It was an emotional day at Wimbledon as Marketa Vondrousova was beaten in the first round and revealed that the pressure and nerves of being the defending champion were too much. Catherine, David and Matt talk a lot about that and get to know her opponent, Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, who played superbly and has an epic tattoo. Before all that, Andy Murray withdrew from the singles, leaving the pod team feeling a mixture of sadness and relief. He was replaced on Centre Court by Jack Draper who did hi...
Jul 02, 2024•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 1257
The big headline on Day One was Aryna Sabalenka’s withdrawal due to her shoulder injury. Catherine, David and Matt discuss the news and speculate about who might benefit. Could it be Emma Raducanu after her victory on Monday? Elsewhere, there’s chat about Naomi Osaka’s topsy turvy victory over Diane Parry, an impressive showing from Diana Schnaider, and an unwanted statistic for Zhang Shuai. On the men’s side, there’s reaction to Jannik Sinner surviving a brief scare to set up a showdo...
Jul 01, 2024•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 1256
Moments after England's dramatic win at the Euros, Catherine, David and Matt were live to look ahead to Day One at Wimbledon. There's reaction to Andy Murray's press conference as he explained in more detail about the surgery he's had and how he hopes to get some closure by playing Wimbledon one last time. Naomi Osaka and Marketa Vondrousova were also in the interview room, there's a rundown of the day one schedule, and we answer some questions from the chat. Plus, we speak to tournament directo...
Jun 30, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 1255
It was media day at Wimbledon which meant that most of the leading players came into the press conference room, and Catherine, David and Matt were there to ask them questions. On the pod, there's discussion of Aryna Sabalenka revealing that she's not 100% fit because of her shoulder injury, Novak Djokovic's remarkable recovery from knee surgery as he eyes up an 8th title, the confidence radiating from Carlos Alcaraz, Coco Gauff and Jannik Sinner, the way Iga Swiatek is going to try to adapt her ...
Jun 29, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 1254
Catherine, David and Matt are back at Wimbledon and in our first live show of The Championships we react to the men's and women's singles draws. They didn't exactly throw up many enticing first round matches, but there's still plenty to discuss. There's chat about a tough section for Iga Swiatek, a potential Jannik Sinner vs Matteo Berrettini clash in round two, excitement for aggro re-lived between Ajla Tomljanovic and Jelena Ostapenko, British hopes and expectations for Emma Raducanu and Jack ...
Jun 28, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 1253
Our 2024 Wimbledon coverage begins at Qualifying where Catherine, David and Matt soak up the special atmosphere at Roehampton and report on the biggest stories from the week. Elsewhere, there's reaction to Andy Murray's injury update and the turmoil he's facing to get the send off he wants and deserves, the latest results from Eastbourne, Bad Homburg and Mallorca, and the prospect of Novak Djokovic playing Wimbledon despite knee surgery just a few weeks ago. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge...
Jun 27, 2024•54 min•Ep. 1252
It was an eventful week in tennis headlined by Andy Murray having to retire from his second round match at Queen’s and then have surgery on his back. It leaves his Wimbledon participation in doubt. Catherine, David and Matt share their feelings and look ahead to what might happen over the next few days. Elsewhere, there’s chat about Tommy Paul’s title at Queen’s, Lorenzo Musetti’s run to the final, and Jack Draper’s big win over Carlos Alcaraz. Matt is full of praise for Jannik Sinner winn...
Jun 24, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 1251
The grass court season is well underway and it was a big week of British success with Jack Draper winning his first career title in Stuttgart and Katie Boulter defending her title in Nottingham. Catherine, David and Matt cover it all and David speaks to Draper's coach, Wayne Ferreira, to find out more about their partnership, and what to expect of Draper in the future. Elsewhere, Emma Raducanu's decision to turn down an Olympics wildcard is debated, Matteo Berrettini's run to the Stuttgart ...
Jun 17, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 1250
Catherine and Matt sit down with Bianca Andreescu to talk about her career so far and the journey ahead. Andreescu opens up about the fearlessness she felt in 2019 when she won her US Open title, the injury and mental health struggles which followed, the new perspective on life that she's gained, and why her goals and ambitions remain high. 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 pod...
Jun 13, 2024•51 min•Ep. 1249
Carlos Alcaraz is the Roland Garros champion, coming back from two sets to one down to defeat Alexander Zverev in the final. Catherine, David and Matt discuss all the key moments in the match, how Alcaraz combined tactics, physical prowess and mental strength to win, and what this means for his career. 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, inclu...
Jun 09, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 1248
Iga Swiatek has won Roland Garros for a fourth time, beating Jasmine Paolini 6-2 6-1 in the final. Catherine, David and Matt discuss the match, Swiatek’s peerlessness on clay, her place in the sport’s history, and what the future might hold for her. There’s also a round up of all the other results and a preview of the men’s final between Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge! Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to also help us to produce the sho...
Jun 08, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 1247
Carlos Alcaraz will face Alexander Zverev in Sunday's men's final at Roland Garros. Alcaraz beat Jannik Sinner in five sets on Friday in a match affected by cramp, while Zverev beat Casper Ruud in a match affected by Ruud's ill health. Catherine, David and Matt discuss both matches, analyse in depth what we learned from Alcaraz vs Sinner, and report the news that Zverev's domestic abuse case in Germany has been discontinued. There's also a preview of the women's final between Iga Swiatek and Jas...
Jun 08, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 1246
As is tradition on women's semi-finals day at Roland Garros, we welcome Mary Carillo onto the pod! We discuss a couple of one-sided semi-finals, the Iga Swiatek vs Coco Gauff match-up, and whether Jasmine Paolini stands any chance at all in Saturday's final. There's also a big preview of the men's semi-finals which are headlined by the latest instalment of Carlos Alcaraz vs Jannik Sinner. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge! Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to also help us to produc...
Jun 06, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 1245
The anticipated semi-final between Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina became Jasmine Paolini vs Mirra Andreeva after a day of huge upsets at Roland Garros. Catherine, David and Matt react to the matches, discuss how they made them feel, and look ahead to tomorrow's semi-finals. On the men's side, there's chat about Alexander Zverev's victory over Alex de Minaur. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge! Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to also help us to produce the show year-round, rece...
Jun 06, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 1244
It was a seismic day at Roland Garros as Novak Djokovic withdrew from the tournament due to his knee injury. Catherine, David and Matt react to the news and what it might mean for Djokovic's future. The most immediate impact is that Jannik Sinner will become the new world number one on Monday and he found out just after his quarter-final win over Grigor Dimitrov. There's chat about that, the stunning Coco Gauff vs Ons Jabeur match to start the day, another dominant display from Iga Swiatek over ...
Jun 04, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Ep. 1243
There was a moment on Monday at Roland Garros when it felt like Novak Djokovic was about to lose to Francisco Cerundolo, but he once again defied his age and his body to come through in five sets. How did he do it? And what does it mean for the rest of his tournament? Catherine, David and Matt discuss all of that as well as another five set win for Alexander Zverev, the clay court breakthrough of Alex de Minaur, and why this feels like such a big chance for Casper Ruud. On the women's side there...
Jun 04, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 1242
There was a morning after the night before feeling to Day 8 at Roland Garros as the tournament picked up following the 3am finish. Catherine, David and Matt discuss Iga Swiatek’s double bagel and look ahead to quarter-final match ups between Coco Gauff and Ons Jabeur and Stefanos Tsitsipas and Carlos Alcaraz. There’s also chat about Jannik Sinner coming through the Corentin Moutet test and Hubert Hurkacz’s bizarre effort to get the umpire changed. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge! Become a&...
Jun 02, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 1241
This was the day the French Open went a bit crazy. Catherine, David and Matt talk about the latest finish in tournament history as Novak Djokovic fought back to defeat Lorenzo Musetti. There's also chat about Alexander Zverev's fifth set tiebreak survival against Tallon Griekspoor, the wonder that was Tomas Machac vs Daniil Medvedev, Jasmine Paolini's win over Bianca Andreescu which was played in pouring rain, Elena Rybakina's return to the press conference room, Elina Avanesyan's upset of Zheng...
Jun 02, 2024•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 1240
The vibes came late on day six at Roland Garros but when they came, they were sensational. Carlos Alcaraz played a great match to defeat Sebastian Korda and Corentin Moutet had the Lenglen crowd in the palm of his hand as he reached round four. There's chat about both matches in part two of the pod, while part one focuses on Iga Swiatek's birthday victory, Ons Jabeur's joyful win over Leylah Fernandez, and Matteo Arnaldi's upset of Andrey Rublev. OUR LINKS: Join The Barge! Become a F...
May 31, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 1239
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 R...
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 Te...
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 Thi...
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 fo...
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...
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 c...
May 13, 2024•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 1228
