They can if they wish. The Women’s Tennis Association Tour rulebook states only that players “will be expected to dress and present themselves in a professional manner.”

Tradition. Pros don’t need pockets as they have ball boys and girls.

There are girls, by the way, who wear shorts.
One that i know off is Elena Dementieva.

I’m wondering if skirts aren’t easier to play tennis in, because shorts extend down the leg a ways and that could impede proper movement.

I agree with Yarnlady.

I’ve played tennis for years in both shorts and skirts. Impeding movement due to shorts has never been a problem for me perhaps thanks in part to modern stretchy materials and 2” inseams. I always preferred shorts because of the pockets and the fact that skirts tend to get blown around by wind. Plus dudes wear shorts and are just fine. I’ve never seen shorts rip in a major tournament and I’ve never seen dudes wear skirts in one either.

Tennis has always been a preppy sport and shorts are seen to this day as casual. Plus the girls probably want to look cute when they are being broadcast internationally. That said, I’ve seen the Williams sisters make some pretty poor style choices in various tourneys. Giant hoop earrings and hoochie short skirts come to mind.

why dont men wear skirts???

The skirts are specifically designed to easily stretch when moving. It might has bigger advantage than shorts. Men too,can get this advantage. I guess stereotype is still another popular culture in our universe.

Here’s one tennis player who really wanted to switch from shorts to a skirt. Keep in mind that s/he is 6’2”.

Renee Richards aka Richard Raskind

Sadly, because prize money dont compete with commercial income – and that means “gary bussy”

@lilikoi, I’m not a huge Tennis fan but I’m almost positive that many pros get two balls and put one in their pocket. Irrelevant but just wanted to point that out.

@Parrappa

I’ve never had a skirt that has pockets… Lots of people wear shorts underneath and tuck the spare ball into them. But they tend to fall out. For sure you’re right about mens tennis but not sure about womens… hmm I’ll have to watch closer next time :P