THE JOURNAL

It’s the best of times, it’s the worst of times. As in, either you managed to scoop a ticket to Wimbledon in this year’s ballot, or… you didn’t. Fortunately, though a coveted seat at the world’s most famous tennis tournament is not available to everyone, many of its comforts are. Pimm’s, for example – available in your local off-licence. Strawberries and cream, for another – Waitrose. Granted, world-class tennis players are more difficult to come by, in the general scheme of things, but on the plus side we’re proud to announce that MR PORTER is now stocking the official Wimbledon collection from Polo Ralph Lauren. So you can at least look the part, even if your backhand is somewhat shaky. Scroll down to discover our favourite items from the collection – which lands on the site today – and what to wear them with, whether you’re watching on TV or from the stands. (Damn you.)
THE POLO SHIRT
A classic navy polo is always a welcome item in a man’s wardrobe. But this particular one has a commemorative function, too – the embroidered emblem on its chest points to the fact that Wimbledon is, in fact, 130 years old this year. We’d advise wearing it with a pair of chinos most of the time, but if the ticketed types among you do find yourselves wanting to dress it up a little bit, the colour will work very nicely with this cardigan-like blue hopsack blazer from Italian tailoring expert Boglioli.
THE WHITE SHORTS
These simple, nostalgically styled white tennis shorts are of a similar genre to those worn by Messrs Bryan Ferry, Dustin Hoffman and more during the 1970s, when tennis really took off as a glamorous international sport. It’s probably best to restrict their use to the court (ie, when you’re wistfully staging your own mini-Wimbledon, in a sort of over-compensating way), but there people will admire your timeless cool. Just make sure to update your sneakers with something a bit more technologically advanced – Stan Smiths are stylish and all but they aren’t nearly as kind to the ankles as Nike Tennis’s Air Vapor range.
THE WINDBREAKER
The windbreaker, in a sporting context, has a pleasing air of seriousness about it: no you’re not here for an excuse to wear a straw hat and rattle ice-cubes, you’re here to watch tennis. Eyes very much on the ball. Having said that, you can make a small concession to the summery festivity of the whole thing by pairing it with something stripy – this shirt from Parisian brand Officine Generale will do nicely.