Inconspicuous American supermodel Tyra Banks spotted in crowd at Australian Open

American supermodel Tyra Banks has turned heads not just for being a surprise attendee at the Australian Open on Thursday night, but for what she was wearing while there.

The global megastar, who has 7.2 million followers on Instagram, was inconspicuously dressed in what looked like a hooded black robe to watch the two women’s singles semi-finals at Rod Laver Arena.

Maybe it was her latest fashion statement or, as some fans on social media have suggested, maybe it was a sign of mourning for her house in LA which was lost to the horrific wildfires.

Banks, who now lives in Sydney with her partner, businessman Louis Belanger-Martin spoke for the first time about how she lost her home in the fires during an appearance on Sunrise last Sunday.

“Yes, I lost my house,” Banks said. “I haven’t really talked about it.”

The supermodel and former America’s Next Top Model host added that she was in Australia at a friend’s house “celebrating and just having fun” when she found out about the fires and her home.

“I just kept checking my phone, not for my house but just for friends and family, making sure they’re evacuating and everything,” she said.

“Then I asked my partner and I said, I was like, ‘I’m seeing something here, what do you think?’” Banks said, miming her partner nodding to her that indeed, their property was in trouble.

“And I just pulled it together and didn’t say anything to my friends and stayed in the moment, and we went home and we cried and we had our moment.”

Others weren’t quite so serious about the possible reason behind her choice of clothing for a night out at the tennis.

“Why she dressed like Darth Vader though?” one cheeky fan wrote on social media.

The 51-year-old was only briefly pictured on the broadcast, but photographers didn’t miss their chance to get a snap of the big American name.