A rain-soaked and miserable day session turned into an electric and thrilling night session at Roland Garros, meaning that Catherine, David and Matt were buzzing when recording the pod in the media centre at 1am. There's chat about Holger Rune surviving a fifth set tiebreak against Flavio Cobolli, aggro involving Denis Shapovalov and Frances Tiafoe, a Djokovician performance from Novak Djokovic, shock defeats for Danielle Collins and Jelena Ostapenko, a press conference no show from Elena Rybaki...
May 31, 2024•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 1238
It was a dreary day at Roland Garros, with the rain falling and play on the outside courts cancelled, but it came to life when Iga Swiatek and Naomi Osaka came onto Court Philippe-Chatrier and played one of the most thrilling matches of the year. Swiatek escaped as the winner, saving a match point, but it felt like Osaka won something too as she played her best tennis in years. On the pod, Catherine, David and Matt cover the match, the press conferences, and the disappointing crowd. Elsewhere, t...
May 29, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 1237
On the final day of round one action at Roland Garros, rain fell for most of it, but once the clouds cleared there were plenty of talking points for Catherine, David and Matt. There's chat about Elena Rybakina's awesome performance on court before a pretty chippy press conference, Novak Djokovic showing some signs of life, a dreadful day for French players, Alize Cornet's retirement, and excitement for a fun order of play on Day 4. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge! Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast...
May 28, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 1236
Rafael Nadal may have played his final match at Roland Garros. That's a lot to comes to terms with, but we tried on the pod after watching his straight sets defeat to Alexander Zverev. We describe where the match was won and lost, how it made us feel, and whether Nadal will fare better at the Olympics in a couple of months. Elsewhere, there's chat about convincing wins for Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff, a winning return for Bianca Andreescu, mixed fortunes for French players, and much more. OUR LIN...
May 27, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 1235
As opening days of Grand Slam tournaments go, that was a pretty crazy one, starting with Naomi Osaka winning a match that became too close for comfort, ending with Andy Murray walking off Court Philippe-Chatrier for probably the final time, and featuring lots of fun matches involving French players. The new Suzanne Lenglen roof was also unveiled and Novak Djokovic gave a cryptic press conference where he talked about having 'low expectations'. Catherine, David and Matt wrap it all up on a two-pa...
May 26, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 1234
In our final preview show ahead of this year's Roland Garros, we were live in our AirBnB in Paris to react to an astonishing Rafael Nadal press conferences as he confirmed that he's feeling better, said there's a chance he could play this tournament again next year, and revealed that he's been practising well in preparation for his first round match against Alexander Zverev. There was a dose of realism in there too - he hasn't played at a high level for a long time - but his mood was much more b...
May 25, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 1233
Catherine, David and Matt divided and conquered on media day at Roland Garros as Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner both spoke positively about their fitness, Daniil Medvedev and Coco Gauff discussed their serves, Andy Murray reflected on his 2017 semi-final against Stan Wawrinka, Alexander Zverev talked about his round one showdown with Rafael Nadal, and Iga Swiatek gave off a real air of confidence. Plus, David doorstepped some Danish journalists to find out about the real Holger Rune, and we wa...
May 24, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 1232
The Roland Garros draw threw up 128 first round singles matches, but there’s only one which everyone is talking about: 14-time champion Rafael Nadal drawn to face Alexander Zverev. On the pod, hear the reaction from inside the room when Zverev’s name was drawn next to Nadal’s, as well as Catherine, David and Matt’s own feelings about the prospect of that match. Elsewhere, there’s chat about the draws facing all the other leading contenders, the state of French tennis, and Dominic Thiem’s defeat ...
May 23, 2024•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 1231
It’s Roland Garros week! And Iga Swiatek will head to Paris as an overwhelming favourite for the French Open title after her dominant victory over Aryna Sabalenka in Rome. Catherine, David and Matt discuss the final, Swiatek’s game on the clay, and where she stands in relation to some of the all-time greats. On the men’s side, Alexander Zverev won his second Rome title over Nicolas Jarry in the final. Where does he rank among the Roland Garros favourites and will the fact that his trial for dome...
May 20, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 1230
Catherine, David and Matt are together at Tennis Podcast Towers to discuss everything that's happened in Rome since Monday. There's lots of excitement about a final rematch between Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka, David's hopped on board Matt's Nicolas Jarry hype train, and Catherine rants about the French Open's decision not to give Dominic Thiem a wildcard. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge! Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to also help us to produce the show year-round, receive exclusive access ...
May 17, 2024•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 1229
For the first time since 2004, neither Novak Djokovic nor Rafael Nadal will feature in the quarter-finals of Rome as both lost early at the Foro Italico. Djokovic was beaten in just over an hour by Alejandro Tabilo, a couple of days after being hit on the head by a water bottle, while Nadal was a shadow of himself in a 6-1 6-3 loss to Hubert Hurkacz. Catherine, David and Matt discuss both results and, with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner both sidelined with injury, there’s lots of chat about wh...
May 13, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 1228
Catherine, David and Matt look back on Finals weekend in Madrid which saw Iga Swiatek win an absolute thriller against Aryna Sabalenka and Andrey Rublev overcome illness to defeat Felix Auger-Aliassime. There's chat about both matches, how this sets us up for Roland Garros, and a look ahead to Rome. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge! Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to also help us to produce the show year-round, receive exclusive access to bonus podcasts throughout 2024, including Tennis Re-Lived ...
May 06, 2024•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 1227
Madrid is nearing the finish line, so here's a podcast to round up what's happened since the last one. There's coverage of Arena Sabalenka's comebacks against Danielle Collins and Elena Rybakina, a men's draw that has rather fallen apart, and concerns over Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev. Plus, the latest on Rafael Nadal, and of course our reaction to the Twitter storm we were part of: Shirt-gate! We have free UK shipping in The Tennis Podcast Shop until midnight on Monday. OUR...
May 03, 2024•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 1226
With Madrid pretty much at the halfway stage, Catherine, David and Matt catch up to cover the biggest stories so far, headlined by Rafael Nadal’s stirring victory over Alex de Minaur. We also cover defeats for Stefanos Tsitsipas and Holger Rune, promising signs for Carlos Alcaraz, a ridiculous match between Corentin Moutet and Juncheng Shang, convincing victories for most of the top women, and a clash to savour between Danielle Collins and Aryna Sabalenka. Elsewhere, there’s our usual discussion...
Apr 29, 2024•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 1225
Catherine, David and Matt round up the results from another hectic week on the clay, headlined by Elena Rybakina’s victory in Stuttgart. We discuss her win over Iga Swiatek and what that might mean for the pair’s rivalry, and pay tribute to an incredible week for Marta Kostyuk. Elsewhere, Sloane Stephens’ run to the title in Rouen had us checking the Roland Garros odds and Catherine was trolled by Casper Ruud avenging his Monte Carlo defeat to Stefanos Tsitsipas by winning in Barcelona. Is Ruud ...
Apr 22, 2024•1 hr 34 min•Ep. 1224
An eventful week in Monte Carlo means there's lots for Catherine, David and Matt to discuss, not least a return to form for Stefanos Tsitsipas. In what ways is he just a much better player on clay? And can he make sure his Monte Carlo title is not just a one off? There's also chat about Holger Rune's tweets, another week for Novak Djokovic without his top level, Casper Ruud's Finals problem, and Jannik Sinner's second defeat of the season. Elsewhere, we wrap up the results from the Billie Jean K...
Apr 15, 2024•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 1223
For the second week in a row, Danielle Collins headlines the pod after she kept her winning streak going in Charleston. Catherine, David and Matt try to find new things to say about her incredible form and wonder once again whether this puts her In The Mix at the remaining Grand Slams this year. Elsewhere there's chat about some surprise winners on the clay on the ATP Tour in the form of Matteo Berrettini, Hubert Hurkacz and Ben Shelton. We also discuss the news that the WTA Finals are heading t...
Apr 08, 2024•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 1222
David speaks to Goran Ivanisevic after his recent split from Novak Djokovic. Goran talks about what it was like coaching Djokovic over the last five years, the areas they worked on together, their on court dynamic, the reasons for the split, Djokovic's biggest rivals, how much time Djokovic might have left in the sport, and what's next for both of them. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge! Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to also help us to produce the show year-round, receive exclusive access to bon...
Apr 04, 2024•24 min•Ep. 1221
Our post-Miami live show was mostly devoted to the two champions, Danielle Collins and Jannik Sinner. With the help of listener Vicki Spreadbury, Catherine distills why it means a lot to see a woman like Collins succeed, Matt explains why she's now a certified member of The Backhand List, and David wonders how much more she could achieve before she retires at the end of the year. As for Sinner, there's chat about the Novak Djokovic-ification of his game and his dominance over Daniil Medvedev and...
Apr 01, 2024•1 hr•Ep. 1220
Catherine, David and Matt convene to discuss a busy few days in Miami. The women’s final is set between Elena Rybakina and Danielle Collins and there’s chat about Rybakina’s resilient run so far, Collins’ more destructive path through, and what might happen in the final. How much has her decision to retire at the end of the season helped Collins on court? Should she be on The Backhand List? And why does Rybakina keep playing epics? On the men’s side, the big headline has been Grigor Dimitrov’s i...
Mar 29, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 1219
Catherine, David and Matt catch up on the opening few days of action in Miami which have been heavily rain-affected. There’s chat about Casper Ruud’s takedown of the event, Simona Halep’s return and Caroline Wozniacki’s feelings about her wildcard, some greatest hits from Andy Murray, the latest editions in the Caroline Garcia vs Naomi Osaka and Iga Swiatek vs Linda Noskova rivalries, heavy defeats for Stefanos Tsitsipas and Holger Rune, and a tough set of results for the American men. ON LOCATI...
Mar 25, 2024•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 1218
Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz are the Indian Wells champions. Catherine, David and Matt discuss Swiatek's utter dominance in the desert, whether she can translate her tour hard court success to the slams, and how Alcaraz rediscovered his best form and his joy on court in his first title run since Wimbledon. There's also chat about the strides made by Maria Sakkari this week, Coco Gauff's serve, a Sinner-Alcaraz semi-final which was at times (but not always) spectacular, and a crossroads for Dan...
Mar 18, 2024•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 1217
The last few days at Indian Wells have been some of the most eventful of the tennis season so far. We’ve had a bee invasion, the setting up of Post Sting Alcaraz vs Post Puke Sinner, shock defeats for Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka, and lots of politics as Saudi Arabia looks to grow its influence in tennis. Catherine, David and Matt get stuck into it all. OUR LINKS: Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to help us to produce the show year-round, and receive exclusive access to bonus podcasts...
Mar 15, 2024•1 hr 26 min•Ep. 1216
Indian Wells is underway but it was a news-heavy week in the tennis world and Catherine, David and Matt begin by discussing the fact that Simona Halep can return to tennis after CAS reduced her suspension to 9 months. Why did CAS come to such a different conclusion to the ITIA? How do we feel about tennis’ anti-doping system in light of this case? And what do we make of Halep receiving a wildcard to play Miami? Elsewhere, there’s chat about Netflix not renewing Break Point for season three, a po...
Mar 11, 2024•1 hr 24 min•Ep. 1215
Alex de Minaur and Katie Boulter are tennis' latest power couple after they both won 500 events in Acapulco and San Diego respectively. Catherine, David and Matt discuss the improvements to their games and how high they could go. Elsewhere, there's a similar conversation about Ugo Humbert after he picked up yet another title, this time in Dubai. We also give our takes on Andrey Rublev's disqualification, news that the Saudi PIF have struck a multi million dollar partnership with the ATP, Andy Mu...
Mar 04, 2024•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 1214
After a week of planning meetings and tech tests in Solihull, Catherine, David and Matt come together to discuss the week’s biggest stories. We analyse the surprise final between Jasmine Paolini and Anna Kalinskaya in Dubai, eat our words about Paolini, and reflect on the new back-to-back nature of February’s WTA 1000 events. On the men’s side, youngsters Joao Fonseca and Jakub Mensik took the headlines, but Sebastian Baez, Jordan Thompson and Karen Khachanov were the week’s champions. There’s c...
Feb 26, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 1213
Catherine, David and Matt are together to look back on an eventful week, headlined by Iga Swiatek's third straight title in Doha. We discuss the significance of her victory over Elena Rybakina in Doha, an extraordinary week for Karolina Pliskova as she dashed from Cluj, and the latest instalment of Victoria Azarenka beating Jelena Ostapenko which came with delicious handshake aggro. On the men's side, there's chat about Jannik Sinner backing up his Australian Open title, Alex de Minaur's improve...
Feb 19, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 1212
Catherine, David and Matt start with an eventful week in Abu Dhabi which saw Elena Rybakina lift her second trophy of the season, Daria Kasatkina impress, and injury concern for Ons Jabeur. Elsewhere there’s chat about Karolina Pliskova’s first title in four years, Ugo Humbert delivering on his immense talent by winning in Marseille, Tommy Paul’s title run in Dallas, and an all-qualifier final in Cordoba. There’s also a disqualification in UTS, coaching news for Holger Rune and Jessica Pegula, a...
Feb 12, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 1211
We’re home from Melbourne, David is feeling better, and we’re here to talk about the tennis that’s happened since the Australian Open. There’s chat about Jelena Ostapenko’s incredible consistency in 2024, Diana Shnaider and her bandana, Alexander Bublik's unlikely record-setting week in Montpellier, the latest round of Davis Cup Qualifiers, Holger Rune’s quick split with Severin Luthi, and a tweet from Andy Murray which caused a storm. OUR LINKS: Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to help us ...
Feb 05, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 1210
Jannik Sinner is a Grand Slam champion! He came back from two sets down to beat Daniil Medvedev in a fascinating Australian Open final. Catherine and Matt discuss how Sinner did it, what another loss from two sets up means for Medvedev, the role Medvedev's path to the final played in his performance, the way Sinner has proved us wrong, and what lies ahead for him in the short and long term. There's also chat about Su Wei Hsieh and Elise Mertens winning the women's doubles title and some final re...
Jan 28, 2024•51 min•Ep. 1209
