Lotto Top Ten II 9″ Men’s Tennis Shorts
About Elazığ
This eastern Anatolian city stands on the plain below Harput, the older hill town that was gradually replaced as the administrative center in the nineteenth century. It was known as Mamuretülaziz under the late Ottoman Empire and took the name Elazığ in 1937; nearby Lake Hazar and the Euphrates dams frame much of its modern geography.
THE INTERNATIONAL REVIEW
Shown in All Black. The Top Ten II sits in Lotto’s performance tennis line rather than in the brand’s club range, and this is the longer-inseam build of the short.
The fabric is the defining element. Lotto calls it Dull Stretch 50+, an 86% recycled polyester and 14% elastane weave that stretches in four directions rather than two, so it gives along the length and across the width at the same time.
That matters at the point where a player splits wide for a low ball and the cloth has to move diagonally, which is precisely the direction a two-way stretch does not cover.
The waistband is elastic with adjustable drawstrings, the fit is slim, and there are side pockets.
Side slits with angled hems are a functional detail rather than a styling one: a slit at the hip is what stops a short binding at the top of a long stride.
Elazığ sits on a high plateau in eastern Anatolia at around a thousand metres, hot and dry through the summer and genuinely cold in winter, which is a wide enough range that a stretch woven short with no lining is a summer garment there rather than a year-round one.
Specifications
| Fabric | Dull Stretch 50+ — 86% recycled polyester, 14% elastane |
|---|---|
| Stretch | Four-way |
| Fit | Slim |
| Waist | Elastic with adjustable drawstrings |
| Pockets | Side |
| Hem | Side slits, angled |
| Inseam | 9 in as listed |
| Colour | All Black |
One caution on the inseam. The Top Ten II is documented at seven inches elsewhere in Lotto’s catalogue, and the nine-inch version appears under a slightly different name, so the two records do not agree. Measure the garment on arrival rather than assuming either figure.
LET Lotto Top Ten II 9″ Men’s Tennis Shorts SHOW YOU Elazığ
Shorts: Harput Castle sits on the rock above Elazığ and is called the Milk Castle; I will not say the nickname proves milk was in the mortar, because legends are not receipts. The shorts, at least, are cut to a measurable 9 inches, which is a mercy.
Shorts: The Ulu Camii of Harput was built in 1156, not 'around then,' thank you, and its brick minaret famously leans. I have checked the sentence twice; the minaret may tilt, but the facts must not.
Shorts: Lake Hazar has a sunken church that becomes visible when the water level drops, which is dramatic but also a scheduling problem for anyone who likes certainty. Please note: visible when the water drops, not whenever my itinerary says so.
Shorts: The Keban Dam holds back the Euphrates, a sentence with the pleasing sturdiness of concrete and the terrifying scale of a spreadsheet with no rounding. I would call it big, but I am restraining myself until someone hands me the exact figure.
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.