No Challenges Remaining

Episode 232: U.S. Open 2019 Preview

On the eve of the U.S. Open, Ben and Courtney sit down with the draws to figure out who is going to win this thing. It only feels worth going so far on the women's side, given the parity and upheaval on that tour lately, whereas our men's picks are mighty confident--including for newcomer to the top Daniil Medvedev.

We discuss Serena-Sharapova, Bianca Andreescu, Hubert Hurkacz's mock turtleneck, Jannik Sinner's roots, and much more.

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 #NCR232!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 190: French Fortune Favors Brave (and Guy Who Won Nine Times Before)

Ben and Courtney have a lot to catch up on after the French Open. Well, maybe a little bit less on the men's side, where a fairly lackluster men's tournament ended in obvious fashion--albeit in style! Rafael Nadal is really good, but we knew that.

Elsewhere in the men's game, things look much better for Andy Murray and much worse for Novak Djokovic. What should Novak do to give himself a chance to be competitive again?

On the women's side, it was perhaps an even wilder one than expected, with Jelena Ostapenko coming out of almost nowhere to stunningly win the French Open. What, if anything, can we project about where she goes from here? And how disappointed should Simona Halep be about losing the final?

Elsewhere, how will Karolina Pliskova roll on to a possible #1 ranking? How did Kiki Mladenovic steal the show? And what might Elina Svitolina and Caroline Wozniacki have in common?

And 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 #NCR190!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!

Episode 189: Draw Me Like One of Your French Opens, 2017

It's Slamming time again! Ben and Courtney break down the French Open draws for both the men's and women's.

On the women's side, where there are many favorites to choose from, who got the best and worst draws? And whose great draws and good recent forms could lead them to a second consecutive semifinal (or better)? There are multiple correct answers to that one.

On the men's side, could this be a tournament to get Murray or Djokovic back on track? Or is Rafael Nadal just too far ahead of the pack?

And 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 #NCR189!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 163: Golden Girl Monica Puig and More Rio Results

Olympic tennis produced one of its most stunning results with Monica Puig winning gold, and so Ben  nd Courtney are here to break that down, as well as all the other medals and losers in Rio. What does Monica's win show us about Olympic tennis, and what does it mean for her going forward? How delightful were the silver efforts of Juan Martin del Potro and Venus Williams? And why weren't many of the other results surprising? Also, is it fair to call Jack Sock a "doubles specialist"?

To tee up this week's tournament in Cincinnati, we chat with local sports reporter Shannon Russell, who has covered the tennis here for the Cincinnati Enquirer, and sheds light on what it's like being a one-week-a-year tennis reporter serving a tournament's local market.

Then in a wide-ranging rant extravaganza, Courtney talks about journalism (after John Oliver did) and Ben talks about plaques (but really Pokemon again).

And as always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCR163!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 154: Draw Me Like One of Your French Opens, Part Deux

Not much music this time, but Ben and Courtney try to hit all the right notes in this breakdown of the French Open draws (after a quick review of the Rome action), including some predictions. On the men's side, if it takes a team effort to beat Novak Djokovic, then who can contribute to that? And what are the chances like for his rivals Nadal, Wawrinka, and Murray?

On the women's side, does Serena's path become complicated by Azarenka? Is a rematch of last year's semifinal likely? And just how bankable is Begu, suddenly?

And as always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCR154!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Episode 152: In Madrid with Timea Bacsinszky

Ben and Courtney are covering the Mutua Madrid Open for the first time, and are surprised by some things and not by others. We also discuss the schedule management concerns cropping up this week as they pertain to grassophiles Roger Federer and Venus Williams, as well as the general topics of the Olympics drawing closer on the horizon.

Then, we sit down with the ever delightful and insightful Timea Bacsinszky, to talk about how her perspective and pressures and role on the tour have changed as she has flown up the rankings. She's a fun listen, as always.

And as always, thanks for liking us on Facebook (leave comments on the episode thread!), following us on Twitter (discuss this episode with hashtag #NCR152!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.

Related links: 

• Courtney's recommended episode of The Heart, Idiot and Dummy.
• Ben appearing on Jeopardy last week, which he'll discuss *next* week on NCR.