never saw a dress too short

smazza · January 19, 2011

Venus Williams tops herself with crisscrossed 'Wonderland' dress

By Chris Chase

Just when you thought Venus Williams had gone as far (and short) as possible, she manages to stretch the boundaries of tennis fashion a little bit more.

In her second-round match at the Australian Open, the seven-time Grand Slam champ walked onto the court at Rod Laver Arena wearing a yellow tank-top dress with a crisscross pattern covering her bare abdomen. It looked like a mix between Solid Gold Dancer and Edward Scissorhands.

[Photos from the match: See more of Venus' wildest outfit yet]

Venus said it was inspired by "Alice in Wonderland."

"Yeah, don't laugh. But it's kind of about a surprise, because when Alice goes down the hole, the rabbit hole, she finds all these things that are so surprising.

"This outfit is about having a surprise in tennis a dress, and kind of, you know, showing some skin and then just having a print. Prints don't happen that often in tennis. So it's called the Wonderland dress. It was fun."

[Photos: Venus Williams' most controversial outfits]

Let me take this time to bow down to the genius of Venus Williams. Every time I post something about what she's wearing at a Grand Slam, I vow that it's the last time. I'm serious about it. I vow! And then -- BAM -- gold dress with a pie-crust top and miniskirt that looks like a Monet painting up close. It's a transparent ploy to get attention and it works every time.

[Photos: Best-dressed athletes]

Bravo, Venus. I'd call this your best yet, but I've learned my lesson. You still have another match on Friday.

Oh, and her earrings weren't bad either:

Despite suffering a groin injury while losing the final point of the first set, Venus rallied to defeat Sandra Zahlavova and advance to the third round in Melbourne.