Nick Kyrgios and Kyrie Irving Join Forces for New Sneaker
Tennis – Australian tennis star has joined forces with Boston Celtics guard for Nikes new Vapor X Kyrie 5 Kyrgios, himself a deeply committed Boston Celtics fan, will debut the sneaker at the 2019 Australian Open.
According to Fox Sports, the shoe will feature the Kyrie 5 upper, with the outsole of the Vapor X, and a lower cut to make the sneaker suitable for tennis courts. The sneaker also has an Australian theme to honour the two athletes who are both from Australia.
Speaking to Bleacher Report, NikeCourt Senior Footwear Designer Michael Hui commented on the collaboration, Theres actually a lot of similarities with the cutting and stopping, side-to-side movements that basketball players have to go through that are similar to a tennis player.
Irving said he was pleased with the results of the collaboration. I loved the Vapor X Kyrie 5 from the moment I first saw them. The connection of Australian roots and that we have respect for one anothers games makes the blending of these two shoes a perfect match.
Kyrgios commented on the collaboration, Yeah, its arguably the biggest moment of my career,. Im going to go out in front of my home crowd wearing the tennis shoes that share the name with my favourite basketball player.
Representing Kyrie and myself at the same time, in front of such a big stage, is pretty crazy. I wanted to be like those guys. They were my role models, so I wore the shoes they did. Alex Restivo, Global Footwear Product Director for NikeCourt, commented, [Kyrie] feels like his product is most similar to a tennis product than it is to a basketball product.
[Tennis] is so OG that a lot of these true brands look to tennis as an authenticator for fashion. Tennis is a stage for fashion. The bright lights are on you, its an individual sport. Youre not wearing a uniform. Theres a lot of creative freedom and expression allowed on court, which is very unique in an athletic sport.
