No Challenges Remaining

Episode 292: Australian Open 2021 Draw Show

Another Slam is around the corner, and, in a surprise to no one, there are many players who seem wildly competitively relevant in the women's draw. Serena and Osaka are very good! Barty and Andreescu are back in action! Kenin and Halep remain legit! And then a whole bunch more people!

On the men's side, there's Djokovic, who just about always wins in Melbourne. And then, we guess, Nadal? Thiem? Medvedev, maybe? 

Thank you again for the incredible support for NCR we've received on the NCR Patreon which has powered us into our TENTH(!) season! If you'd like to join in as we bring you the best shows we can each week, check out our five tiers and see which might be right for you! And thank you to the many listeners who have already given their support! (And thank you to G.O.A.T. backers J O'D, Mike, Pam Shriver, and Nicole Copeland!)

As always, thanks for following us on Twitter and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 286a: Remember When? 2020, Part 1

What was it like to form memories in 2020? For Ben and Courtney, things were far more vivid when we were still able to travel, so this first half of our annual "Remember When" is heavy on January.

Have our thoughts on ATP Cup changed with the passage of time? And how about those donations to the Australian bushfire relief?

Where were we when we realized coronavirus was going to be serious? And how did our outlook on the year and our lives shift?

Part 2, which covers April to the present, out later this week! Happy Holidays!

Thank you again for the incredible support for NCR we've received this year on the NCR Patreon! If you'd like to join in as we bring you the best shows we can each week, check out our five tiers and see which might be right for you! And thank you to the many listeners who have already given their support! (And thank you to G.O.A.T. backers J O'D, Mike, Nicole Copeland, Anna Welinder, and Pam Shriver!)

As always, thanks for following us on Twitter and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 279: Does Tennis Love You Back? (With Jessica Luther & Kavitha A. Davidson)

Jessica Luther and Kavitha A. Davidson, co-authors of the new book Loving Sports When They Don't Love You Back, join to discuss the lovability of tennis, and the difficulties that fans can still encounter while trying to reconcile the sport and their own personal values.

Issues covered include the continuing grumbling over equal pay for men and women, the evolution of Serena Williams' perceived marketability, what to do with a player whose politics you find objectionable, and how to feel about tennis and other sports continuing to soldier on during a continuing global pandemic.

Also, please vote.

Thank you again for the incredible support for NCR we've received this year on the NCR Patreon! If you'd like to join in as we bring you the best shows we can each week, check out our five tiers and see which might be right for you! And thank you to the many listeners who have already given their support! (And thank you to G.O.A.T. backers J O'D, Mike, Charles Cyna, and Nicole Copeland!)

As always, thanks for following us on Twitter and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 276: Draw Me Like One of Your French Opens, 2020

Another Slam approaches at a time of year which has never held a Slam before, so Ben and Courtney try to gather their physical and mental strength to take on what is shaping up to be an incredibly challenging Slam in many ways.

We start with the women, where Simona Halep is a clear favorite, but parity abounds also in women's tennis, as always. Garbine Muguruza appears set for success, and Serena and Azarenka are also intriguing in a Slam which may reward power more than the average French Open.

On the men's side we discuss Novak Djokovic's status as favorite, and detour into topics such as the complaints of players who are testing positive, the "struggles" of Stefanos Tsitsipas, the height of Diego Schwartzman, the wonders of Sasha Bubbles, and more.

Also, we discuss what we'll miss most about Paris. 

Thank you again for the incredible support for NCR we've received in recent weeks on the NCR Patreon! If you'd like to join in as we strive to bring you the best French Open content we can from across the Atlantic, check out our five tiers and see which might be right for you! And thank you to the many listeners who have already given their support! (And thank you to G.O.A.T. backers J O'D, Mike, Christopher Bishop and Charles Cyna!)

As always, thanks for following us on Twitter and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 272: 2020 U.S. Open Draw Breakdown!

Ben and Courtney break down the U.S. Open draw amid a tournament build-up which feels very different to that of a normal Grand Slam, particularly as we aren't even in New York this week. 

We discuss the women's draw first, where 2018 champ Naomi Osaka impressed on and off the court during "Cincinnati" but comes in carrying a hamstring injury. What to make of Serena's form since the shutdown? Can Kim Clijsters make an impact? Also, Dayana Yastremska is very much.

On the men's side, after a helpful pronunciation guide to the new "PTPA," we discuss Novak Djokovic, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Reilly Opelka, Daniil Medvedev, Milos Raonic, Bobby Bautista, and more. Also, hear Courtney's thoughts about night trains! 

This is the first of many, many shows we have planned for the U.S. Open, so stay tuned!

If you'd like to support our show during this odd, disruptive year, we've launched an NCR Patreon where you can do just that! Check out our five tiers and see which might be right for you! And thank you to the many listeners who have already given their support! (And thank you to G.O.A.T. backer J O'D!)

As always, thanks for following us on Twitter and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 266: Glenn Greenwald on Martina Navratilova

Journalist Glenn Greenwald, creator of The Intercept, joins Ben on this episode to discuss his longtime admiration of Martina Navratilova, the documentary project about that admiration he has been working on, and the hurdles that he's run into along the way as Navratilova has incurred the wrath of activists, as Glenn wrote about here at the Intercept.

We discuss Navratilova's sudden fall in LGBT sports circles, the notion of cancel culture, and also Glenn's longtime love of tennis and what he makes of the modern game.

If you'd like to support our show, particularly as our normal work has disappeared along with the sport, we've launched an NCR Patreon where you can do just that! Check out our five tiers and see which might be right for you! And thank you to the many listeners who have already given their support! (And thank you to G.O.A.T. backer J O'D!)

As always, thanks for following us on Twitter and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 243g: Australian Open - Novak Djokovic Eight 'Em Up

Ben and Courtney wrap up the Australian Open with a look at the end of the men's event, which finished for the eighth time with Novak Djokovic as champion. He sure seems to be closing in on that G.O.A.T. count, huh?

Also, we discuss runner-up Dominic Thiem, who is establishing himself as the new Andy Murray, Sascha Zverev, who made a first Slam semifinal and generated a lot of donation talk, and Roger Federer, who toughed out a win over Tennys Sandgren and then gamely took court to face the music against Djokovic.

We also discuss Nick Kyrgios, the female officials who drew praise, and how the protesting of Margaret Court is being led by two retired players.

If you'd like to support our show, we've launched an NCR Patreon where you can do just that! Check out our five tiers and see which might be right for you! 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCRAusOpen!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 220: 2019 Australian Open Draw Show

As they begin Season 8(!) of NCR, Ben and Courtney dive into the men's and women's draws of the Australian Open, which look well set up for the usual suspects on the men's side, and for just about anybody on the women's side. So, business as usual! 

We will have more for you soon (including Courtney's many feelings about Sir Andrew Barron Murray), but for now enjoy this look ahead at what should be a fun two weeks in Melbourne. 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCR220!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!

Episode 219a: Remember When? 2018, Part 1

With a whole year behind them, Ben and Courtney have a whole lot to look back on, both fondly and...less fondly. 

And so, the fairly annual "Remember When?" episode is here, at least the first third of it on the first four or so months on the season. All sorts of wacky things happened in Australia, and the year stayed interesting throughout.

These episodes are less about the headline grabbing stories and more about the smaller moments that made the year feel how it felt, and we do hope you enjoy it as a tasty dessert at the end of a year-long meal. 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCRRememberWhen!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!

Episode 201: Australian Open Wrap

Ben and Courtney fled to opposite corners of the globe after the Australian Open, so just now bring you this show on the Grand Slam that was, in which second seeds Roger Federer and Caroline Wozniacki won their 20th, and first, respectively. 

First, on the men. Why was closing the roof a correct, obvious decision? And indoors or outdoors, has it all gotten a bit too easy for Roger Federer at an age when it shouldn't? And on the flip side, does Rafael Nadal have grounds to complain as much as he does about schedules and surfaces and such? 

Also, we delve into the Tennys Sandgren saga, what parts of it were fair and not, and what lessons there are to be learned.

Then, onto the women, where champion Caroline Wozniacki may have somehow had the least impressive tournament of any of the semifinalists? On her breakthrough, what we learned about Simona Halep, the joys of Hsieh Su-wei and the underwhelming major results of Elina Svitolina. 

As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread! Engage with other listeners!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCR201!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!