A podcast discussing the happenings in the wacky world of professional tennis. Hosted by Ben Rothenberg and Courtney Nguyen.
Episodes
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
Think tennis could work better? So does pretty much everyone who works in tennis.
Ben is joined by David Yaffe-Bellany of Bloomberg News, author of a recent piece exploring the long tradition of dysfunction and underperforming within the business side of tennis.
What are the roots of the disorganization and the animosity? What are possible fixes to the sports poor earnings and its short payroll? What do we know about the still largely undefined PTPA and the role it could play?
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, Chris Bishop, and Nicole Copeland!)
Saturday Feb 06, 2021
Saturday Feb 06, 2021
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.
Monday Nov 23, 2020
Monday Nov 23, 2020
In lieu of their usual annual fall weekend together in DC, Ben is remotely joined by Ricky Dimon for their annual men's tennis season wrap show, this time right after the final tour match of the year, which was Daniil Medvedev beating Dominic Thiem in the last iteration of the ATP Finals to be held in London.
Ben and Ricky discuss the major themes of the year, evaluate the seasons that were had by each of the top eight guys and how they are set up for next year, and discuss the new wrinkles to the ranking system.
We also, as is tradition, go over what would be our ballots for the ATP award slate, including the cases for and against Novak Djokovic as player of the year.
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.
Friday Sep 04, 2020
Friday Sep 04, 2020
On a day at the U.S. Open on which its co-president Vasek Pospisil upset Milos Raonic, Ben chats about the new Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA, aka pihtihpihAHHH) with Amy Fetherolf, who knows her unions and her tennis.
What to make of this new tennis union? Does it need to have more specific goals outlined as it's getting off the ground? What classic anti-union tactics are visible in the resistance it's received? What if the ideas behind this union, like leaving out the women, are bad? What are the next steps? Amy has answers to these questions and many more.
Also, thunder.
Thank you again for the incredible support for NCR we've received in recent days!
If you'd like to join fellow listeners in supporting our show as we work to crank out daily shows during the 2020 U.S. Open, 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. backers J O'D, Mike, 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.
Sunday Aug 30, 2020
Sunday Aug 30, 2020
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.
Friday Oct 18, 2019
Friday Oct 18, 2019
We're back with an interview from a bit ago with Vasek Pospisil, who has been using his spot on the ATP Player Council to lead a crusade for greater representation and compensation for players.
Ben and Vasek talk about those issues, as well as conflicts of interest, Justin Gimelstob, Chris Kermode, relations with the WTA player leadership, and more.
If you're interested in tennis politics, this is the episode 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 #NCR234!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be.