A stunning semi-final line-up at Indian Wells is set: Iga Swiatek vs Elena Rybakina, Aryna Sabalenka vs Maria Sakkari, Daniil Medvedev vs Frances Tiafoe, and Carlos Alcaraz vs Jannik Sinner. No notes. But lots of analysis from Catherine, David and Matt about how they all got there and what might happen. ROLAND GARROS TICKET OFFER We have a 15% discount for Tennis Podcast listeners to buy Roland Garros tickets and hospitality packages, courtesy of Steve Furgal’s International Tennis Tours. Just g...
Mar 17, 2023•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 1088
Can you tell we like alliteration? Catherine, David and Matt look back on a day of Last 16 action at Indian Wells. There’s chat about Iga Swiatek’s ruthlessness, an epic match between Petra Kvitova and Jessica Pegula, yet another three set victory for Maria Sakkari, Coco Gauff’s fighting spirit, how Daniil Medvedev survived an ankle roll to beat Alexander Zverev, the sparkling form of Cameron Norrie and Taylor Fritz, aggro between Stan Wawrinka and Holger Rune, and a late night win for Felix Aug...
Mar 15, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 1087
Daniil Medvedev joins Catherine, David and Matt on the pod to talk through his third round match at Indian Wells, his view on the slow courts, the men's backhand list, and much more. We also chat Alcaraz, Murray, Shelton, Jabeur, Pegula, Raducanu and Swiatek. ON LOCATION This edition of The Tennis Podcast is sponsored by On location, the premium experience and hospitality provider. On Location will be sending us to the BNP PARIBAS Open in Indian Wells on one of Steve Furgal’s International Tenni...
Mar 13, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 1086
A couple of days into the Indian Wells action, Catherine, David and Matt catch up on what they've seen so far, including defeats for Stefanos Tsitsipas, Matteo Berrettini, Denis Shapovalov and Dominic Thiem, and wins for Andy Murray, Emma Raducanu and Maria Sakkari. ON LOCATION This edition of The Tennis Podcast is sponsored by On location, the premium experience and hospitality provider. On Location will be sending us to the BNP PARIBAS Open in Indian Wells on one of Steve Furgal’s Internationa...
Mar 11, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 1085
Welcome to Indian Wells! Catherine, David and Matt have made it to Palm Springs and the place they call Tennis Paradise for the first combined Masters 1000 event of the year. In this show we talk about our experience so far, discuss all the main talking points from media day, and catch up on the results from last week. There's chat about Aryna Sabalenka's joy at being a Slam champion, Stefanos Tsitsipas' injury worries, whether Iga Swiatek has been winning too easily, Denis Shapovalov's essay ab...
Mar 09, 2023•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 1084
Daniil Medvedev can’t stop winning. After he won his third title in as many weeks in Dubai, beating Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals and Andrey Rublev in the final, Catherine, David and Matt react to his scintillating form and amusing speech at the trophy ceremony as he took the opportunity to troll Stefanos Tsitsipas. Elsewhere, the gruelling conditions were the big talking point in Acapulco as Holger Rune experienced full body cramps and Taylor Fritz vomited on court. Eventually, Alex de Mina...
Mar 05, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 1083
It seemed for a while like this week’s show might be a rinse and repeat job from last week when we talked about Daniil Medvedev, Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz all winning titles. In the end, Medvedev managed to repeat the feat, but Swiatek and Alcaraz were stopped by Barbora Krejcikova and Cameron Norrie in Dubai and Rio respectively, giving Catherine, David and Matt lots to discuss. Why does Krejcikova seem to have Swiatek’s number? In what way did Alcaraz’s injury make the Rio final compellin...
Feb 27, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 1082
While last week’s pod introduced us to a lot of new names, this week was all about the established stars as Iga Swiatek, Daniil Medvedev, Carlos Alcaraz and Taylor Fritz won titles. Catherine, David and Matt discuss all of that as well as more struggles for Dominic Thiem, Novak Djokovic earning the most weeks ever as World No.1, and the incredible story of Matija Pecotic in Delray Beach. ON LOCATION This edition of The Tennis Podcast is sponsored by On location, the premium experience and hospit...
Feb 21, 2023•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 1081
New blood is the talk of the pod this week. Alycia Parks, Wu Yibing and Artur Fils are at embryonic stages of their careers, but goodness me they are exciting. We talk about why, cover all of the main results and news stories that have taken place since The Australian Open, and get pumped for what is to come. ON LOCATION This edition of The Tennis Podcast is sponsored by On location, the premium experience and hospitality provider. On Location will be sending us to the BNP PARIBAS Open in Indian...
Feb 13, 2023•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 1080
Novak Djokovic is a 10-time Australian Open winner and 22-time Grand Slam champion after beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets on Sunday. Catherine, David and Matt discuss the match, why we were a bit disappointed by Tsitsipas' performance, the enormously emotional reaction from Djokovic when he won, what this means for the Grand Slam Race, and much more. *WIN A 3-NIGHT STAY AT THE MIAMI OPEN!* On Location, our Australian Open sponsor, has given us one of Steve Furgal’s International Tenni...
Jan 29, 2023•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 1079
Wow. We wanted a great final and we got a spectacular one as Aryna Sabalenka came from a set down to beat Elena Rybakina and win her first Grand Slam title. Catherine, David and Matt gather in Garden Square to react to the match, discuss Sabalenka's journey to this point, and consider what it might mean for her career. There's also live reaction to the Sensations - Rinky Hijikata and Jason Kubler - winning the men's doubles title, a round up of all the results including wheelchair matches and ju...
Jan 28, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 1078
Catherine, David and Matt react to the men's semi-finals which saw Stefanos Tsitsipas beat Karen Khachanov to reach a first Australian Open final and Novak Djokovic beat Tommy Paul to reach a tenth. We discuss the way in which Djokovic still won without his best tennis, how he dealt in press with the controversy surrounding his father and how he made his position clear on the war, the spectacular sight that was Tsitsipas' forehand, and how much their history against one another will affect the o...
Jan 27, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 1077
Get ready for power in the women's final on Saturday after Elena Rybakina and Aryna Sabalenka set up what promises to be a fearsome showdown on Saturday. How did Rybakina win the first set against Victoria Azarenka despite her first serve going missing? Just how impressive was Sabalenka to overcome her Grand Slam semi-final scar tissue? And how will they match up against each other in the final? Elsewhere, with tennis crossing over into geopolitics in the last 24 hours, after Novak Djokovic's fa...
Jan 26, 2023•59 min•Ep. 1076
As the semi-final line-ups were complete, we were thrilled to welcome Pam Shriver onto the show to talk all about her experience coaching Donna Vekic at this year's Australian Open. Pam opens up about why she's enjoyed the fortnight so much, what she sees as Vekic's potential, how she prepared Vekic for her quarter-final against Aryna Sabalenka, and what happened to Vekic's serve in that match. We also talk about Magda Linette's breakthrough, why Andrey Rublev's match against Novak Djokovic was ...
Jan 25, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 1075
It wasn't a vintage day at the Australian Open with three straight sets matches and one retirement, but there was a vintage performance by Victoria Azarenka as she beat Jessica Pegula 6-4 6-1 to reach the semi-finals in Melbourne for the first time since her title run in 2013. Catherine, David and Matt talk all about that, as well as her extraordinary press conference in which she opened up about the fears and anxiety she experienced last year. There's also our take on what went wrong for Jessic...
Jan 24, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 1074
Moments after Novak Djokovic produced a masterclass and gave us all an early night, we headed to Garden Square to record the Day 8 pod. We discuss just how good that performance was from Djokovic and what it might mean for the rest of the tournament, Andrey Rublev's nail-biting victory over Holger Rune and what it told us about both players, and our interactions with Ben Shelton and why we think he's such good news for the sport. In the women's draw, we focus on Aryna Sabalenka's statement perfo...
Jan 23, 2023•1 hr•Ep. 1073
Our day began with watching Elena Rybakina beating Iga Swiatek on the Rod Laver, a result which set the tone for a dramatic day as Coco Gauff and Felix Auger-Aliassime were also beaten, while Sebastian Korda and Stefanos Tsitsipas survived five setters. Catherine, David and Matt get stuck into it all on the podcast. *WIN A 3-NIGHT STAY AT THE MIAMI OPEN!* On Location, our Australian Open sponsor, has given us one of Steve Furgal’s International Tennis Tours packages to the Miami Open presented b...
Jan 22, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 1072
When we came to Melbourne for the Australian Open, we did not expect to be talking so much about Andy Murray, but once again he was the main story on Day 6, even in defeat. With his match against Roberto Bautista Agut only lasting 3h30m, we finally got the chance to record on site in Garden Square with a beer in hand and tennis noises in the background. There's also discussion about the state of Novak Djokovic's hamstring, the elite form of Andrey Rublev, Caroline Garcia surviving a tricky match...
Jan 21, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 1071
The day began with an Andy Murray induced hangover, but it picked up by the night session leaving Catherine, David and Matt plenty to discuss: Women’s fourth round blockbusters set Pegula drops two games, Swiatek drops one Keys crumbles against Azarenka Korda delivers a big statement to beat Medvedev Tiafoe and Shapovalov fall short of Murray-esque comebacks Did Norrie overplay before the Australian Open? What’s different about Tsitsipas this tournament? *WIN A 3-NIGHT STAY AT THE MIAMI OPEN!* O...
Jan 20, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 1070
The whole feel of the Australian Open changed on Thursday as big names and high seeds were beaten, leaving sections of both draws wide open and setting us up for a potentially wild second week. And then as the day morphed into the night, Andy Murray played the longest and most ridiculous match of his career, coming back from two sets down and clinching victory at 4:05am. Catherine, David and Matt tried to put all of that into words on the podcast. *WIN A 3-NIGHT STAY AT THE MIAMI OPEN!* On Locat...
Jan 19, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 1069
It was a day of rain delays and high emotion at Melbourne Park. Catherine and Matt discuss: More Melbourne pain for Nadal Auger-Aliassime comes from two sets down Discovering Diana Schnaider Gauff-Raducanu ignites after a slow start No Swiatek-Andreescu - why can’t we have nice things? Watch out for Elena Rybakina *WIN A 3-NIGHT STAY AT THE MIAMI OPEN!* On Location, our Australian Open sponsor, has given us one of Steve Furgal’s International Tennis Tours packages to the Miami Open presented by ...
Jan 18, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 1068
Day two at the Australian Open was all about one man and his metal hip as Andy Murray beat Matteo Berrettini in an epic match that went all the way to a fifth set tiebreak. We talk a lot about where this level of performance from Murray has come from, why it was so moving to see it, and THAT miss on match point by Berrettini. Elsewhere, Novak Djokovic made a strong return to Melbourne, there were dispiriting losses for Garbine Muguruza and Dominic Thiem, much of the day was disrupted by extreme ...
Jan 17, 2023•56 min•Ep. 1067
Day 1 of the 2023 Grand Slam season is in the books at the Australian Open - Catherine, David and Matt talk it all through. Raducanu vs Gauff in round two….YES PLEASE Andreescu is happening and Catherine is excited Injury scare for Collins…and lots of drama Draper learns the hard way about facing Nadal Kyrgios calls a press conference and withdraws Catherine rants about faff…again Auger-Aliassime overcomes a terrible start to beat Pospisil Swiatek passes tricky Neimeier test Welcome On Location ...
Jan 16, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 1066
Catherine, David and Matt react to the best lines to come out of media day at the Australian Open. In what way did Rafael Nadal make us feel more confident about his prospects? How did Novak Djokovic seem on his return to Melbourne? What's on Ons Jabeur's lock screen this time? What does Iga Swiatek consider to be her biggest strengths? And lots more. We also cover the results from qualifying, Adelaide 2 and Auckland before discussing the pretty seismic news that the ITF has ended its Davis Cup ...
Jan 15, 2023•1 hr 32 min•Ep. 1065
For the first time in three years, Catherine, David and Matt are all together in Melbourne for the Australian Open. And after Thursday's draw, the excitement has only grown for the year's first major. We talk through those draws, speculate about what might happen over the next two weeks, and cover the biggest storylines from this week so far, including Naomi Osaka's announcement that she is pregnant. Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to help us to produce the show year-round, and receive exc...
Jan 12, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 1064
With seconds to spare before boarding the plane to fly to Melbourne, Catherine and Matt join David from the London Gatwick Departures Lounge to look back on the United Cup, the week of Novak Djokovic and everything else that went on in the tennis world over the last 7 days. FRIENDS At 12.01am tonight (Monday 9th January), a special edition of The Tennis Podcast reviewing Break Point, the Netflix tennis documentary, will be published for Friends of the Tennis Podcast . Friends help us to produce ...
Jan 08, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 1063
Happy new year! With the 2023 tennis season very much underway, Catherine, David and Matt get stuck into the United Cup. What have we made of the event generally? Is there a way to guarantee more live mixed doubles matches? And which players have impressed? We talk Iga Swiatek, Paula Badosa, Taylor Fritz, Cameron Norrie and Rafael Nadal. Elsewhere, Holger Rune and Felix Auger-Aliassime failed to pick up where they left off in 2022, Bianca Andreescu mounted an extraordinary comeback to beat Garbi...
Jan 02, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 1062
It's our final Tennis Podcast of 2022, and Catherine and Matt joined David at his home in Solihull for the occasion! We talk about coaching changes, the ever diminishing off-season and generally hype up 2023. Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to help us to produce the show year-round, and receive exclusive access to bonus podcasts throughout 2023, including Tennis Re-Lived, listener questions pods, and Grand Slam review shows. Sign up to receive our Newsletter (daily at Slams and weekly the ...
Dec 21, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 1061
A quick pod to let you know that we’re re-launching Friends of The Tennis Podcast for 2023 - our subscription service that gives you access to bonus podcasts such as Tennis Re-Lived and Grand Slam review shows, the opportunity to enter our competitions, and the chance to involved by getting yourself a shout-out or an intro, taking us on at predictions, becoming a guest editor, or having your pet as a mascot. Become a Friend of The Tennis Podcast . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more ...
Dec 08, 2022•8 min•Ep. 1060
It was the first Davis Cup final without a European team in it for 32 years, and both Canada and Australia had produced heroics this week to get there. Catherine and David convened after the tie to talk about where it was won and lost, what was said in the press conferences, and to hear a contribution from the much-missed Matt! Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to help us to produce the show year-round, and receive exclusive access to bonus podcasts throughout the year, including Tennis Re-L...
Nov 27, 2022•1 hr•Ep. 1059
