis dresses. Earlier this month, Zendaya brought Tenniscore to the red carpet during her press run of Challengers, the highly anticipated sports drama about a tennis prodigy whose career is cut short due to injury. From a halter-style mini dress and tennis ball heeled shoes to a tailored tennis dress, Zendaya’s overtly glam Tenniscore outfits grabbed everyone’s attention. Her long-time stylist Law Roach then took to X (formerly twitter) encouraging cinema-goers to wear ‘Tenniscore only’ when watching Challengers.



That’s all it took for the trend to go viral. Depop has reported a 93% increase in searches for Slazenger and a 52% increase in searches for tennis skirts. Meanwhile, the iconic Nike pleated tennis skirt is all over Pinterest and TikTok - and this is all before Wimbledon mania kicks off.

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Tennis and fashion has long gone hand in hand. Staples such as cable-knit sweaters, visors, box-fresh white trainers and sporty skorts are reminiscent of Princess Diana’s effortlessly classy athleisure look. ‘The style set have rightly caught on how to how flattering and “quiet luxury” the tennis aesthetic is and are adopting elements of the world’s most sartorially refined sport within their day to day wardrobe to create elevated “off court” looks that are proving to be a hit on Instagram and Pinterest. Pleats, polo shirts, V-necks, sumptuous cottons, ankle socks and an awful lot of white are the order of the day,’ says Laura Ward, founder of EXEAT, the luxury tennis apparel brand. ‘The overall effect, if done well, is a timelessly chic take on preppy athleisure.’

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Whether you’re dressing for on or off court, here’s how to ace this summer’s Tenniscore trend. Game on.