Former Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini revealed he was banned from wearing a special walk-on outfit due to the All England Club’s strict dress code.
Berrettini reached the final at SW19 in 2021, but has failed to reach similar heights in recent editions due to persistent injury woes.
But the Italian has looked back to his best so far this year, knocking out Stan Wawrinka in the first round before upsetting 20th seed Arthur Fils on Centre Court to set up an eye-catching encounter against wildcard Grigor Dimitrov in the third round.
However, Berrettini hasn’t had it all his way at Wimbledon so far in the first week, with the 30-year-old revealing that he was banned from a Hugo Boss walk-on outfit because it was deemed not ‘white enough’.
Berrettini is sponsored by Hugo Boss and had posted promotional images of his outfit, which included a beige jacket, on Instagram before the tournament.
But speaking after his second-round victory, the Italian said: ‘There was an option [to wear an outfit] 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. So there was an option, but they didn’t let me do it. It’s okay.’
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.’
But while Berrettini was not allowed to sport his jacket, there was an eye-catching outfit from sixth-seed Taylor Fritz as he made his way onto court for his second-round match against Patrick Kypson.
The American is also sponsored by Hugo Boss, and later admitted the outfit did put more pressure on him to perform.
‘I think people are going to be torn,’ he 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.’
The star of the show when it comes to walk-on outfits remains Naomi Osaka, who has turned heads during her first two matches of the Championships.
Osaka wore an all-white ‘Kill Bill’ inspired kimono for her opening win over Elsa Jacquemot on Monday.
And in the second round, the four-time Grand Slam champion showcased a white jacket with floral decoration with a long train which trailed behind her and a cream obi belt.
‘When I think about Wimbledon, it’s obviously the all white,’ Osaka said earlier in the tournament.
‘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.’
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