When the phoenix robe and Hanfu meet tennis champions, Gauff and Rybakina win finals for two consecutive years

There is a saying: "Clothes make the man, and a horse relies on its saddle." Indeed, wearing magnificent attire can elevate a person's aura and boost their confidence, which can subtly change their circumstances. Over the past two years, two tennis stars came to Beijing, donned traditional Chinese clothing, and also achieved impressive results on the tennis court. So, who exactly are these two tennis champions? What traditional Chinese outfits did they put on? After wearing these clothes, what remarkable results did they accomplish when they returned to the tennis court? Today, let this article take you on a journey to find out.

At the end of May 2024, Gauff won her first Grand Slam women's doubles title at Roland Garros. Although she had already won a tour title earlier in the 2024 season, for most of the season, Gauff failed to reach the finals of any WTA1000 event, let alone lift a WTA1000 trophy that year.

In late September, Gauff arrived at the China Open. As a seeded player, she received a first-round bye. During a break from training and matches, she visited the Forbidden City and wore the Chinese royal garment — the phoenix robe. Perhaps wearing the phoenix robe boosted Gauff’s confidence, as after her first-round bye, she won in straight sets in the second round against French player Burel, who recently reached the quarterfinals of a WTA500 event. Subsequently, Gauff defeated British player Bolt, Japanese player Osaka, Ukrainian player Starodubtseva, and Spanish player Badosa, reaching the finals of a WTA1000 event for the first time in the 2024 season. In the final, she decisively beat Czech player Muchova to claim her first WTA1000 title of 2024.

Moreover, Gauff’s confidence continued after wearing the phoenix robe. In early November, she won group matches at the year-end championships by defeating her compatriot Pegula and Poland’s Swiatek to reach the semifinals. In the semifinals, Gauff won in straight sets against Belarusian player Sabalenka, making her first appearance in the year-end final. Despite losing the first set in the final, she came back to win the next two sets against Chinese player Zheng Qinwen, securing her first career year-end championship title.

In 2025, it was not until May that Rybakina, the former Wimbledon champion from Kazakhstan, won her first tour title of the season. Despite this, for a long time afterward, her world ranking was overshadowed by Russian player Andreyeva, keeping her just out of reach of the year-end championships.

In mid-October, as the tournament’s third seed, Rybakina competed at the WTA500 Ningbo Open. Being a seeded player, she received a first-round bye. At an event organized by the tournament, she wore traditional Chinese clothing — Hanfu. She felt relaxed and experienced a thorough mental rest.

After changing into her tennis outfit and stepping onto the court, Rybakina battled through three tough sets to defeat Ukrainian player Yastremska, who once reached a Grand Slam semifinal, in the second round. Following that, she went on a winning streak, defeating Australian player Tomljanovic, Italian player Paolini, and Russian player Aleksandrova. After claiming her second tour title of the 2025 season, her chances of qualifying for the year-end championships brightened considerably.

Later, Rybakina reached the semifinals of the WTA500 Tokyo Open, securing her spot on the last train to the year-end championships. At the year-end event, she was unstoppable, defeating American Anisimova, who had twice reached Grand Slam finals, six-time Grand Slam champion Poland’s Swiatek, and Russian Aleksandrova to reach the semifinals. In the semifinals, she came from behind to beat American Pegula, who had previously made a Grand Slam final, advancing to the year-end final and coming within one step of the championship.

In the final, after taking the first set 6-3, Rybakina resisted pressure from Belarusian Sabalenka in the second set and did not allow her opponent to score a point in the tiebreak, winning the match and claiming her first year-end championship title. Objectively speaking, traditional Chinese clothing did bring confidence to Gauff and Rybakina, but they also possess considerable skill themselves. Hopefully, in the future, traditional Chinese attire will bring good luck to Chinese female tennis players. Let’s look forward to it! That’s today’s tennis story; more to come tomorrow.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Yixin Jushi)