Inappropriately dressed for the friendly match at The Lotte New York Palace Invitational in New York City ahead of the start of the US Open on Monday, the athletic stars both flopped to the ground as they took part in poor rallies and failed to impress the bemused crowd.

Williams flopped to the ground in exasperation after fudging a return in a rally against Rafa Nadal in a friendly badminton match at The Lotte New York Palace Invitational in New York City.

Rafael Nadal and Venus Williams were not appropriately dressed for the match but had a go anyway to the delight of the crowd

Williams showed off her long legs in a black romper, with a pattern of pink and yellow flowers.

She accessorised with brown leather sandals, gold hoop earrings, a thin gold headband and a simple silver necklace.

Nadal meanwhile looked smart in a crisp white shirt and navy blue jeans, which he teamed with dark suede loafers.

Nadal fell to the ground as he attempted a dramatic diving return – which didn’t work out too well

The pair were seen laughing and joking together at the event, despite competing against each other that evening

The crowd cheered as they watched the two stars of the tennis world do battle

Williams laughed and joked throughout the friendly match against Nadal, which neither took very seriously

They were certainly not dressed in their usual tennis gear, which would have been slightly more fitting for a game of badminton.

But the crowd laughed and cheered on the two stars, who competed enthusiastically against each other.

Williams flopped to the ground in exasperation at one stage as she messed up a rally, leaving Nadal to pick up points.

Williams lay on the ground in frustration after messing up a rally against Nadal on the badminton court

The pair cut a dashing figure as they posed for photos at The Lotte New York Palace Invitational

Venus demonstrated that she is better suited to the world of tennis than badminton on the court. Neither Nadal or Williams took themselves too seriously though

Venus dazzled in her playful black and floral romper, which she teamed with brown leather sandals and gold accessories

Venus looked as if she was thoroughly enjoying herself as she played a match of badminton against Rafa Nadal