Coco Gauff Breaks Tennis Style with Denim Shorts on Court

Coco Gauff hit the tennis court in jean shorts and New Balance tennis shoes.

Coco Gauff of the United States laughs during a practice session before a tennis match. / Mike Frey-Imagn Images

Tennis is as much style as it is substance. There is a long list of important fashion trends that emerged from the sport. Then some never got off the ground, like John McEnroe's striped tube socks, Rafael Nadal's capris, and Carlos Alcaraz's nasal strip.

This week, Coco Gauff made her mark on tennis fashion - even if it was not a planned decision. The 20-year-old attended a Tyler the Creator concert at the Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival in Los Angeles this past weekend. Despite the season being over, Gauff still had to hit the practice court.

Although Gauff is a signature New Balance athlete, the WTA Finals champion did not have a pair of performance tennis shorts on hand. So, she had to play in denim shorts, commonly referred to as "Jorts."

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Pictures from Gauff's practice partners began circulating on social media, so she addressed the questionable fashion choice on her Instagram story.

Gauff shared a video of herself playing tennis alongside American singer and songwriter Faye Webster. She captioned the story, "ntm (not to mention) on my jorts (laughing emoji) it was all I had lolll wasn't planning on hitting (crying and skull emojis)."

While Gauff may not have been proud of her jorts on the tennis court, she has consistently grabbed headlines for her signature New Balance apparel and tennis shoes.

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At the age of 14, Gauff first signed a multi-year contract with New Balance in October 2018. Fast forward a few years, and Gauff signed a long-term extension with New Balance in November 2022. She is the only active player on the WTA Tour with her own signature shoe.

In December 2023, Gauff was named the highest-earning female athlete in the world. She earned $23 million with an estimated $16 million in endorsements alone, according to Sportico. That is enough money to buy a lot of denim jorts.

Gauff finished 2024 as the World No. 3 with a record of 52-16 and three singles titles. Also, she was a flagbearer for Team USA at the Paris Summer Olympics. Tennis fans can follow Sports Illustrated's Serve on SI for all the most important news from the sport.

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