This three-part series details the apparel choices made by Nike for their main sponsored players – Maria Sharapova, Serena Williams and Na Li. As Na Li is lesser known as compared to Williams and Sharapova, a short discussion of her career achievements is
necessary before her attire is discussed.
Na Li was, until 2010, one of the lesser known players on the Women’s Tennis Association tour. The 28-year-old hails from China, and is one of the best tennis players to emerge from the country. She has been shattering records and making a name for herself
since 2006, seven years after her debut as a pro. In June 2006, she became the first Chinese player in the history of the Open Era to reach the Top 30 on the WTA Rankings. She surpassed her own achievement two months later, becoming one of the world’s top
20 female players in August 2006.
The Chinese pro made it up the WTA ranking ladder to reach the top 10 players in the world in February 2009. She is the only player in the history of her country to achieve this feat. With this high ranking, she also became Asia and China’s Number 1 female
tennis player. Her highest ranking was World Number 9, reached in 2010. She is one of the most successful players in the history of Chinese tennis.
This season has undoubtedly been one of the most successful ones in the course of Na Li’s eleven-year long career. She is currently ranked World Number 11, and her 2011 campaign will include an attempt to make it back into the elite top ten of women’s tennis.
At last year’s Australian Open, Li made it to the semi finals of the Melbourne event before being knocked out by eventual champion Serena Williams, who was World Number 1 at that time.
However, she managed to oust Venus Williams before she herself was forced to exit from the tournament. Na Li took out the elder Williams sister in three sets 2-7, 7-6, 7-5 to qualify for the four last slots, along with compatriot Zheng Jie. She and Zheng
Jie were the first Chinese players to make it to the last four of a Grand Slam event. Not only did she make it to the semi-finals, her Williams win also thwarted the possibility of a match between the two sisters. She also became the first Chinese player to
reach the top 10 with this victory.
Now, in 2011, Na Li will be heading back to the courts on which she had such phenomenal success in 2010. She is all set to return to the court, and to hopefully proceed further down the road on the way to a Grand Slam tournament this year. With Serena Williams
absent from the competition, this is a very viable possibility.
On her return to Melbourne Park, Li will be dressed in her signature outfit, the “Smash” top and skirt. The colour theme is, once again, white and blue. This outfit is reminiscent of Serena Williams’ and her one-piece “Down Under Smash Dress.”
This dress also uses Nike’s special Dri-FIT fabric, which absorbs moisture and sweat off the skin of the player. The white top of the two-piece garment comes with cap sleeves to allow for easy movement during difficult shots. Keeping Na Li’s Asian body structure
in mind, the blue skirt is woven to give the effect of a “figure flattering wider waistband,” according to Nike Tennis's creative director Janice Lucena. The skirt also has a knit short built into it, to provide the wearer with ball storage and extra support.
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