With the Australian Open in full swing, here is a look back through the winning haircuts that have inspired and shocked us over the decades (but be warned: some would definitely be faulted now).
Svetlana Kuznetsova 2016
Russian tennis player Svetlana Kuznetsova broke all the hair rules by cutting her own locks courtside during her WTA Finals match in Singapore against Agnieszka Radwanska last October. With the plait getting in her way, the tennis-finalist made headlines for her win and unconventional tactic of chopping off several centimetres, site unseen."My hair would hit my eye every time and I was struggling. I thought, 'Okay, what's more important now –my hair, which I can let grow, or the match?'" she told CNN. Extreme measures ensured an extremely good result. However do not try this at home, as kitchen scissors and nail scissors can damage your hair by causing frayed ends, not to mention a crooked finish.
Chris Evert in 1971
Photo: Instagram
This movie-inspired lace tennis dress and Evert's classic, low-slung ponytail anchored by a ribbon (grosgrain is our favourite) was one of tennis's memorable looks. The ribbon makes the United States' tennis star look like she was going straight from the court to the English countryside.
Martina Navratilova in 1986
Photo: Getty Images
Navratilova worked the bowl cut throughout her long on-court career starting out with a face-framing fringe and working up to a side-swept version. It was one of the 80s' leading hair styles.
Andre Agassi 1990
Photo: Getty Images
Agassi epitomised the 90s with his rock-star mullet wig. He later admitted that his game was sometimes off because he was worried his wig might fall off. He went from shaggy dog to whippet with his equally distinctive shaved head. Whatever the look, we are still obsessed.
Steffi Graff in 1996
Photo: Facebook
The legendary Graff rocked a fringe and kept her hair tamed with the scrunchied ponytail and the odd bobby pin during her game-set-match career. Try our favourite new method of hair control, invisibobble.
Anna Kournikova in 2002
Photo: Vince Caligiuri
No matter how annoying this plait might have got on the court, I don't see Kournikova taking any scissors to this glamorous Nordic-inspired do. The high braid secured at both ends is a winner, on and off the court.
Serena Williams 2016
Photo: Getty Images
This double-knotted ponytail that Williams sported at the Australian Open in 2016 has volume on top plus a texture ponytail. Her hairstyles have come a long way since the distinctive matching hairstyles she shared with her sister, Venus, back in the day.