With the sun beating down on Centre Court, defending
champion Roger Federer appeared in a cardigan. All that was
missing was his pipe and slippers.

"Game, Set and Mac, Miss Williams," the Daily Express
decided on Tuesday after the 26-year-old former champion
grabbed all the headlines with the most eye-catching outfit on
day one.

Williams made a stuttering start before overcoming
Estonia's Kaia Kanepi -- but reporters afterwards were more
interested in her outfit than her tennis.

Was it a Sixties retro look? Can you tell us about the
fabric? Is it lightweight or porous? No question was too
trivial.

Federer, seeking his sixth Wimbledon title in a row,
swapped his white blazer for a Great Gatsby-style cardigan
which also had reporters seeking fashion tips.

It felt more like a day on the catwalk than the opening of
the world's most famous tennis tournament -- but fashion has
always been an integral part of Wimbledon with its strictly
enforced "predominantly white" dress code for players.

After last year's rain-soaked Wimbledon, spectators blinked
in amazement at the sunny start to the 2008 tournament and
Serena Williams joked about her outfit "I don't think it's
going to keep the rain away but we can always hope."

"I absolutely love trench coats. I live in Florida. I
probably have more coats than anybody," she said.

But she admitted "It doesn't really add up" to live in the
sunshine state and have that many coats.

Waxing lyrical about her warm-up attire, she said "it's
ladylike and I'm very ladylike. It goes perfect with my
personality and everything else. It's perfect for me."

Donning a cardigan can be a cutting edge fashion statement
-- Soccer player and style icon David Beckham has started
wearing them -- but, as The Independent newspaper warned on
Tuesday "There's a fine line between cool cat and old codger."

Federer extended his unbeaten run on grass to 60 matches
when easing into the second round with a straight sets
demolition of Slovakia's Dominik Hrbaty.

After much discussion at his post-match press conference
about his tennis form, it was onto the cardigan.

Federer, it appears, was thrilled to put aside the white
blazer he had won for the last two years.

"I thought two jackets was enough. Let's move onto
something a little bit different," he said.

"We thought about something nice like a cardigan, a jumper.
I think the result is nice as well. I have a belt as well this
year. Just some new fresh things. It's a little bit more easier
to wear than the jacket to be honest."

(Reporting by Paul Majendie, Editing by Justin Palmer)