Fila 7in Men’s Tennis Shorts
About Terni
This city in inland Umbria sits where the Nera and Serra rivers meet, at the edge of the Apennines. Its modern identity was shaped by steelworks, hydroelectric power, and chemical plants, which made it one of Italy’s main industrial centers and a target of heavy bombing in the Second World War.
THE INTERNATIONAL REVIEW
A plain men’s tennis short from Fila with a seven-inch inseam, which is the mid-length of the modern range — shorter than the long shorts of the 2000s, longer than the retro cut Fila also sells.
The design is deliberately quiet. There is no cargo pocket, no contrast panel and nothing written across the seat. The waistband is elastic the whole way round, undisturbed by a front drawcord, so nothing sits proud under a shirt. Two pockets are cut into the side seams and disappear when the wearer is standing still.
At the outer hem there is a small split, so the leg can open when the stride asks it to — a detail that costs almost nothing and is left off most shorts anyway.
The only mark on the garment is the small red and navy F set low on the left leg.
The cloth is a smooth woven face, matte rather than shiny, and a woven fabric hangs away from the leg rather than clinging to it. It is finished for moisture management.
Terni sits inland in an Umbrian river valley where the summer air is still and hot rather than moving; a cloth that keeps its distance from the skin is worth considerably more there than in a coastal breeze.
Specifications
| Inseam | 7 inches |
|---|---|
| Fabric | Smooth woven, matte finish |
| Finish | Moisture-wicking |
| Waistband | Full elastic, no drawcord |
| Pockets | Two, in the side seams |
| Hem | Split at the outer seam |
| Branding | Small red and navy F, low on the left leg |
| Colours | Navy, white, black |
| Fit | Men's |
Seven inches, three colours and one small logo is the entire specification, and that restraint is what the short is for.
LET Fila 7in Men’s Tennis Shorts SHOW YOU Terni
Shorts: The Anfiteatro Fausto is a first-century Roman arena, now half tucked beneath later streets, which is precisely how one stores antiquity when the servants have been dismissed. One applauds the shorts for behaving with more discipline than the city planners.
Shorts: Arnaldo Pomodoro’s Lancia di Luce rises thirty metres in cast steel, a modern obelisk with the manners of a spear at luncheon. The shorts, mercifully, understand proportion.
Shorts: The Basilica di San Valentino was built over the tomb of Terni’s first bishop, which gives even a brisk tennis garment a rather devotional air. Love, it seems, has always required decent footwork.
Shorts: The Cascata delle Marmore is a Roman-cut waterfall dropping 165 metres in three leaps, because apparently one grand plunge was too restrained for the Republic. The shorts remain dry in spirit, if not by temperament.
Jackson Phillips here. Owner of TTT. We are working hard every day to bring you the most useful product reviews in the business. Our goal is putting the right product in every hand. If you have time, shoot me an email at jacksonphillips@thetennistactician.com and tell me exactly what you think of your purchase. The more feedback we get, the better we can serve. Thank you for your patronage. And Burn, Laugh, and Learn.