A podcast discussing the happenings in the wacky world of professional tennis. Hosted by Ben Rothenberg and Courtney Nguyen.
Episodes
Thursday Sep 10, 2020
Thursday Sep 10, 2020
Mary Carillo, NCR's favorite, joins Ben and Courtney for a third time as the U.S. Open gets to the business end of the draws, as we are now down to four semifinalists for both the men and women.
What has it been like calling this completely different tournament from on site at the Open? What have been the unexpected revelations of this new landscape and soundscape? Why does the Chinese restaurant want you to order the fries?
We discuss all eight semifinalists in some detail: Jennifer Brady, Victoria Azarenka, Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka; Pablo Carreno Busta, Alexander Zverev, Daniil Medvedev, and Dominic Thiem.
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.
Tuesday Sep 08, 2020
Tuesday Sep 08, 2020
With the U.S. Open reaching the quarterfinal stage, where the draws get considerably more manageable to process on a more granular basis, Courtney and Ben reconvene to reset the table for the feasts of tennis cooking for the men and women.
The men's field is ordering off the kids menu, with the men's game tour finally guaranteed a new Grand Slam champion for the first time in six years. Who is best poised to take advantage of this? How will the new favorites, like Thiem and Zverev, deal with the pressure?
On the women's side we discuss a field that includes the Americans Jennifer Brady and Shelby Rogers, the crafty Yulia Putintseva, the remarkable Tsvetana Pironkova, the regal Serena Williams, and the resurgent Victoria Azarenka.
Also! We are uploading video of the recording of this episode to our Patreon as an experiment, if you want to see what it's like to watch NCR instead of just listening!
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.
Saturday Sep 05, 2020
Saturday Sep 05, 2020
On a typically bizarre 2020 day in which New York Governor Andrew Cuomo had to rule on Adrian Mannarino's U.S. Open eligibility, we at NCR are delighted to bring you a cool, calming chat with Shelby Rogers, who solidified her great year by advancing to the fourth round of the U.S. Open on Friday.
Shelby discusses how she used the quarantine time to work on herself physically, mentally, and spiritually, the fun variety of fast courts, and enjoying the solace of tennis in a bubble, even as craziness continues inside and out.
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.
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.
Thursday Sep 03, 2020
Thursday Sep 03, 2020
Ben and Courtney reconvene on Day 3 of the U.S. Open to recalibrate their forecasts for the top half of the women's draw, which saw top-seeded Karolina Pliskova knocked out, as well as somewhat surprising exits by Alison Riske, Marketa Vondrousova, and Dayana Yastremska.
Who is well-positioned for success going forward? Who looks comfortable in these unusual conditions? Is Naomi Osaka a fair favorite to win it all? And what makes Madison Brengle's approach so delightful?
Also, we discuss some of the early challenges we've encountered trying to cover a Grand Slam from home.
Again, thank you so much for the incredible support for NCR 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.
Wednesday Sep 02, 2020
Wednesday Sep 02, 2020
The second day of first round play included many impressive comebacks, both mid-match and several years in the making. Kim Clijsters played her first Slam match in eight years, Andy Murray won (and stuck up for women again, as per), and, in her first match in more than three years, Tsvetana Pironkova took advantage of the fast courts to lay a beatdown on Liudmila Samsonova.
Ben and Courtney caught up with Pironkova after her win to hear about her decision to come back, playing as a mom, and finding new challenges.
Again, thank you so much for the incredible support for NCR 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.
Thursday Aug 27, 2020
Thursday Aug 27, 2020
UPDATE: After Osaka initially withdrew from Thursday's semifinals, she has agreed to play on Friday after the entire day of play was postponed on Thursday.
Postponing the semifinals of the Western & Southern Open because of continuing police violence against Black people, Naomi Osaka joined an escalating wave of anti-racism athlete activism that began in basketball and has echoed across North American sports. Tennis has been seen as remedial in recent years when it comes to athlete engagement, so Osaka's gesture was especially striking.
Tumaini Carayol of the Guardian joins to discuss Osaka's action, what if any precedents there are for it in recent tennis memory, and where the sport goes from here, now that Cincinnati has canceled play on semifinal Thursday out of deference to the moment and that the U.S Open main draw is only days away.
You'll also hear in this episode from Milos Raonic, who was strikingly forceful on the topics in the moments after his own quarterfinal win.
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.
Thursday Aug 20, 2020
Thursday Aug 20, 2020
For the first time in two-months-but-feels-like-much-longer, Courtney returns to an NCR episode! She graces us with her presence as we discuss tennis getting back underway in earnest now with a few weeks of the WTA Tour behind us and the New York swing of "Cincinnati" and the U.S. Open rapidly approaching.
What do we make of the challenge of covering the sport remotely? Who has stood out in the on-court action we've seen so far from the women? Will this U.S. Open be "asterisked," and what does an asterisk even mean? And what do we expect and want from players in the New York bubble?
Also, Courtney discusses her burgeoning career as a Twitcher.
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.
Friday Aug 14, 2020
Friday Aug 14, 2020
The New Yorker's Louisa Thomas is back with us to discuss the comprehensive piece she published about the state of tennis in these tumultuous last five months, "The Fractured World of Tennis Amid a Prolonged Pandemic."
Louisa and Ben discuss the notion of self-centeredness and tennis and how players are trained by people to potentially hurt those same people, how tennis' structure reflects both its strengths and weaknesses, the fast-approaching U.S. Open, and much more, including, inevitably, Nick Kyrgios.
It's a wide-ranging story and a wide-ranging chat, and we think you'll enjoy it.
Also, please go get Louisa's new book, Losers, for yourself and/or everyone you know!
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.