Indian Wells - The story so far

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Hello and welcome to the tennis podcast. It is Monday, the ninth of March. Tennis Paradise is paradising. Indian Wells is well underway. Matt Roberts is in a bad mood about football. How are you doing, Matt? Oh thank you for asking, but I I really don't want to talk about it. I'm just gonna bring the mood down. I I

I hoped when I woke up this morning that I'd be feeling better, but I literally was immediately conscious and immediately remembering that we fucked up the entire season yesterday. Um so Yeah, not good. I wish I didn't care as much, but I do and it's ruined my day and we Uh I I don't want to talk about it, I'll only bring the mood down, is a far more polite version of what Matt Roberts said in our WhatsApp group to David yesterday, uh which was my highlight of the weekend.

Rydw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w ddw i'w dd I I've gotta learn to keep my mouth shut and not not ask about Marco Silva's team selection uh decisions'cause Matt was not happy with them nor being asked about them.

Um but I do think what what what we have done today is set a record for the fastest need ever for an explicit tag on this show. So well done Matt Roberts. Well done Catherine for starting him off. Uh I actually cannot I'm going dark, if in case you're wondering, those were Those were Matt's that was Matt's response. I did feel bad and I did apologize. I've only witnessed Matt being rude like twice in my life and it's just it's just such a highlight.

Uh Matt, sorry to continue this our mood, but I feel like we should start part one uh of today's show by kind of picking up from where we were last week. There were a number of uh situations that um have developed over the course of the past week, some serious, some less serious, let's start with the draw. ceremony. We ended last week's show with much excitement and anticipation about Indian Wells treating a drawer with the apparent

reverence and seriousness and sense of occasion uh which it deserves. Uh you stayed up you stayed up late. um to watch the draw or to get social media updates about the draw. Uh marks out of ten and general review, please. I went with four out of ten and most of those marks were for every And I do wanna say that I do take that seriously and I do therefore, you know, still put Indian Wells above most tournaments. Most tournaments getting zero out. to be to be clear. Um

But it was a unfortunately a sort of reminder that even when tennis puts on drawers they don't really know how to do them in a in a captivating way. Too much fast. Far too much fat. interviews, needless breakdown of the draw as it's happening live. No, let the draw speak for itself. We just need the names. Who is playing each other? That is the drama. Don't suck all of that out by doing ridiculous interviews and asking Bianca Andrew who her celebrity crush is.

midway through the drawer. Like and then don't display it poorly on T V either, so that you can't follow it properly. Like these are these are basic things that they got very, very wrong despite trying. Okay. So uh points of effort is the is the verdict and that is the ultimate in damning with faint praise. Uh you had the opportunity to use expletives there.

that given that we've already got an explicit tag on this show thanks to you. And you you managed to manage not to The draw was nowhere near as bad as Fulham Okay.

Okay, they're really damning with faint praise. Right, uh so that's the much anticipated draw review. Uh the other situation that we were updating you on uh in last week's show uh was um surrounding the Middle East.

yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n yw'n fairly fresh, Iran had began firing retaliatory missiles at US bases in Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and the crucially from a tennis point of view, the UAE following the uh initial American and Israeli strikes on Tehran on Saturday morning and Dubai's airport was damaged and its airspace closed, obviously events of Escalated. significantly over the course of the past week, um, in terms of the tennis situation.

a number of players and ATP staff were stranded in Dubai, unable to get out, players unable to get to Indian Wells, um, including Daniel Medvedev who is talked about the journey he ended up going on before eventually somehow managing to to get to Indian Wells where he's

played and won a match. Um he spoke with the journalist Sophia Tartakova for Bolshe. He said, uh we arrived in Oman by car Someone was lucky to get there in four hours and thirty, someone drove for nine hours, we drove for seven hours. a little wrinkle in his tail was that our driver couldn't find his passport, he said. Um so I think he actually

Once they got to the border they actually had to go back for the driver to get his get his passport. Um yeah, he said we were the only ones who crossed the border, turned around and came back to the UAE. He found his passport in the parking lot. And we drove to Amman, stayed there for the night, and the next day we flew to Istanbul, spent the night in a hotel,

and then flew to Los Angeles. He said, If you tell all the details then of course it's unusual. You feel like you're in a Hollywood movie. Um Very pleased to see and hear that he um and I think all the other players and staff that were stranded in the UAE have now managed to to make it out one way or another.

Um but the other situation that started developing um at at the start of last week was that there were two ATP challenger events taking place in the UAE. in the city of Fujaira. Now they did eventually end up being cancelled. But they did begin in earnest. It was a bit like the doubles final that we discussed on last week's show where it was we couldn't quite believe our eyes that they were going ahead with it. Well, the same happened with these

Challenger events. Three matches were in progress when play was stopped. Uh at the first of these two events on Tuesday with footage of the match y you might have seen it between Hayatu Matsuoka and Daniel Ostepenkov showing the players. umpire and ball kids rushing to leave the court after they were told to get inside the building, please. I i an incredibly

dystopian scene, um if you've seen it. Uh UAE authorities later said that Shrapnel landed at the Fujaira oil terminal, around eight miles from the tennis country club in Fujaira where the event was taking place. And now the athletic did quite a lot of reporting, fantastic reporting on this this situation.

uh and it was unearthed that the ATP tour told players following the cancellation of these events uh told the players that were signed up to play at them that it would, quote, potentially be organizing a charter flight out of the region for five thousand euros per passenger. That um was in an email that

was seen by the athletic and reported on by the athletic. The flight was said to be leaving at three PM local time on Thursday from Muscat to Amman, which is a three hour drive for Fajra from Fajra and would have required a border crossing. There was then a second email um that the Athletic also had sight of, sent just under two hours later. It said it was not directly organising a flight. uh and would instead explore quote available travel options with third party providers.

Then on Wednesday afternoon the ATP announced that they would be covering costs for all the players to get home. Now whether that would have happened were it not for this reporting and the the outrage that that that came from it. Um I think people couldn't couldn't quite believe the communications that the the players were receiving out in Fajira, I don't know, but um eventually uh eventually, David, the right thing was done by the ATP.

Yeah, that was uh that required a a pretty swift handbrake turn from from them because that first email was was not good. That did not come across well at all. Um and it's it's all well and good saying the safety of of our players is priority but you've got to back that up with with actions and and that's what happened in the end. So you know, well done to them in the end. Um and and I mean I think I think it is fair to say that that these sort of things it

it's really tough to to to to to know what to do, I think, sometimes in authority and and and that s that kind of thing. But they've that has got to be at least planned for to some degree and and then acted upon and and they did look they they got it done. And that's, you know, mercifully for tennis, that is

the sports stint in the Middle East over and done with until until well, until the uh WTA finals in uh Riyadh scheduled for for later in the years. Later in the year a lot of other sports are

confronting a what on earth do we do about our upcoming Middle Eastern event situation. I think Formula One has got some serious decisions on its hands but uh tennis at least doesn't need to to confront that for the time being. But um relieved that uh everybody seems safe, uh albeit The doubles final with his partner Henry Patton in Dubai on Saturday.

Um it's an incredible read and um yeah, as you might expect he's he's very, very affected by um by what he went through and he and Henry Patton have withdrawn from from Indian Wells. And that is it for part one. We'll be back in part two to talk about the ten. Hello folks, this is a quick message from our longtime supporters and sponsors, Steve Fergals International Tennis Tours, of course, your premium hospitality and experience provider, and they can provide the experience of a lifetime.

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Welcome back to part two of today's tennis podcast where it's time to talk about the tennis. Let's start with the men and what we've seen so far in Indian Wells and let's start David with Joel Fonseca because He's been having a tough time recently in the in the tennis Discourse. He he's been getting a bit of a battering for being, frankly, overhyped, hasn't he? And look, his results recently have not.

been great. He's been recovering from the latest flare up of this chronic back injury that we know he has and it's taken him a bit of time to find his feet back on the tour. But my goodness me, in Indian Wells So far this week he has found those feet and he looks to me like somebody playing maybe with a little bit of a point to prove. Hm. Overhyped you say. Come straight to me. I can't I can't argue with that. Um look.

I I I do think when you first slap eyes on the way he hits his forehand, it is one of the most showstopping, jaw dropping sights in the sport and I think I I certainly did get carried away with that shot. I still I'm still awestruck by it. But I think that the the the assumption h became, oh, well he can knock somebody off the court, he can do it to everybody and nobody's gonna find any solution. And the truth is you need more than that. Um

And and I think and it and it is a lot. It is a lot of hype and it's also it's wonderful, wonderful attention from his home supporters and they travel in their numbers and they make such a fuss that you just you get swept up by Um I'll stop giving excuses for why I said he would win the French Open now last year. Um but look He he did look in the last couple of matches, and particularly in this one against Tommy Paul, he looked like there was a lot more thought and strategy and

kind of nuance to his game than than I've been used to. There were still absolutely devastating forehand blows. But there were rallies where he would just just loop one on the forehand l rally slice with the backhand drop shots. You know, there was a lot more going into the To the rallies that he was constructing against a very, very good player who looks like

I don't think Tommy Poor was at his best. Um I don't know whether Tommy Fall was a hundred percent fit. Also don't know whether J Joifon Seca was a hundred percent fit. He did have a a medical time out at the end of the first set, but six two, six three against Tommy Paul. in Indian Wells. That is a a scoreline to be taken seriously and d and to watch him, he looked a different

kind of level and package of player than he certainly has for most of the last year. Um And and this is following up uh a match against Karan Hatchanov, which I didn't see all of it, I saw the highlights after you drew m drew my attention, Katherine, to his second set tie break. Um and look he was on the cusp of defeat, wasn't he? Was a set down, he's into a tiebreak, and yet he won. So again, I think i even that fact is a good sign.

Mm, save match points in that tie break against Hashanov and you had to be very clutch, you know. Hashanov was playing well and you don't You don't get a lot of chances when he's playing well. You've got to play your best when the chips are down and when it when it counts and he he really did and that's a s that's a sort of win, that one, that can make you feel a bit bit bulletproof. Um he's probably gonna need to feel a bit bulletproof because he has got Yannick Sinner.

next. Um but I am I am very intrigued by that by that upcoming match. Nike have given Cinner a good kit. In fact in fact Nike seemed to have I dunno, it was like It it was like they were saving their best for Indian Wells. There's some there's some good Nike stuff happening. I don't know whether they've hit the panic button and upped their game, but I think the lead times on these kits are so long that it can't be that.

Ond Alcaraz wedi'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i'i I like what I'm seeing and I'm I'm I'm really pumped, Matt Fosinna, against Fonseca. I've no idea when it's happening because I still I just can't get my head around the cadence of these early rounds in in Indian Wells. Like I just

I i i I yeah. Tuesday. It's like right, great. Tomorrow. Brilliant. Excited. Yeah. Um I think I think there's been a sort of over correction with von Secret, right? It it feels like probably We everyone went too big on Fonseca to begin with. But I feel like too many people have gone too far the other way and have just written him off as this overhyped

ball basher now and I have felt a bit sorry for him actually'cause he's actually been I th he's sort of been called out a little bit, hasn't he, by by players. I mean Djokovic called him out this week in terms of the amount of hype he's received um Zrev did it in Australia without actually naming him, but it was sort of obvious who he was talking about. But you know, there was a reason that that hype existed and okay, maybe it was overkill and maybe he's not gonna be the

you know, reliable third guy to Siner and Alcaratz. Maybe he still will be. We don't know. Players do develop at different rates and you know, when Siner was Fonseca's age, don't think anyone was really talking about him in quite the same terms that they are now, in terms of the consistent, year round, brilliant threat that he's become. So maybe it's just gonna take Fonseca a bit of time, but there's no denying that

the top level he has with the weapons that he has is electrifyingly good. And we've seen it in flashes and I agree with David that what what I liked about the match against Paul was the was the element of control that he also seemed to have to his game and and a little bits of little bits of variety in there as well. So yeah, really good week for Fonsecca and I'm and I'm pleased.

And I'm intrigued by that match against Cinner. First time seeing them come up against each other. I I've been impressed with Cinner as well this week. He he seems to have I I think he's not quite sort of exploding on it, but he's he's not making the errors that he was making on it in uh in Doha. Um and he also got a good kit. Well. Yeah.

I can't argue with it. It suits him, doesn't it? It really does. Um and he's also s to me it seemed like he'd slightly cut out the some of the variety a little bit more. It it it just seemed like he'd streamlined his game. punching him against uh Shapovalov. So I think Sinner's pretty pretty big favourite in that one, but I will also be there on Tuesday.

I appreciate it. Um have you seen the video of him emerging from the supermarket with the toilet rolls and signing autographs? No, who's him? Sinner. Sinner, yeah. Yeah. He um he seems to have done the impossible, which is go to a supermarket to buy one specific thing and only come out with that one specific thing. He just had a he's there there's people asking for his autograph in the in the parking lot of the uh the grocery store and he's he's just got a nine pack of Lou Roll under his arm.

How do you not get seduced by, you know, the stuff they put near the till that's there just to seduce you or, you know, come out with a Punnet of olives that you don't need. How who does that? Of course the answer is Yannick Sin. Uh it's it's just somehow very Yannick Sinner, isn't it, that he went he needed Lou Roll, he went to get Lou Roll, he came out with Lou Roll. Fa free, Catherine. Right up your eye. Fa-free.

Uh Learned T N uh beat an ill Ben Shelton in three sets. I feel sorry for Ben Shelton because he's he's being treated as kind of patient zero for this This apparent Lurgy that seems to be going round Indian Wells. I keep seeing speculation that um maybe other players are ill and it's being described as maybe as they maybe they've got what Ben Shelton's got. Um and I'm not quite sure what Ben Shelton does have, but he he wasn't right, Matt, against Leonity and

That's safe to say. No, and he he also wasn't right against a pelcut a couple of days before, but he managed to get through that one. But it's such an odd experience watching a subdued Ben Shelton, you know, it really makes you realise how fired up he normally is and the energy he normally brings to the core, all of that had just gone and he was

very laboured in in both matches. He's was sort of clutching his side a bit as well and he he he just he didn't look well at all. And actually I think he made a he made a real go of this one against TM managed to managed to push it much much closer than I thought he would, but eventually

It's been it's been good to see TN, you know, he he gets a lot of support in Indian Wells and and it's it's it's nice for him to sort of be going on this on this little run. Uh but it was it was tough what I really He's got Alejandro Davidovich Fekina next, who beat Jakub Menchik.

Uh David you watched Alexander Zverev last night beat Brandon Nakashima albeit somewhat unconvincingly kind of look like Zwerov of old rather than the the Zwerov the Well he's been telling us he he wants to be now in terms of the the way he wants to play, particularly in the big moments. Yeah, i it was very interesting. It was an interesting match. It was quite similar to the match he played against Mia Mikzmanovich uh a couple of weeks ago in in Acapulco where

He's faced somebody who strikes the ball very well and is serving well and the scores close and on that occasion he lost, on this occasion he won. But I think it's It it's it's not uh it's not easy to play the sort of aggressive tennis he wants when it's windy in Indian Wales and when the probably the court doesn't it doesn't fly through the court in quite the same way. And he ended up

reverting to type really. And and maybe you've just got to do that. Maybe you've got to accept that you can't always win it the way you want. And he did hit some some bigger balls at the end. But I think you're seeing a a a a problem that he always runs into eventually. He he he'll find somebody who's in really good form.

who just can kinda handle his game and make him make him keep playing balls and and putting pressure on him. And honestly Nakoshima I think should have won this match. Really he was he he he should have won the first set. He had five break points in it, um to uh w which which Zverev didn't have. Um but

Zverev is very good at just sticking around and not not losing matches when it's close. He wins most of them and Nakoshima I think doesn't. And I did sense at the end when they shook hands that Zerev was Kind of U explaining it away at the net by saying how well Nakashima had played, I saw I slightly damning with faint praise, isn't it? You you you're complimenting the guy you've just beaten.

And I think it it it helps you deal with the fact that you haven't played as well as you want it to'cause I don't think he was that good. Um he's gonna have to really raise his game. Given the players he's coming up against next, I mean I think Francis Tiafo next who who looks in real Yeah, yeah, absolutely manhandled Flavio Caboli. Um Revenge for the...

We're gonna have to ride the highs and lows with Flavio. Um Carlos Alcaraz, Matt, you've written here in the agenda Alcaraz looked sharp in his six two, six three win over Dimitrov. I thought he looked devastating. Like it it was one of those performances where I was like, I hope the rest of men's tennis and the locker room aren't watching this'cause it would make you want to just retire on the spot, quite frankly. Pack up and go home. There's no point.

That was how I felt about that performance. Yeah, maybe you're right. Maybe my Alcaraz expectations are are too high and and now I'm underselling Alcaraz. Um yeah, he was great. And and like particularly good because it was really windy conditions. that night, wasn't it? And he he he I know he's talked a lot in the past about not liking the windy, but actually he is

He is well set up to to play in those conditions. His footwork being so precise, the spin he adds to the ball, he's got good hands, so if the ball just moves on him at the last moment, he can adjust to that. And I think now he's he's really got the temperament as well to play in the wind, you know, with the fewer ups and downs that he has in matches and sort of joy that he's bringing to the court all the time. He can he can handle if something's a little bit frustrating. Yeah, he he was

He was great. Um and as as you said, the kit's great. He's got the sort of mullet adjacent hair. I don't love the mullet, but I do love the kit. Yeah. I quite like the hair actually. I think it's it's it's grown out really. Yeah, and a bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of mate Flavio. Yeah. It's it's it's young men's twenty twenty six hair. Oh he's he had one that was a bit similar to that yesterday. Oh he's already done the mulling.

I mean it at least it's tidied it up a bit, so um, you know. Gotta take what you can at this ace. Um poor old Grigold Dimitrov David. I I don't think he played badly he just did not know what had hit or he did know what had hit him. It was twelve in a row, Carlos Alcaraz that had hit it. I was watching his match thinking twelve in a row doesn't feel doesn't feel that silly. Um great.

Oh we're we're we're Caboli guys together and now we're twelve in a row guys. Um look I I I do think Dimitrov is a Is realistic enough, I mean and I I really think he knows tennis to know that he could have done nothing in that match to really change things. Um sometimes people just are on it and if Carlos Alcras is on it, he has a level that nobody else has and and Dimitrov was was was laughing at it. I mean he was he was it was gallows humour really and and it was at the net just wow.

y y you you're playing too good. Um so yeah, I mean I I think that's the ch that's it's a great challenge for players on one level until they then run into it and realise their incremental gains are not going to be able to touch this guy if he's playing like that. But, you know, maybe he won't play like that against you.

Hmm Novat Djokovic had to come from a set down against Camille Meyershak Matt what a What did we make of this? God, what a m what a big question. Yeah. I feel like I don't even know I don't know how to frame the question with Djokovic and India, but like I don't know What's he hoping for from Indian Wells? Is he there just to have a nice time? Like It's kind of like none of it matters.

And yeah, like and yet, given he's th there, like we should talk about him. Um it was a good recovery in this match'cause he started all over the place. I mean in the third set he was gagging and really struggling physically. There was an incredibly long rally that ended up

on the floor and sort of gasping for breath after. A very very familiar Novad Djokovic experience that we've all witnessed in the last couple of years where he has looked sort of a little bit short physically in in some matches. And then you And then you even dare to write him off and he goes and beats Yannick Sinner in five sets in the Australian Open semi final and pushes Carlos Alcaraz. So you know, what does it all mean? Um I do think

in this stage in his career and but he used to have a great record in Indian Wales, didn't he? But he a he actually hasn't played very well there in in quite a while and I do think some of the the way he's developed as a player now Obviously he can still play well in Indian Worlds, but I don't think it quite suits him quite so much, you know, like he wants now to be able to get cheap points off the serve and I know that the ace rate does seem to be up a little bit in Indian Worlds

this year but he also wants to get the forehand skidding through and the way it just bounces up, it just doesn't really quite feel like it suits him to quite the same extent. But if he's if he's in it and and engaged and motivated, then I'm sure he can figure all all of that stuff out and um you know, he's a he's a good presence to have in the drawer and it's gonna be interesting to see if he can sort of navigate his way through. But yeah, it wasn't

By the way, just on Djokovic head, I I noticed he was asked again about his proposed end date to his career and he's once again talking about the Olympics in three years' time. I mean he seems Yeah there's this weird situation where sort of everybody's

analysing every move he makes. Like the at one point he um I think during a practice he sort of knelt down and did something profound looking, like kissed the court or something or like you know, waved at people in a sort of poignant looking way and it's like, Oh

Oh, this definitely means he's there to say goodbye. And it's like No, in every press conference he's telling us that he intends to play for another two point five years minimum. Um It's it's uh Yeah, it's i it's a slightly odd situation, but compelling compelling as always.

Um, Jack Draper, uh, on his return to Indy Wells as defending champion, uh, has a slightly better kit than what he had in in Dubai. Uh and he rec m yeah, m much better. I st I still don't love it, but we were at it's not lost property. Yeah. Yeah, we're at a f four. Effort. Um he recovered from a set down to beat Roberto Bautista Agu, which is a It's a it's a it's a to uh he would have been nervous ahead of this, David, I think, Jack Draper. And I think that's a that's a banana skin navigated.

For him. Yeah. He's another one who's who's getting on a bit and and yet he still is able to produce this metronomic Tennis. If you're a bit out of kind of rhythm of playing tennis matches and Jack Drape has played so little and as you say, coming in as defending champion, he's he would have been excited, anxious, all those things. And and that there is going to be this unknown as to how his army's gonna react every time he plays.

And and he looked pretty good, I thought. You know, it wasn't great, but it was i he got himself through it and uh and I He doesn't look at say as comfortable as Fees has on his return yet, but I think it I think he would have absolutely taken this. As long as he's pain free, that's all that matters if he's able to get through matches because the rest of it should Fees has been looking good, David, hasn't he?

Sure has. I mean he It's hard to believe that he's had the the seriousness of injury that he's had, a stress fracture to the back. Maybe it is just one of those injuries that if you do the right things with and you have to rest it they all they

And I always remember Katie Bolter having it sort of six, seven years ago and she's gone on to have a really good career without that seemingly being a big problem for her. He doesn't look like he's thinking about any injury at all and and that's that's uh a win over Martin Fucevic that he's had there. Who who played some decent stuff and who had beaten Lorenzo Mazzetti in the previous round? I realise Mazzetti's far from his hundred percent and and feeling his best at the moment. But

there looks like a real clarity of thought. A little bit like we were talking about with Fonseca. You know, there's a there's just a th there's there's not these moments where s he gets excited and suddenly goes off the rails because he's trying to hit the ball too hard. There's a much more of a clear idea I think and I think partially we'd go and involved, albeit not in in America for this next month.

But even I think there's a maturity and just a sort of confidence and and I think he plays Felix Ogiali Assim next, which is a player he played against um in his second well his first tournament back And he got handily beaten.

And you know, Felix is is playing really well this year. I still think there are fitness question marks over him. I've watched him in a couple of matches where he just looks like he's struggling with his knee or something isn't quite right. Um but that that'll be interesting.

It's another barometer, isn't it, as you try to measure yourself how far along your comeback you are? Mm. Yeah. Uh last men's match or if men's o'r llawer o'r llawer o'r llawer o'r llawer o'r llawer o'r llawer o'r llawer o'r

I'm so glad you've come to me on this. I did enjoy this. This was very Who else? He's he's two match points down, is Dardai and the decider against Hitchhikata and Mid rally he's having to stretch for a forehand and he puts up he puts up a defensive lob and stops the point and asks for a hindrance basically to be called on his opponent. He seemed to think that Hikshikata had said, Oh my God, mid rally. Um actually what had happened is that someone in the crowd had said that.

And therefore the umpire was like, Well all you've done there is call a hindrance on yourself. Like you you're the one who has stopped the rally and put Heikata off by making by making a fuss out of this, therefore you're gonna lose the point and the match. on on this point. I mean, I've never seen that before. Like

tr tryna call hindrance on your opponent and the umpire like no it was it was you who's caused the hindrance there and therefore this match is over because it's match point. The umpire went through the sort of process of checking the video review and was like Nope, I'm sticking by my decision. Um and Dardery was absolutely furious about it. Um

Yeah. Wild scenes. Th this is only anecdotal, but I really feel like hindrance drama is massively on the rise. We've overindexed on hindrance drama for twenty twenty six, right? Yeah, I think you might be right. We've we have talked about it quite a lot. Long may it continue because it's perked Matt right up. Yeah, yes. I do love a bit of hindrance drama. And I also like I do love the crowd getting involved. Um obviously like

shouting out mid rally isn't isn't great. But I I just I just find it a tough scene sometimes when like the crowd gets blamed for being excited about tennis. Like I sort of think that's what we want from the sport. Like obviously there's gonna be some sort of individuals who are annoying, but generally like crowd being excited I think good thing and it has been

Have you ever blow in Indian Wells seeing what they've done to Stadium two? Have you seen this where they Yeah. I I wonder if they'll row back on this'cause it's such a clear mission. It's so bad. Like so you used to be able to get into Stadium two The second court at Indian Wales, the big court. And it's big. It's really big. Sometimes you I see it on the telly and I'm like, what is that the is that Centre Court? And no, obviously Centre Court is

even more enormous. Mm. But you used to be able to get into that court with a grounds pass and o and it seems that now you can't and Unfortunately a l a lot of the matches on that s stadium have been suffering. Clearly like the thing to do. If you're gonna buy a stadium. If you're gonna buy a stadium ticket, you'll buy it for the main stadium and Yeah, the just the crowds have been down on on that court, which is just seems like such an own goal.

Yeah, absolutely. There have been some really, really tough scenes out there because the draw's so stacked in Indian Wells, Stadium two gets some awesome matches. I mean Stadium four gets awesome matches, but like you know, Stadium two's getting sort of Grand Slam quarter final level matches in these early rounds and yeah, it's tough to see them not have the the crowd that they deserve. Uh okay, that's it for part two. We'll be back in part three to talk about the women.

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Welcome back to part three of today's tennis podcast. Uh the women's matches that we've seen so far in Indian Wales. Let's start with Coco Golf and the incredibly rare sight of her retiring last night against Alexandra Ayala. Only the the second retirement of her career. She described it as a a weird pain in her left arm that she was experiencing.

Um obviously a great a great worry. I mean g you know, it's worry for everybody, it goes without saying, but like Kokagoff's physicality and her physical robustness, David. is such a huge pillar of her game and her identity as a tennis player. Um I don't know, it just it it feels like the world is out of order seeing seeing Coco Goff having to retire. Yeah, I d I d don't really remember seeing that before. I don't remember seeing her retire before. I don't really remember seeing her

look bothered physically by something that often. Um may maybe there is something that I'm that I'm just forgetting, but but it was really jarring seeing her come to the net and explain it to Alexandre Arla She'd got she'd got that sleeve on her forearm and and and so was obviously already experiencing some issue and and was just looked really worried.

You know, this is a player she'd beaten handly a couple of weeks ago. Suddenly, she's winning a couple of games in the hole, in you know, out of ten. Um, and just look. Oh, I n i I need to get off the court and find out what's going on here because she was worried. And um yeah, don't we don't need that. Nobody does. Fingers crossed for Coco Gough, that's as much as we know at the moment, but we will keep you posted.

Uh Matt let's let's continue the Matt Good mood from Hindran's drama to an absolutely sublime performance from Amanda Anisamova. Six one, six one against Emma Adacani late last night. She was She was a steam train. It was it w I mean that just must have felt amazing for her to be hitting the ball like that. And for you, obviously.

Yeah, it was one of those where I was wondering, Am I gonna be able to make it to the end of this match? You know, it was pushing I think maybe eleven, gone eleven in the UK by the time it started, the two matches before had both gone to deciding set. But I definitely had an hour still in me and that was that was all that was that was needed and look I take I take

no pleasure in seeing Emirata Khan who sort of beaten like that. Um but from a Amanda Nissimova perspective it was an astonishingly good performance and so quick you knew, oh, she's playing well here. She's hitting she's hitting the ball. Dream just in the first game there was power and control coming off her racket and it was a b absolute demolition really. I think we all remember the Radicanu Anismova match from the Australian Open last year where

you know, Radakano really caused Anisimova a lot of problems and put the ball in awkward spots. But I think we're seeing in this matchup, you kind of see the progress that Anisimova has made since then and She beat her very handily in Canada last year and this match looked a lot more like the Canada one than the other. Just a huge discrepancy in the ball striking and the power coming off off the strings. It was

It was all an isom over, really. She won fifty-three points to twenty-one. She hit twenty-one winners to two. She absolutely destroyed Radicanu's serve, and she served really well herself. of only losing six points on serve in the entire match and You know, I'd watched Radicano in the previous round against uh Zakarova and she'd been really good. I thought was her best performance of the season. She was convincing, she was playing with

conviction, hitting her shots, going after her shots, playing in the way that she's talked about wanting to play. And Look, I don't think I don't think she was at her best last night, but it it was just an ex it was just a reminder of like you can't always do that against certain opponents and it reminded me a little bit of Redakhan who's match against Rabatkin.

US Open last year and I remember thinking, Oh, Radicanu's look quite good this tournament. I think she might push. We're back in her and then She can't she can't get the strike in. Like the the the first strike is just coming from down the other end and you know, you sort of kind of want Radakanu to maybe mix that's where you want her to sort of try and mix some things up and use the other parts of her game because there are

bigger and better hitters of a tennis ball than her. She's not going to be able to out hit an Anisimova and she just couldn't. But I do think, as you say, the main story of this match was how brilliant Anisimova was. how comfortable she seemed on court, and coming off the back of her opening set, she played against Blinkova in this tournament, which was a...

a mess, just unforced error after unforced error and she lost it. She's then played four brilliant sets, having having having dropped that initial one. So yeah, it's been it's been a very good tournament so far for her. But she's in a

She's in a section of the drawer that is absolutely stacked'cause she now plays umboco, like first meeting between them. Cannot wait for that. And then the winner of that SO West Wednesday. I think it might be Tuesday again. Tuesday. It's all happening on Tuesday. Um and then the winner of that will play the winner of Sabalenko Osaka. Like that section of the drawer is is just so good. Yeah, Sabalenka Rosaka happening for the first time since twenty eighteen. Yes, you said.

Please. She's looked good, I think, Naomi Sarkas. in twenty eighteen. Yeah, fourth fourth round. The only set I think that are sort of sliding doors. Dropped en route to that title and it really did feel like the winner of that could go on to win The times leave and when it was happening, and if just think of the different directions there.

careers have gone in and taken since that moment and have had such different different trajectories to what is it, four four slam titles each. Um She's looked good, a saga, hasn't she, David? Yeah, I I was not convinced, you may remember uh uh a a couple of months ago about Osaka's form coming into that Australian Open. I I I I don't know, there was something e

in her performances and even the way she was speaking that ch everything just felt a little bit off and I I thought, Oh, she doesn't seem like she's in the good place she was heading into that US Open last year. That it feels different again this time. I watched this match against Camilla Osorio and

Yes, she dropped the second set, but I felt like that was an aberration. I felt like that was one dodgy game and then she didn't quite get back on serve. But the rest of it was a honestly a demolition. She was moving incredibly well. She looked in a great space sort of mentally out there, just looked happy and excited to be out there. And was hitting the ball a ton, you know, just crushing. Now, I I do remember seeing the first round that Radakanu played and thinking, Oh, she's hitting the ball.

And what you're facing can dictate what you're able to do. And Anisamova was just giving her a a totally different ball to Radicana. She couldn't handle it at all. Obviously Sabolenka's ball is going to be very different different to Asorio. So how Osaka adapts to that is going to be fascinating. I I still think back to the the US Open match she played against the Nisamova where she looked

Even though she almost won it, she looked really shocked by how she wasn't really able to play it on her own record in the way she was used to because of the sheer weight of shock coming her way. So she's gonna have to be so light on her feet. But I actually think if she has a good day get into the match, she could win it. You know, I I would I I think you'd you'd make a Sabalenka the favourite if you've got any sense because of all the the last few years. But this looked like Naomi Osaka to me.

Mm, okay. Uh Jasmine Paulini has been winning tennis matches, Matt, which in twenty twenty six is a headline because She hasn't been. I mean she's been doing it the hard way, she's been toughing them out, I think uh Anastasia Potopova and uh Ila Tomyanovich to three set wins and now she's got um Sensation, Talia Gibson. uh who qualified and has beaten Anne Lee, Katarina Alexandrova and uh Clara Towson. Um it's been a tough old season for Jasmine Paulini and she needed this.

Big time. Yeah, big time. I mean she got a few wins, didn't she, in yn Merida, yn ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud. Here she's yeah, I think I think I think you're right. I think the nature of the wins has been im important, toughing out some wins, you know, because she's probably still not at her best but

Trying to just get over the line and build confidence that way, I think I think has been helpful. And she is in the section of the drawer that has opened up a bit with goth. with Goff going out. So there is an opportunity there for whoever. I mean, there's plenty of good players still, uh including Ayala herself, who who beat Paolini the other week and some

retired. So there's an opportunity I guess for Paolini, but I think everyone in that section will be thinking there's an opportunity as well. But it is good to see. Like I'm happier when Jasmine Paolini is winning tax.

Yeah, you just don't want the you don't want to have cursed her with tennis podcast meets. You don't want to be the problem. It's very important that like David didn't David didn't like cause the Jasmine Paolini like surge by by the good draw thing and then have me to end it by the tennis podcast Meets Kirk. We can't have a sort of book ended tennis podcast Jasmine Paolini situation going on.

Uh, David, Elena Rabakna needed three sets against uh Hayley Baptiste. This is a really entertaining match. Yeah, three very different sets though, you know It was never a question of them both playing well at the same time. I mean m Rebecca had a really bad second set and lost it one sidedly, but Baptiste is a is such a clever player. She gets her off balance a little more than I think a lot of players do.

the she was able to use the wind to her her benefit and I actually think Rebaccina did well in the end to come through this match. Um but I I don't quite know Where she is form wise yet. She is uh when it is windy, you know, she's I often think you know, stick her sticker back in her indoors and how the heck do you beat her because these still conditions enable her to just tee off and time the ball perfectly but That isn't the case in these conditions.

You know, Baptiste feels like she's she's definitely still got more to to to come in her game. I feel like she'll have a higher ranking in the future than she has right now. Um but, you know, in the end you you saw why one of them is kind of a champion who's used to winning tight matches, I supp. Yeah.

Uh defending champion Mira Andreva, double bagel, poor old Solana Sierra. David. Antonia Ruzich, she knocked out um Jung Chin Wen, who's still very much on the the comeback trail, six four seven five. Did you ever get a reply from Coran about Antonia Rusich? I feel like we need to we need to know some stuff about her. She's she's popping up more and more.

Yeah, I don't I don't know whether it's possible to sort of light up in a WhatsApp message, but I got the sense that Gorin was lighting up talking about a fellow fellow Croatian. Um doing doing good things on the tennis tour, you know, and and he he didn't seem particularly surprised. He said she she is good, but I think Maybe I'm surprised at the nature of some of the winds. I'm and look.

Th that is a player coming coming back to the sport who's probably not at her best at the moment, but this isn't isolated isolated either Ruzich is is just running into people that are top players who who all got problems or she's actually a better player than that and I think that's the truth. I think she is a better player. good sort of solid base to her game. Um you know, not my m my wife's creation and she her first response when I tell her about a player like Rizich's

oh, is she young? You know, is she new? You know, and She kind of is new but she's not that young. She's sort of she's not old, but she's sort of she's been around a little while and made her way through the through the rankings and is is kind of certainly doing more than I think most people I I know thought she would have done.

Um but sometimes people just get comfortable don't they at a level. They get to a they get into a d a a draw like a d a Duby or a Doha and then get into an Indian Wells and they realise oh my game isn't He's now of out of its comfort zone here, I can play. Mm. Yeah, one to watch for sure. The WTA website says that Rusic was um was a karate champion in Croatia growing up. Which is quite fun. Yeah, okay. On that sort of thing, yeah, it'd be an odd thing to make up, wouldn't it?

Yeah. That would be absolutely wild. Um even for the WJ website. Uh Matt, Eager Schwiontek, so bizarre match against Kayla Day, six love

7-6. What did we make of Iga Svantec and this match in general? She's got Maria Sackery next to Svantec. Probably on Tuesday. Nothing's today, actually. No. Honestly, Schviontek is so fascinating to me right now. Um and has been for a while, to be honest, and It's second sets. I I re I r I sort of really realised that it's second sets with Eagles Film Tech that are so compelling.

Right now, having a look at her record, her two losses at the at the WTA finals last year were both from a setup, went wrong in the second set. The United Cup, if we remember, she had those horror second sets against Ben Chin.

which she lost six love and Goth, which she could easily have lost six love before a little rally at the end. In Australia she had that strange second set against Callinskya and then she got blown out by Rabatina in the second set. And what makes it so interesting against Sacary now is that it was against the

Sachari in Doha when she lost from a setup, and that was the first time she'd lost at a one thousand event from a setup. You know, th she is the great front runner of the WTA Tour over the last few years, she feels like So it's really odd to see things just going a bit wrong in the second set. And I think part of it is, you know the way tennis matches work, right? Like If you've lost the first set and suddenly you're down in the score as an opponent

I think opponents are freeing up a little bit maybe more in these second sets and playing playing with fewer inhibitions and putting therefore a bit more pressure on Igor Stronte. That's certainly what happened here. Kayla Day was just a totally different player in that second set compared to the first. But then she found it difficult to actually close it out and win it and and and Siontech managed to rally from from a real deficit in that second set, to to still win in straight sets. But

Uh something is s something's different, right?'Cause she used to Sviontek just keep it up all the time and keep the foot on the gas and once she was ahead in a match she was so hard to come back against. These days Byddwn ni'n gweithio, byddwn ni'n gweithio, byddwn ni'n gweithio, byddwn ni'n gweithio, byddwn ni'n gweithio?

leading to pressure that she's facing on serve and opponents I think just I think the aura's been chipped away at a little bit as well and I think players know now that there is an opportunity And they they're not just beaten as soon as they start that second set having lost the first. So it's really interesting to follow. There was a lot of good tennis in that match.

And she does like these conditions in Indian Wales. Um and I would expect her still to beat Sachari personally. Um but yeah, like there's there's a pat And that's been interesting to observe.

Mm. And the thing for Sachary in this match is suddenly there's bit of expectation on her because she beat Sean Tech last time around and that really changes the the dynamic for for her. So I think I'd still back Shjontek but it's yeah, sh I mean she's utterly compelling at the moment, is Igo Shiontek and uh there's a lot of fascinating matches

been set up on mostly Tuesday by the sounds of things, but th th there must be some happening today as well. Um we've seen everybody play now at least once. At this point, with a week to go of Indian Wells, who are you picking to win the titles? Well Alcaraz. Yeah, I mean Alcaraz. Uh women's is hard. Women's is very hard. Um but look, screw it, and this I'm over. There we go.

Uh David. Matt didn't buy you much time there to think, did he? Oh this is. It's difficult, isn't it? You're going Algaz, right? Yes. I I mean based on what I've seen. Certainly Cinnarin Alcras looks the best place in the draw. Yeah. Also I have noticed the forecast for the end of the tournament is very, very hot. Like really hot. You know, put like over ninety Fahrenheit, pushing a hundred, and like

you know, if we're if if for example we were to get an Alcaraz sinner in those latter stages in those sorts of conditions, you'd you you'd be cut sort of backing Alcaraz as well. So that's that's a factor, um but obviously the main How good Alcras is. Yeah. Yeah. really difficult this. Um I I I mean I I think the sensible thing to do is to go for Sabalenka, but I'm actually uh I I think I'm gonna say I think it's gonna be the winner of Sabalenka and Osaka.

Because I think Osaka could win. I do predictions. A big one is gonna come her way at some point if she's pl if she plays her best tennis. And I felt she was getting towards it in September last year. I think she's getting towards it now. It's the US Open 2018 all over again. The winner of Asaka Savalenka wins the title. Mm-hmm. Do you have a hunch, Catherine?

Well the last the last tennis I watched was that Anisomova performance and that looked I mean that looked absolutely unplayable, but also it looked like you know, it looked like sort of flow state you can't expect to be turning up in a tennis court and playing like that you know, that this sort of match you play once or twice a season, isn't it?

Um but my god she looked good. Um that's interesting, isn't it? Like Asaka, Sabalenka, Nisimova, the players we talked about there all in that bit of the drawer together that I've talked I do think the other half seems a little bit more open. Like you've got you've got Rebecca and you've got Schwion to me. I think yeah, sh should probably be saying Rebecca, shouldn't we? I mean it's she's Well Pagula.

Yeah. Although Pagula's not going to be able to do it, David. Although Pagula talks about not liking the Indian Wales conditions. Yeah, I don't think of her as an Indian Wales girl. It wouldn't shock me if she managed to figure them out and win. She beat Vekic, didn't she, in three sets. Having said that, in the opening set, she was blinded by Vekic's diamonds.

Good promo for the diamonds there for Vecich. I think she'd take that. Probably over the win. Yeah. Yeah. Um I mean th there's Andreva as well, you know, defending champion. She loves it there. She like she's We know the tennis is good enough. It's it's all a kind of temperament question with with Androver at the moment, isn't it? But um

Maybe I'll go for Anisamova just'cause recency bias. The last two performances I watched were Alcaraz and Anisomova and I I my thoughts during both of them were, well no one can beat this. So let's go with that.

What can go wrong? Uh I c I can't believe it's taken me this long to mention the Eisenhower Cup. My apologies to the Eisenhower Cup. It's the event that I imagine is probably a bit annoyed that it's been somewhat gazumped by US Open mixed doubles because it used to sort of slow. Yeah, I guess so. Pre event events. And now it's just sort of a shit version of something that happens elsewhere. But look it It gets good crowds it ge i it is fun. It is fun. I'm being I'm being rude. It is fun.

Taylor Fritz friggin' loves it. The odd couple vibes between him and Elena Ba Rabatkinna w were were just endlessly fascinating to me. And they've they've defended their title. And that's that's quite funny. Yeah, it is a bit. They beat um Anisimova and TN. Oh. I wasn't across this as you can tell. That was a l Anisimova was supposed to play with Rublev, but he was detained in Dubai, so she got

Yeah. Potentially an upgrade. And then uh the the interview at the end of the event, um it was Coco Vanderway doing the interview. She she asked um Lerner Tien Are you gonna gonna partner with an with with Anissimova again next year? And he said, I'm very proud of our efforts. And then realised I think that that sounded

Like a no and uh said uh No it's great to be partnered with with someone so good as a Nissamova, a champion like her. Um she did have a bit of still a no. She did have a bit of a disaster in that final Nissanova, it has to be said. Um I did also like uh Tien's uh um ATP content video the other week when he was asked for his his sort of what's what's your sort of dream in life? Yes, I saw that. Yeah.

Tennis player. Achieving that. In being relatable. You initially said they said what what's your biggest fear? Ha ha ha. Some people are saying sharks, but no. My friend Monique in her GCSE French oral, her mind went a bit blank. The role play she got was meals, food, food and drink, eating out. And the first question was what food do you not like? Are there any foods you don't like? And her mind went blank and all she could remember was viandes, which is meat.

So she said, I don't like meat and then she was asked, What do you like to eat? and Obviously the only vocabulary at this point she had been able to remember was was meat and she'd already ruled that out. Um so she'd she'd driven herself down a bit of a cul-de-sac. Was that relevant? Who can say? Uh there was a I didn't think there was gonna be more to that story.

Well she ended up just saying viande in answer to everything, in in answer to what she did like and what she didn't like because it was the only vocabulary she could remember. Yeah. She yeah.

Uh there was a it was a there was that uncomfortable moment in the um trophy ceremony or in the In the photo shoot bit after the trophy ceremony which has gone a bit viral of um the the d a couple of men involved with the tournament uh presenting Fritz and Rabakna with the trophy and standing there to have photos taken and one of them's got his Arm around her back in her in a

I mean fairly innocuous way, but s but but n you know, j just a bit too much and she eventually I mean it's the sort of thing that women will watch and go, Oh yeah, this this shit's happening all the time, everywhere and good for her for for doing something about it. She she was asked about it um by Charlie Eccleshare in fact in in press and she said not not a big deal, nothing to see nothing to see here. But um but we did see it and um it's bullshit.

So there we go. Happy International Women's Day to everybody. Speaking of International Women's Day, we recorded our latest edition of Tennis Relived. on Friday. Matt, would you like to um tell the people, give them a little tease or a little promo, entice entice everybody to listen to our Alice Marble Relived episode. Yeah, Alice Marble, a fascinating person.

so much mystery surrounding her life. She's a sort of unreliable narrator of her own life. Um and there are there are a couple of extraordinary Tales that she tells in her memoir that that we got into of a wartime romance and a wartime spy saga. Um, and you know, did those events happen? Did they not happen? What does it say about Alice Marble and the time that she felt like she needed to say those events as though they as though they did?

We got into all that as well. We talked about her career that saw her overcome. about of real illness and then come back to the sport and win major titles uh and be the dominant player before before the world the second world war broke out and She wasn't sort of able to then go on winning winning the major titles'cause because everything stopped. Um so kind of what could have been about her career as well. Um we talked about her important ally ship in the in the fight for

social justice and breaking down the colour barrier in tennis. She was a big supporter of Athea Gibson and both a wrote a very powerful moving letter um which went a long way to to helping Arthea Gibson be able to to play at the top of the sport. Um and we did all of that with Hannah, Hannah Wilkes, our our phenomenal uh writer and captain of the barge and yna, yna, yna, yna, yna, yna, yna.

on that relationship and the boundaries that were crossed in it and the complicated sort of messy nature of uh that sort of coaching relationship very relevant to a lot of what we talk about today. as well. So so many different aspects of Alice Marble's story and it took us two hours to talk about it all. Uh but yeah, it's it's up now for friends and yeah it's a very very Cảm ơn các bạn đã theo dõi và hẹn gặp lại.

Well, it's a long show, so that's fitting. It's still shorter than our Andy Murray's near-misses Australian Open show. Tells you something. Mm. Yeah, I loved it. Um and it is up now for Friends of the Pod. And if you'd like to become a friend of the Pod, get access to that and all of our bonus content, then the link of course is in our show notes, folks.

I would like to introduce you to our mascot for this episode. It is Ludo. Ludo is owned by Gail and this is what Gail tells us about Ludo who is What a good boy. Uh Ludo is a seven year old black German shepherd living in Brooklyn, New York. He loves long park walks, hiking, summers at the beach, begging for cheese. uh and rearranging pillows to his liking. That could be a description of me.

He adores tennis balls and can even sniff them out. He knows where the tennis courts are in our neighbourhood and will inspect the surrounding bushes until he finds a souvenir ball. His favourite player is Yannick Sinner. He has a large toy carrot to show his support. I think you'll find Gail that uh he ought to have a fox but He's he's all right with carrots, as David established at the French Open.

Uh but he relates to Matteo Berrettini because of his devastating good looks, barrel chest, and tendency to carry an injury. Last summer Ludo needed an emergency surgery and was in the hospital during the first few days of the US Open. I got the call that he was out of surgery and doing well while attending the mixed doubles to distract myself. I was quite literally sitting behind Shelton Townsend while they were serving.

So I will always associate the good vibes of the mixed doubles with Ludo's Road to Recovery, as well as the many, many hours of Catherine David and Matt. that have filled my ears on our walks throughout the year. That is a lovely description and tribute to a gorgeous dog, what a good boy he is. Very slobbery, but we don't mind that. Hello and thank you to Ludo and to Gail.

Uh hello to our mascots, to Bodie. We continue to ride that Kaboli wave, Bodie, to uh Maisie and to Roger as well. Hello to our top folks and executive producers, Greg, Chris. And Jeff and it's over to Matt for some shout out. And we start with Ian Farrand, who is from Winchester. Hi Ian. Hello, Ian. Ian says I had a quick chat with Matt and Catherine when making my debut spectating at Flushing Meadows last year and we shared some words about just how bad Madison Keith is. Ah yes.

I mean she was bad, yeah. Yeah. I'd forgotten that. Lost to Zarazua. Uh Ian says that got me halfway in my podcast slab. Having previously spoken to you on Heman Hill a few years ago. So he's trying to he's trying to speak to us at all the slams, which is fantastic. Ian Great. He says he couldn't find any of us in Paris two years ago, so that's an excuse to return. Good you don't need an excuse. Dennis Ian's Ian Flanagan, Flammania. I love it when you talk about flannania.

Fantastic. Thank you, Ian. See you see you somewhere soon. Paris or Paris or Melbourne, maybe. Uh we've also got Andrew who wants to also shout out his eight-year-old uh spoodle cockapoo. Well, I appreciate that effort. A spoodle slash cockapoo. Yes, I'm a bit confused by the um Okay. By that.'Cause a spo well it there's a Sprudle, which is a Springer and a poodle. Okay. Intriguing. How many Spaniels were involved in this creation?

And Andrew says, Rafa Nadal is our favourite player and we were lucky enough to grab last minute tickets to the 2022 Australian Open. Oh, good work Andrew. Wow. Andrew Well, I mean you've had the definitive Raphael Nadal experience. I suppose you could say Roland Garros but I don't think it gets better than the miracle in Melbourne, Andrew. Like Andrew Richardson. Incredible. For former coach Emma Adacaru's open glory. I wonder what would happen if that had come.

Who knows? Wow. Very good, David. You're on fire. And finally we have Alison Heather, who has got this shout out for Philip Wong as a prize for winning their own twenty twenty five tennis. predictions competition. Oh that's so cool. They've been friends since journalism school, twenty five years ago. They're from Toronto, Canada. And Philip got Alison into tennis over six years. They're not.

about the pod all the time. Phillips hope is that Alison will join him doing the fan slam. For years, Alison's mum Susan and Philip's sister Sandra would join them on a Google Doc to predict The singles quarterfinals to winners of all the slams, the thousands. as well. Um sadly they lost Sandra in twenty twenty two and Susan in twenty twenty four. So this shout out also goes to them. Sandra Wong and Susan Payne. And Alison says Now it's the two of us left making precisions.

We miss them immensely, but thank you to the tennis podcast team for seeing us through these challenging times. We gladly show you the real Toronto if you're ever in town, because the tournament venue up north is not at all representative. Toronto has to offer. So thank That's really, really beautiful. Alison like risk and Philip like Coalshiber. Very good. Yeah, really lovely. Thank you, Alison. And Philip, like Cole Schreiber.

Uh folks, we are part of the Athletic Podcast Network. It's a two podcast week because it's a combined one thousand week, so that means we'll be back on Thursday with our next show and then our post Indian World show will be live on YouTube on Monday at 8 p.m. UK time. It'll also be available to watch whenever you like.

uh after going up and be available to listen to a podcast as normal. But if you'd like to join us live on YouTube, eight PM UK time uh is when it'll listening today and we'll speak to you again on Thursday. Bokföringen försvinner inte, men huvudverken gör det. Lundifej ger dig mer lugn, mer. Utan krongel. Fästa Lundifaj från Bjornlunden. Denna produkt är inte riskfri. Den används med nikotin som är beroende från kallande. Endast för användning av vuxna. Är du trött på lukten av rög.

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