Inside story on the innovative new kit being worn by Alexander Zverev at Wimbledon
The fashion designers are tested when they are asked to come up with innovative designs for Wimbledon apparel, with the all-white rule restricting creative flair.
Yet Alexander Zverev and Felix Auger Aliassime are among a select band of players sporting an eye-catching new range of clothing that may be among the more technically advanced we have seen in tennis.
Adidas’ CLIMACOOL+ collection is a new fabric innovation engineered to help athletes perform in warm and humid conditions, which may be very useful for the players using it at Wimbledon, as a heatwave is predicted to sweep into London for the second week of the Championships.
Developed through athlete insight, physiological testing, and sport-specific performance analysis, CLIMACOOL+ represents Adidas’ most advanced innovation within its CLIMA system to date, helping athletes stay cool, dry and mobile when heat, humidity, sweat, and intensity collide.
The eye-catching design features ‘pill’ imprints onto the shirt, with create a physical gap between skin and garment where air circulates, enabling airflow and supporting sweat evaporation like never before in the sport.
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Unlike traditional flat performance garments, the embossed elements are engineered to maximise airflow without trapping heat, helping reduce wet cling and discomfort during high-intensity play.
“CLIMACOOL+ is a cooling innovation you can both see and feel,” said Margherita Raccuglia, Director of Athlete Performance, adidas.
“Most ventilation-based technologies focus only on fabric. CLIMACOOL+ changes the structure of the garment itself, creating airflow exactly where athletes need it most. This offers performance benefits born directly from athlete insight, including Sebastian Sawe, who ran his record-breaking Sub-two-hour marathon in a singlet featuring the technology.”
Tennis365 spoke to Zverev about the importance of feeling comfortable on court, as he admitted the apparel and shoes he wears are crucial elements of his armoury.
“You need to feel good on court and not worry about anything other than the tennis,” Zverev told Tennis365 in an exclusive interview.
“I’ve been with Adidas for a long time now, so they know what I like. For me, it’s not just about what the outfit looks like, but more about the fit and the feel of the material they use.
“They have been working extremely well with him on this over the last few years and I feel like they always come up with something that looks good for Wimbledon, even though it can only be white.
“It’s part of the tradition at Wimbledon that everyone wear white. I like it. When the players come out on the grass court in the white kit, it looks pretty cool. It’s different to what we have the rest of the year.”
Newly crowned French Open champion Zverev also confirmed that as his ranking and profile increased, so did the influence he had over his on-court clothing.
“You do have more say in what clothes you wear as you rise up the ranking,” added Zverev.
“We have conversations all the time about what I like. We need to wear tennis clothes all the time, so when I go to a press conference or when I’m on the practice court, we can wear something different, so we have a collection.”
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