As plans to restart professional tennis gather pace, the French Open is currently the only major tournament scheduled for 2020. The clay-court tournament played at Roland-Garros was initially slated to be held May 24-June 7, but was postponed amid the coronavirus pandemic and rescheduled for Sept. 20-Oct. 4. By the time French Open officials switched the start date it was too late to stop Nike’s marketing juggernaut. The on and off court apparel designs for Nike sponsored players were already finalized and the accompanying action photos were ready to go.
Why let carefully crafted marketing materials go to waste? Especially when those materials include perfectly lit shots of rising star Felix Auger-Aliassime and reigning French Open champ Rafael Nadal. Accordingly, Nike’s Paris Collection is now the Summer ’20 NikeCourt Collection. There are tell-tail signs of the merchandises original purpose. From the shades of blue used throughout – a signature of Nike’s French Open kits – to Rafa’s bull logo on the AeroReact Rafa Slam Top and Dri-FIT Rafa Shorts, which also includes a zigzag pattern on the side panels inspired by his movements on the court.
Felix Auger-Aliassime was photographed in the NikeCourt Slam top. Made with at least 50% recycled polyester, the lightweight top comes in two styles, both with Parisian-inspired stripes. The stripes are also used on the matching NikeCourt Slam Shorts, made with 100% recycled polyester. The Parisian inspiration carries over to the NikeCourt T-Shirt, covered in a lighthearted print made up of macarons, croissants, Panama hats, mini clay courts and a flag that says Bon Match – symbols of the tournament and host city. The men’s collection also includes polo shirts that can be worn on or off the court and two sweatsuits, one in ‘streetwear-inspired denim’ performance fabric. Most of the pieces are made with recycled polyester.
Shop the Summer ’20 NikeCourt Collection now at nike.com.
