Fashion models, with varying degrees of taste, have been strutting their stuff at Wimbledon this week — oh, and they play a spot of tennis too.

The courts seem to have become catwalks — Maria Sharapova was showing off a military-style jacket and Serena Williams wore a new mac (an odd choice since it was dry and even if it rained, Centre Court now has a roof).

There has been much discussion about the merits of women’s tennis. Michael Stich last week said the main point of it was sex appeal. Treating Wimbledon like London Fashion Week simply adds weight to the view that the ladies’ game is a fluffy waste of space, doesn’t it?

That said, it is not just the women who have caught the bug and perhaps we should be grateful that the players even bother about their appearance.

Fashion phobes like Andy Murray can be distracting by their scruffy outfits (untucked shirts in an array of colours better suited to the older man — hardly the look of a potential grand slam champion).

Luckily, either he or someone in his entourage has taken note, and on Tuesday a smarter-looking Murray will step on to Centre Court sporting a new range of clothing.

Perhaps he thinks taking an interest in fashion is a pre-requisite for a champion, even if the results sometimes border on the ridiculous.

Take 14-times grand slam champion Roger Federer. There are few men who could sling a gold and white bag casually over their shoulders and not look daft — and he is not one of them.

What is he thinking? The blazer a few years ago just about passed for dapper, the RF logo is a good marketing tool but this year’s military-style jacket and the bizarre waistcoat are the kind of items better suited to the fancy dress box.

Sharapova called for the sport to recruit some fashion police. “In my tennis, a board would approve all outfits before players could wear them on the court. There are some tacky outfits out there!” she wrote on her website last week.

And then there are the accessories. Why should we care that a player is wearing earrings specially designed for the championships?

When I was at school all jewellery was banned when we played sport — pretty logical when you consider the nasty mess there would be if a dangly earring got caught on something.

PHOTO: Roger Federer arrives on court to play Taiwan’s Lu Yen-hsun at Wimbledon in London, June 22, 2009. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth