Monte Carlo - What on earth was Daniil Medvedev doing?

Uh but he's into the quarterfinals in Monte Carlo and he is one of a few people we have to talk about on this special midweek show here of the tennis podcast with me, David Law and Matt Roberts and no Catherine Whitaker. uh, who is is on a night out, uh, which is absolutely fine. Um, but this is a special show, Matt, you know, we're gonna do a few more of these.

Um and mainly because there's just too much going on some weeks to cover it all in the one show. Um and actually it feels like a really good time to be doing this because that was indeed quite a C.

You know, he he was always in the drawer in Monte Carlo, not doing an awful lot, and then suddenly has that run in Shanghai and is backing it up really, really well, I have to say, and th two nights in a row we've had late night Vachero scenes in Monte Carlo and he's whipping the crowd up and playing with such intensity and yeah, it's been it's been a really good time.

And and that also feels like a a good development. I don't know, s suddenly this week I always got get the one frustration for me about Monte Carlo is that it is men only. And Now, a little bit like next week when we have Stuttgart and Barcelona, uh, on on the women's side and the men's side, you've you feel like you've actually got a really good tournament to talk about. I know it's not as high a level and it's not as many top players, but it fe it feels a bit more complete to me, this this

like why I like tennis so much and I I often talk about sort of just how pleasing it is on the senses. Do you know what I mean? Like I love the sights and the sounds of it and Sometimes that hard to justify when, you know, it's being played in a sort of car park in the middle of the night and no one's watching it. But I feel like Monte Carlo is the event I will point to in terms of those sights and sounds being so

stimulating and pleasing to watch. And yeah, it's been it's been like that all week. I I do love

and uh you can become a friend and get access to all of our bonus content like live Q and A's and tennis relived. We've got another one of those coming up soon. I did an interview for it today. We'll uh we'll announce the details of that very soon. Um I'm looking forward to that one.

Um, but we've got to start with Monte Carlo, Matt, um, in in some detail because you know we we have only had three or four days, but it feels like already A lots and lots has happened, and yet B, a little bit like with the Masters Golf, which you and I have all are also watching, there's g there's there's kind of a leaderboard, a packed leaderboard feel to the quarterfinals. you know, all the big names are still there and

w we're left with a Friday that is gonna be absolute must viewing, isn't it? Um And yet even before we come on to to to talk about Alcaraz and Sina and Zverev and and all the players that that are gonna feature in that

We gotta start with Danil Medvedev, who didn't win a single game uh in the tournament. I mean It's it's h it's hard to believe that the guy we watched play outlandishly good tennis in Indian Wells and made me feel as though he was going to win the find against Sinner. He ended up losing it in two close tie break sets. But he was playing vintage Medvedev tennis as as well as I could imagine him playing.

And it took everything sinner had got to beat him. For that guy to lose six love, six love to Matteo Berratini, um, yesterday and and it was the talk of tennis, it was the talk of

a lot of the sporting world I was having lots of people I don't often hear from about tennis asking me about this moment. My son said what what happened to Medvedev? You know, he's he doesn't usually s s sort of ask questions like Um unless I I happened to have it on, but you know, it had been in across all his weird and wonderful feeds that he c that he sort of followed. Um, but, you know, uh the reason is because he didn't win a game and he he smashed his racket in a more

spectacular fashion than anybody I've seen smash it this year and and in fact maybe more spectacular than I've seen anybody ever. Um it's right up there anyway, top five most uh most extraordinary racket smashes. But What happened to him from your perspective? Was Matteo Berettini incredible or was Daniel Medvedev appalling?

Albeit, I do think we've noted, in quick conditions. He's been helped by the conditions when he's played well this year. And obviously we know that Klay is his least favourite surface and time of year. My expectations of Medvedev... were not that high going into this clay court season, even ev even after the good start of the season he'd had. But I did not expect this. I mean this was just

Just terrible. Just like the crash out of all crash outs. Um the the racket smash was pretty comical, really, th the way that the crowd were were goading him and and doing the oo

when he w when he was smashing the racket. Like and he he he just lost his head so early in this one. Like he had a break point in the first game, didn't take it. And when he went five love down, he was sarcastically fist pumping over to his team. And like that's such a telltale sign for Medvedev.

that he's probably about to kind of spin out of control. Personally I prefer it if he's taking it out on his racket than we often see and he takes it out of on an umpire or something like that. It's kind of ugly and you and you don't really like that and you can't really justify it.

I was watching this and I you know, I I was on the one hand feeling for him he was having a horrible day. He couldn't find the court. Three winners to twenty seven unforced errors in this match. But on the other I was kind of finding it quite funny because because there was that sort of comical element to it and the racket smash and once it got to, you know, a set and a break, you were kind of thinking, Well, the the double bagel is definitely on here.

And, you know, Berrettini did well, he didn't make the errors, he played solidly, but this was I think pretty much all about how how bad methods

He he said, That's the way. Move the feet now. Stay there. You know, like he didn't want him to back up you use the feet now. Okay. He lost the next three points. You know, and he and he just could he just couldn't put the ball in the court reliably at all. He just couldn't play properly. And when he when he did smash this racket, I mean one one of them I mean I think there were about seven smashes in total in the one racket.

The first one was throwing it into the backboard, which uh always makes me wince because You know, I'm always expecting a ball kid to just appear out of nowhere and just get it in the leg. Um so there's a recklessness to to that sort of thing. But then when

When the crowd started to get involved you got the sense that he was he was in on the joke almost. You know, you n he knows how s how terrible he's playing, he knows how kind of ridiculous it all is that a top player would be playing like this and losing like this and he's he sort of went with the joke and I almost got the sense that he was thinking I I'd rather lose Love Lo Love and Love now'cause it's at least funny.

yw'r yw'r yw'r yw'r yw'r yw'r yw'r yw'r yw'r yw'r yw'r It was um When you w uh you say you said you found it funny and I mean there there was a moment where after the last smash the the racket was in so many pieces he was able to sort of just manipulate it into a shape that it fit into the little sort of

at all. And like you, I I just don't like the going at umpires where it's not their fault, you know, it's and they're human beings, they better do a job. You're playing like a an idiot. You're you know, get over it, mate. Um I mean I thought it was all a bit pathetic, but I also thought, you know, this is a guy who's just lost. He's just lost. He's not not just not lost the match. He's lost his mind. He's lost his way completely. There's no way back.

I would back him probably to rebound Okay. I mean I think the bigger problem is clay. You know, he need he he he can play on it, can't he? I mean he's won he's w is it Rome he'd won he's It's a proper Claycourt tournament. How on earth is he losing like this? But I still think that you know, I don't think this is just gonna keep happening necessarily.

any kind of trend or anything. It was a total outlier. He just could not play. Like he couldn't serve. He only won, I think, nine points on serve all match. His first serve percentage was so low. Um Yeah, I think he r I think he just writes this off, moves on, and as I said, I'm not expecting him to win events on clay. I'm not really expecting him to be in the semis of these of these Masters one thousands or slams on clay. I expect him to win some matches.

Uh and I think he'll probably do that, you know. I think he's I think he's probably um got quite used to in the last year or so of having a dip and then having having to come back and and play better. And Madrid in those faster conditions at altitude I think will suit him more and if he gets a decent draw then I I you know I would back him to to at least win a match or certainly Certainly a game.

Okay, he didn't win the French Open as I said he would last year. But I've come back again with another go at it and I've put him back I've made a big play for him in my fantasy team, trading in Taylor Fritz uh to to Reggie and and I've got Joel von Seca and here he is in the quarterfinals, but he he's starting to look The property on this surface, I think, is not

that maybe we we we were looking towards a year ago. He I mean I'm I I still think he he's he's got a long way to go. Um but this these are good strides in Mont

Um I sort of picked this match up in the second set today. I was watching uh Zero of Berg's butt as is often the case at these events, I was drawn to the noise I could hear from from the other courts, you know, and like the Italian tennis boon has been such a boost to Monte Carlo as well, you know, like pretty much

finished it off really impressively. And I think when you have that much power at your disposal like he does on clay, and you have time on the ball, it's kind of easier to unleash that power. It's harder to be rough. And even the opponents knowing that he's got all that much power, I think they I think they naturally sort of back off a little bit against him and he ends up with a lot more space to use in the court, I think. He d his game does make

a lot of sense on this surface. But I do think it's gonna be very interesting seeing him play against Zverev tomorrow because today against Berrettini he had quite an easy strategy of kicking the serve into the Berrettini backhand return and knowing that he's gonna get kind of a midcourt ball to attack off. And he can then dictate.

that kicker into Zverev's backhand return isn't gonna, I don't think, give him such an easy ball as it did against Beratini. It's gonna be it's gonna be harder for him to just set up the rallies that he wants, I think. Um I don't by any means think Zverev's playing all that well in Monte Carlo so far. Um and it's always a test for a player. Can they put Zverev away? Um

But yeah, I th I think it's I think it's exciting that he's got that test. You know, we've seen him play Cinner, we've seen him play Alcaraz, and now we see him play Zverev. This is all just good, I think, for the von Secker experience and growth.

Uh and he's beaten Zverev before and he was causing him all sorts of trouble. Actually I would I would say he was Causing him the sort of trouble that should give Fonseca some hope because the damage was coming from the forehand side from Green, albeit he was doing most of it with with a cross court forehand into the Zwerv forehand and Zverev wasn't enjoying the way that ball was jumping up at his forehand. Um and and like you say, I d I don't think he's

I don't think he's found his r real timing yet. He was much better today against Sizou Bergs, um, although I thought Bergs was disappointing after a brilliant performance against Andrey Rublev to get there. I was expecting a lot from Bergs today and And he couldn't he couldn't tie a forehand all day.

Zvreev has said before, hasn't he, that he does feel like clay is the surface that takes him the longest to get going on. You know, I think that was part of the reason why he played in South America last year to try and get up to speed. on the clay so that he'd sort of hit the ground running on on the European clay. It didn't work at all. It was a it was a disaster. He he lost a lot in South America. I think he ended up sort of

putting too much load on his back and he was then sort of injured through that period and it it just didn't work. And he's obviously abandoned that. that strategy this year. But if you look at his record on clay over the years, he does take a little while to get going. I think he is right there. Like he's never had a great record in Monte Carlo. But he by the time Rome and Roland Garros and Madrid come around, he's normally hit his stride a bit more on on this surface. But I I do think he's

there for the taking at the moment. I mean we say that a lot about Zverevin actually being able to beat him is difficult. He does grind his way through a lot of these matches. So it's gonna be a real test for Fonseca but I do think if if we see Zverev playing like he has so far, I do think from I do think Fonseco can do it.

tomorrow, uh as we come to you on Thursday, and the winner of Fonseca and Zverev will face the winner of Yannick Sinna and Felix Ojiali Assem. That's the second match that's on in the quarter finals. Sinna who's been on this incredible run, having won the Sunshine Double and he'd won thirty seven sets in a row. Um Finally lost one. Um because uh at a masters tournament that is, because um he he lost the second set against Thomas Mahat.

on a tie break. Very nearly turned it around having been 5 2 down um and and and managed to win that one as well, but uh but didn't get it. seemed to feel a little unwell in the the second set Cinnamon. Not not exactly something we're we're a stranger to really with him, but you know, he's into the quarterfinals. How have you sort of taken in his first couple of matches on clay so far, Yannixon.

And yeah, five two down, double break, and ailing, really, and you're thinking, Okay, maybe m maybe there's a match here. Of course Maha was pretty shambolic when trying to serve out that second set twice. Awful shot making. But then really got it together in the tie break and played a great tiebreak. We ripped it from Cinner. I still didn't actually think Mahatch was gonna go on and win it because

As you said, we're we're quite used to seeing Sinner in those situations. He handles them well. He stays calm, you know, when he when he's not quite feeling his best and I thought he served a lot better in that in that final set and and kept Mahatch at arm's length. And if it is just a slight

illness thing, then, you know, I think he he was kind of saying, Well, I'll hopefully feel better in my next match tomorrow so I think, you know, you'd have to say it's a good match for him to get through. Um and yeah. he he he would definitely be the favourite to come through that that bottom half of the draw for me.

I'd I'd I'm still I'm still interested to see this match. Sometimes I'll watch Yannick Cinner matches and I have to say I I did put this one on the on the list today of thinking I I mean I just I really struggle to see it being competitive. So fair play to match that he actually won the second set, although although perhaps it was uh due to the the physical state of of Sinna.

I am interested to see I th I think Oji Aliasim provides at least a physical test. You know, he's I think he's got that clear deficiency on the backhand versus a guy with a backhand like Sim. But, you know, he's got the movement, he's got a big forehand, he's got a big serve. I think it's another little tester just to see where sinner is. I think all you know they're they're At a tournament I expect you to have these incremental texts.

because you're you're going through the rounds and you should be m meeting the best players towards the end. Um and Sina Ojali Hassim as a as a quarter final is a You know, a good little marker I think. Um but I'd s I'd be surprised if Ozie Elliot Seam would have win this.

um De Carlos Akras against Thomas Etcheveri, which, you know, you would not have seen that coming after the first set, would you? Because he was absolutely majestic against Etcheveri. I watched I watched all of this and he looked absolutely bang on it in the first set. And yet If you think of Carlos Accra as it's not

I've seen this match so many times. I've seen him come bursting out of the blocks and you think he he's he's the best player I've ever seen. And then in the second set he's four one down. You know, and you're like How have you ended up in this position? And and actually and I'm like, Echivery hasn't really been that involved.

Um and yet he s he finds himself leading the the the second set. He ends up edging it in the end because Alcra's left himself too much to do despite making a bit of a comeback. Got himself back on track in the third, won it. fairly convincingly, six games to three. I d I I didn't hear anything about any ill health or concerns of that type from from Carlos Aukras. Maybe you'll tell me different, but to me this was not An unfamiliar sight either, for for Carlos Alberto.

really good clay quarter, isn't he? Solid, you know, Catherine said the other day, all these Argentinians come out on the clay and and he's one of them, you know, he is he is tough and I think he broke down the Alcaraz backhand really in that in that second set. You know, the the

stats flashed up that our quest had hit so many errors off that wing. I think it was sixteen at one point in the in the sort of latter stage of that second set, compared to just a couple for exhiverry and it was interesting having the audio

on the back and forth between Alcaraz and his and his coaching team. And you know, Alcaraz I think of him as like the belief guy, you know, like when he was asked about how he still managed to beat Zverev in Australia when he was cramping, he was like, Well, just

just believed that I would win and that seems to sort of always be there. And yet, you know, picking up on this on this microphone today was really talking about a loss of confidence and he was having to be reassured a lot by his by his camp. They were like you're making mistakes, you're gonna make mistakes, but you've got to just keep trying things and trust yourself and it will come. It was a really good sort of reassuring message, I think, and yeah, he he he he

battled hard to get an early break in that third set, didn't he? And he you could see really celebrated that pretty pretty hard. I think he knew that that was important just to just to get off to a good start in that in that third set in the way that he hadn't in the second and

Yeah. I don't know, like is this a is this a it's kind of the question we've been having all year. Is this like good for the field or bad for the field? Is this a good day for the field that Cinner lost a set and looked a bit vulnerable and Alcaraz hit twenty four unforced errors in a second set and looked a bit vulnerable, or is it a bad day because those things happened and yet they still won and

you kind of always thought they would still win. Like it takes so much for someone to be able to beat one of them. And, you know, even with all those things going on, they came through.

That could be exciting, that could be a show. And I just think Public has not quite brought it in in some of these matches recently against the best players. Since he's really had his his rise. He's he's become consistent and he is a threat on all surfaces, but I don't know, he's he's laid some eggs and I I just I just w wanna see him show something tomorrow, I think, in that matchup.

In in pretty chaotic scenes. Uh under the lights, late on beating Hubert Herkatch. I mean Vashro's gonna face Dim and Or and if Vashro's got anything left after the last two matches he's had um in in Monte Carlo, I I I'll be impressed because emotionally he just

He's so on the edge, isn't he, at the moment? I mean he's he's putting every bit of sweat and energy and emotion into into winning these matches in front of his home crowd and the royalty in the stands and he's got all of his family there it feels like and all of his team and And he I mean he makes you feel things even if you've never seen him before. You you can't fail to feel things when you watch Valentin Vachero because he he looks like it means everything to him and it

can't possibly go right and he's still gonna throw his body to the dogs in an in an effort to try. Um and then he'll blow it and he'll hit a smash straight back to Hubert Herkach and then his girlfriend will just

say the F word under a breath and it's just so obvious what's happening. And then he wins and then he's on his knees and his arms are aloft and he's um he's a gr he's a great addition, I think, to the to the circuit, to the tour and um And I'm impressed that he's still At this stage of this tournament that means so much much to him, quarter finals in his kind of

follow up season to the breakout after that Shanghai win. Um, it's impressive, but do you I don't know, do you think he's gonna have enough left to face Dim and all?

Uh but I suppose, you know, he he would have had days off but probably between matches, certainly between some of them in that longer format here. It's the the relentlessness of having to come back the next day and as you said, the emotional energy of it all as well and Kind of in these one week Masters events, which again another great a aspect of Monte Carlo, you do get like

stuck in the schedule slot that you're in. You know, like so he's now on late every day because that's the slot he's in. And it does mean that the crowd has thinned out a bit, you know, I think a as you were saying it gets It gets pretty chilly in Monte Carlo in the in the evenings. It takes a sort of at sort of at at this time of year, it takes a hardy

or slightly crazy tennis fan to kind of still be there in their seats after so many hours. And then that just creates this atmosphere of bedlam and he has leaned into that and He's g you know, I think in his first match against uh Mayak Shak there was a lot of people there in nose strips, uh and then in his last two matches he's had this sort of young group of

fans all wearing monoco football shirts supporting him and he's been whipping them up and getting them to make a lot of noise and it has just created this kind of frenzy in his matches and he's leaned into that, but you do feel like it must be taking quite a lot out of him and draining him and Yeah, to then have to play kind of you know, the road runner de Manor who you know is gonna be be a physical test.

you know, if we're making predictions at this stage I'm probably going I'm probably going dim and ore, even though clay is is is not his favourite surface. Um But yeah, it's been it's been really fun watching Vachereau. Uh and I'm glad that he's having this moment at his at his home tournament, you know, the one that, you know, he said he would he would you know he would love to win it kind of above above everything else. Um

I am a bit worried about Mazzetti though, who he who he beat in the previous round, you know, like I feel like I feel like he's on another nightmare tour, David. I feel like he's come into this clay court season I mean he must be defending the second most amount of points after Alcaraz. And he yet he's got no matches and no form and I think he feels the pressure of trying to defend all those points.

Yeah, and he and he reached the semis, uh, in Madrid and Rome and Roland Garros. He's got so many points to defend. I almost feel like he needs to drop down a level and play a two fifty or a five hundred and try and get some wins because He's such a confidence player, Mazzetti. He needs to be he needs to be sharp and he's he's not at the moment. And Vashero really really exploited that.

toughness in the legs and to get some rhythm going.'Cause I mean I th I think the thing with him though, he's he's so comfortable on the surface generally and he's so good at it that I do think he can he can build his way into this clay court sea. As long as he's physically active. Dimor by the way, uh a winner over Cameron Norrie in the previous round and then Alexander Blox, the uh young the young Belgian qualifier who um he beat seven five, seven six today, did uh Alex Deminor. Um such a

Tough competitor De Minor and he and he hasn't had the best of times recently, so I'm pleased that he's picked it up and and he's going well on the clay. Um so that leaves us with the quarter final lineup then, Matt.

It's Punchy Predictions time. Uh we're gonna go from the top of the draw to the bottom. Uh Alcraz Public, who's winning?

It it used to be played in the autumn, I I think, didn't it, for a for a while? Um indoors. Um it's kind of moved around a little bit and now they've put a a clay cord inside it and I know that indoor clay is maybe not your favourite, Matt, but I have to say I think as a setting this this looks like a good court and a good location and i i it I definitely prefer it to the indoor

hardcore surface and feel that I've seen previously. And and it's got this relevance now because it's part of the clay court season. It's part of a swing leading to a grand slam. I I'm personally in favour of general

on indoor clay coming up, you know, you've you've now got like a two week period where they're where they're on the indoor clay. That wouldn't be like my preferred choice for how to start the clay court season for the women, but if they're gonna do it, maybe make it like a little swing like they have. Um and yeah, it's it's it's been good. It i it's I think that main court looks good on the telly. Uh it's a nice it's a nice shot, it's a nice camera angle.

Uh and yeah, as you said, the Lily Tagger Open. I mean, th that that has been that has just been a joy to watch her couple of matches so far this week.

And we don't we I I haven't I must admit I didn't hang on to see the Plishkova Alexandrova match that followed, which Plishkova won in two handy sets. Um but I've seen a lot of Lily Tagger, but I mean Just just give for people that haven't come across her, give us an idea of why we have been texting back and forth a lot about her over the

It's a pretty nice one, you know. Um I've I first heard the name at last year's French Open when she won the the girls' singles there and You know, we learnt that she was coached by Schiavoni as well, which was just a really cool element, you know, one of the great

single handed backhands of of the last twenty years or so on on the WTA Tour, a French Open champion herself. Like it was a cool it was just a cool fit as a as a coaching partnership and you know, now we're now we're seeing her at this WTA event, her her home event as you say, and it's just been like the first time I've properly watched her and You know, I don't know what you think. I think sort of mechanically the forehand to me looks a little bit like Mukava.

esque. You know, it's very wristy. She's got really wrist action on the forehand and she c she can create angle off that wing quite well and hit with quite a lot of spin. Uh I think I think it might I think both ground strokes could be in danger of like breaking down against big, heavy power. I know she managed Samsonova today, but

Tamsonova was wayward for most of this match. Um I'd be really interested to see how these tagger ground strokes are going to hold up against you know, there's a lot of big hitters on the W TA tour. So that's gonna be interesting to watch. But she's young, she can develop, as you said, she's eighteen. Uh she's tall. She's really tall and she's got a she's got a nice serve. Uh it was really effective for her today.

um particularly against Samsonova and I just I just really like her vibe. Like she's Schiavoni is, I think, looking seriously cool on the on the coaching sidelines in her glasses. I think of her as this fiery character when she played, but

He's very subdued on the court. I think she probably knows that maybe that's the energy that Tagger needs. Um there's a there's another coach who's who's there with them also speaking in Italian to Tagger on the sidelines. Um And she's sort of taken taken the crowd with her on these on these matches.

They've been journeys to get over the line, you know, in b against Badossa she'd served for it twice and got broken and needed a second set tie break and again today against Samsonova she served for it, got broken. And then as you said, this absolutely wild tie break where some son of a kept getting set points and kept blowing it, um and Tagger herself needed four match points, I think, to finish it off. So there's been drama, even though there've been straight sets wins and

Yeah, I've just really, really enjoyed watching her, just having my eyes open to this new player who has a just a different game style. You just don't see people play like that too much, and

What I'd forgotten is that Potopova is now representing Austria as well, so that's who she plays in the quarterfinals and yeah, there's two Austrian flags next to each other, but I have a feeling the crowd are gonna be with Tagger in that one.

um Vecich plays against Karolina Plishkova. So two players that uh have been around for a long time uh in the bottom half of the draw. I mean it it is It is a decent draw, isn't it? The top seed in this tournament is Mira Andreva and she's at the top of the draw there against Sarana Castella, who's having such a good sort of swan song season. Um and the winner of Andreva Castella will face either Yelena Ostepenko or Elena Gabriela Russo.

Um so yeah, we'll we'll keep a very close eye on that and and I'll be fascinated to see who ends up coming through all of this. Mm.

the elements, so it sort of becomes more of a ball striker's uh court and conditions. And then the clay, we know she likes the clay and she's got time on the ball, she can wind up and she played her She picked the first time.

She picked someone out in the crowd and and took issue with them and said, Well why don't you come and play then? Uh you know, it was like it was like classic Ostapenko aggro. Um but that was a good win against against Ayala, I think. So yeah, as you said it It's it's it is a compelling draw, that one as well.

But a a lot of players not there. A lot of a lot of players lacking really, particular particularly, I suppose, from a Britain perspective, we're we're uh we're familiar with the fact that uh Britain are are going away to Australia and there's no Emmercano, there's no Katie Balter, and there's no um uh Sonny Cartel either now. Um and Talia Gibson is the the standout player really, isn't isn't she uh being played on the John Cain arena uh there on the hardcore?

Well Paulini's there but not Osaka. Um you've explained all the people missing from Great Britain, you think Poland, Ukraine, okay, Switzerland, Sviontek, we just had that. That was really interesting. Oh no, but Schwantek not there. That that there there's that feel to a lot of these ties. You know, maybe one team's got their strong team and one team doesn't. Um I think

I think the two that really jump out for me are Belgium against USA. You know, it is by no means a full-strength USA team, and yet they have such strength in depth that they can field a sort of C or D team and it still look pretty good on paper and Mae'n gwybod Jovic yn ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud ymwneud.

And Hayley Baptiste is part of that squad as well for the US. But they're coming up against Belgium who have Elise Mertens, who's, you know, so reliable, good in singles and doubles. I just think that's an interesting tie. There's that kind of minnows versus giants feel to it. Not that Belgium are tennis minnows because they've had a lot of

good players over the years and especially on the women's side, but compared to the US I think they will feel like they can do a sort of bit of giant killing there at home. Um and then the other one is Switzerland Czechia, which is being played in Switzerland And this is probably the tie where you've got closest to the strongest teams, I would say. You've got Benchic playing for Switzerland, who's obviously, you know, really helped carry them to that trophy in the past.

and Noskova is lining up for for Chechia. There's also Buskova, Valentova, Vondrosheva is in the squad. So those are pretty full teams and I think that's a that's a really compelling tie as well. Um and, you know, either of them going out is gonna be kind of a you know, a big team missing from the final.

in in these sorts of ties in Billie Jin King Cup, but it's now the middle. So we've got two singles on day one everywhere and then day two is starting with the doubles. And I think that's a good move, you know, I think um You know, we love it when it's a decider, we know that, but I think to have a team competition and not have a guaranteed doubles match has always felt a bit weird to me.

So getting that guaranteed and adding that extra dynamic into the tie, I think I think is a good move. And aligning it with the Davis Cup as well, I think makes sense. So um yeah, it'd be interesting to see how that affects some of these ties.

continuing to be a little careful, you know, and not play too many tournaments. And she she's done that last summer she's she did it uh in the Middle East swing, you know, having done so well, I I sort of thought maybe the fact that she's won the Sunshine Double, she's thinking Look, I care about the Grand Slams ultimately now. Um but maybe there might be a bit more to it than that.

She's said injury. I look, I I I hope she's not injured, I really do. Um but she didn't seem like overly concerned or worried about it in the message, so I sort of took it to mean it probably is a a scheduling thing and needing a bit more recovery from the Sunshine Double and yeah, just sort of targeting the the really big events on the clay. I know Stuttgart's a big event but it's it's only a five hundred but she's She always loses in the final there, doesn't she? She's lost.

Three or four finals, I think, there. Um you know, she sort of talked about being fed up of not being able to get the Porsche despite definitely being able to afford a Porsche. Um so yeah. Out of stuck which is a shame'cause I was really you know, I was s sort of chomping at the bit to see her on the clay. Uh but you know, we'll have to wait for Madrid, I guess.

I think ki pe I think it's okay for somebody who's just done the Sunshine Double to say that personally. As as wonderful as the Stuttgart tournament is, there's nothing wrong with wanting to make sure you're fresh physically and mentally and emotionally. Swings to come. You cannot play and win everything. You cannot. You've got to if you if you're winning all the time, you've got to put some gaps in your

if you're not winning all the time maybe you do put some more tournaments in. That's the way the the calendar is and I j and listen, maybe she is injured, but I just wonder and I and I think she is somebody even though she

she bit back at that tournament director and said, I may well not play that event again if they're gonna talk to me. She I think I do think she's quite sensitive to to criticism like that. You know, the the w we've heard her mention a lot of times She's not going to get herself in the position she was with Mr. post Roland Garros again, you know, and

She hears things, she follows things and s and I d I I d I just wonder, I mean I don't know that for sure, that's just my my suspicion. But I think it's I I think it's really smart if she is deciding to remove tournaments from her calendar to be fresh and mentally and physically, I think she's got a heck of a lot better chance of winning these big

You know, if I think of her her removing what she did from her summer last year, she went and won the US Open. She didn't play the Middle East, she went and won the Sunshine. Tell you, if she's being careful ahead of the French Open and Wimbledon, just makes me feel more likely that she goes and wins.

We we shall see. Uh one player who is definitely planning to play. a an event that I'm a little bit surprised that he's playing this soon uh is Holger Runa. Um and he he's announced that he's gonna play the Hamburg Tournament which starts on the sixteenth of May. Now I'd be delighted if he's fully fit and able to play and doesn't have any adverse reaction and good for him. He clearly loves the sport.

He's working incredibly hard and he's making it very clear that he's putting in the work uh with a lot of the posts that he's put out and he's he's made it very clear how desperately he misses I just hope, Matt, that he's not taking a chance here and rushing it back too soon. I can't know, but an Achilles rupture is such a serious injury that I hope he's not taken off.

US Open next year, you know, could be a could be a good target for a return, you know. But, you know, the chance of him coming back for the clay and the grass just just didn't didn't seem right and it's gonna be what, seven or eight months since

since he did that injury when he makes his return. Yeah, I just really hope that this isn't too much too soon. He doesn't end up setting himself further back, um As I said, I don't have any in inside information on that, just from the outside, it just makes me a little a little confused.

these tournaments that are coming up and we will be back with Catherine. Catherine will be rejoining us on Monday for the show uh to look back on Monte Carlo and Linz and the Billie Jean King Cup. and ahead to whatever's else is coming up in in the Clay Court season as well. Uh we have our mascots. Catherine has Bodie. I have Maisie, who I uh I understand from uh owner Tom was having the time of her life in uh in Charleston recently.

great angles, you know, we we we l we lap it up and I'm sure you will too. Uh and Matt we will be back in a few days time. So uh have a good cover.