No Challenges Remaining

In Episode 32, Ben and Courtney look at Miami from afar, and are somewhat underwhelmed. Why has the tournament lacked spark thus far? We also discuss the state of Sloane Stephens, and what fair expectations for her are.  Then we take a couple listener questions, on the lack of early round television coverage at Indian Wells and Miami, as well as on the increasing Gimelstobification of tennis. Lastly, we bring you our final podcast interview from Indian Wells, this one with Freddie Nielsen, who won the Wimbledon 2012 men's doubles title in one of the most surprising tennis results in our lifetimes. Since you may not know Freddie, we had his longtime pal Caroline Wozniacki, a fellow Dane, give him a little introduction for you.  She suggests you enjoy this episode with a croissant in one hand and a hot chocolate in the other.

In Episode 31, Ben and Courtney wrap the week that was in Indian Wells. How exactly did Rafael Nadal come back to the top so quickly, and what does it say about the rest of the tour? Are comparisons between Federer's willingness to play through back pain and the withdrawals of Azarenka and Stosur fair? Also, we discuss articles this week by Bruce Jenkins and Elizabeth Newman about the Williams Sisters' ongoing decision to skip Indian Wells, and how we feel about the decision ourselves. We then preview Miami, "take a number," and lastly wrap up with an interview with Mallory Burdette, the top-ranked former college player on the WTA Tour, who turned pro after making the third round of the 2012 U.S. Open and is closing in on the top 100 with a third round run in Indian Wells. We hope she (and we) will make a listener out of you.

In this very special 30th episode, Ben and Courtney talk Indian Wells for a bit. But more significantly, we finally unlock the door to the NCR studio and invite in an actual guest for the second half of the show.  Because we like our guests to be awesome, we decided to go with the one-and-only Andrea Petkovic, the three-time Slam quarterfinalist, YouTube star, and general all-around cool lady.  Among many other things, Petko talks tennis, injury layoffs, the differences between Germans and Serbians, and she raps.  Yes, Andrea Petkovic raps. Is there nothing the woman cannot do? Enjoy.

In this live, on-site, one-take episode recorded in beautiful Indian Wells, California, Ben and Courtney discuss the upcoming 2013 BNP Paribas Open, which sees the hard court return of Rafael Nadal.  Also, Novak Djokovic and Victoria Azarenka are riding big win streaks, and it all seems very familiar.  Also, you'll get to find out which one of us wears a Nike Fuel Band. So there's that.