Strawberries and cream aren’t only for Wimbledon, says MAXINE GORDON who finds fashions with a love match.

FOR the next fortnight, the nation will go tennis mad as Wimbledon begins.

As the top seeds battle it out for a place in the history books, fans will be dusting down their rusty racquets and packing out the local courts.

If that all sounds a bit energetic, you can still enjoy the tennis jamboree – from the sidelines.

Tennis fashion translates into the mainstream in the shape of pleated skirts and shirt dresses.

Tailored shorts and crisp linens look sharp too, especially with a skinny leather belt and a straw hat.

Now is the time to bloom into an English rose in a pretty floral dress.

Colours to work to your advantage are red, white and cream, of course, but brights are big news for summer, so take inspiration from grassy green, sunshine yellow and brilliant blue.

For shoes, chose espadrilles or even some colourful plimsoles – who knows, maybe you’ll be enticed on to the court for a rally or two.