Catwalk on centre court

In 1949, Gertrude "Gorgeous Gussie" Moran caused a furore by wearing decorative lacy knickers under her tennis dress; players have dressed to get noticed ever since Photograph: Getty

There is a lot of talk from the sportswear designers about the functionality of the clothes: Maria Sharapova's Nike outfit has "a modified racer back for better range of motion". However, I can't work out what this means, other than that it's not too tight for her to move her shoulders, which seems blindingly obvious Photograph: Clive Brunskill/Getty

Nike notes that "Maria will also be wearing Tiffany Swing Triple Drop Earrings with diamonds set in platinum, that retail for $5,000." If you can't blind the opposition with sport-science, blind them with diamonds Photograph: Fiona Hanson/AP

What is new is the extent to which tennis stars are incorporating not just glamour, but trend. Roger Federer's penchant for retro, garden-party attire is well documented, but on Monday he stepped on to court in a cardigan - the premier success story in menswear of the past two years. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/Guardian

This autumn, the style looks set to get a boost from the Brideshead Revisited movie (above) which designers are beginning to reference on the catwalk Photograph: PR/PR

The decision by the No 3 seed Sharapova to ditch a miniskirt for shorts reflects what style-savvy women have been doing for the past two summers. Of her pleated, bib-fronted top, Sharapova said: "It's kind of a tuxedo look, very simple lines, classic." Tuxedo-styling is a strong theme in womenswear for next season Photograph: Alastair Grant/AP

Urszula Radwanska's mini-tutu is no less on trend. Givenchy's most recent haute couture collection was inspired by Odette/Odile from Swan Lake, and has sparked a rash of ballet-theming on the high street Photograph: Clive Brunskill/Getty

Ana Ivanovic proved that she is on top form in styling by swapping the puffball number she wore in Paris for a petal-shaped skirt that has echoes of Prada's flower-fairy themed summer collection Photograph: Nils Jorgensen/Rex Features

The Williams sisters, of course, are a law unto themselves. Venus chose a neckline that owed more to the red carpets of LA than the catwalks of Paris Photograph: Anja Niedringhaus/AP

Serena's on-trend mini-trench was all the more fashionable for being unseasonable (fashionistas always start wearing autumn trends in high summer) but the effect, as always with Serena, was pure showbiz. Had John McEnroe been in the commentary box yesterday when she strolled on court to warm up in a trench coat, he would have known just what to drawl: "Serena, you cannot be serious." But serious is exactly what she is. And Wimbledon has had a top-to-toe makeover Photograph: Alastair Grant/AP