No Challenges Remaining

Episode 134a: Serena Williams is Sportsperson of the Year

In a rare emergency episode that is for an indisputably positive reason (neigh-sayers aside), Ben and Courtney discuss Serena Williams being honored by Sports Illustrated as their Sportsperson of the Year for 2015, becoming the first woman to win the award outright in over 30 years, and the first tennis player in over 20 years. To discuss how Serena clinched the honor, we're joined by Sports Illustrated's executive editor Jon Wertheim (host of SI's reinvigorated tennis podcast Beyond the Baseline), who dives into the process of picking the Sportsperson as well as what it's been like to have his entire career overlap so closely with Serena's. 

We finish by thanking you guys for the beyond amazing start to our Kickstarter campaign, with you guys more than doubling our base goal in less than a week. You guys are the best, and have opened lots of exciting possibilities for what the show can do next year. It's still going for another five weeks, so if you'd like to join in and get access to some exclusive backers-only content you can do so by chipping in here.

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

Episode 134: Kickin' Back in the Off-Season.

As the off-season starts to get comfortable (and shorter, sadly), Ben and Courtney dive into the mailbag once again to discuss a whole bushel of topics. Is IPTL worth paying attention to for tennis fans? And is it a good proposition for the players who play it, including the lethargic Serena Williams? We also discuss our Hall of Fame ballots, and the legacies of nominees Justine Henin, Marat Safin, and Helena Sukova. Also in questions, we discuss what fair 2016 expectations are for Serena and Djokovic, LGBT issues in tennis, and Andrea Petkovic's doubts about her tennis motivations and what they can teach us all.

Also, in an effort to continue growing and improving, we officially launch our Kickstarter campaign to help support NCR in 2016! You can donate and learn more about our Kickstarter campaign here. Check it out, and thanks in advance for considering us! 

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

Episode 128: Tennis Makes Us Feel Things

With the WTA Finals underway, Ben chats up our Singapore correspondant, Courtney, to talk about how the tournament is shaping up. How very impressive is Sharapova's ability to make successful comebacks time and time again? Is this a glimpse at a post-Serena world? And what of the bigger emphasis on doubles, including the new fan favorite Chan sisters? Speaking of doubles siblings, what does it mean for the Bryans to lose the top ranking? And in men's singles, why was Nadal-Rosol's resumption of unniceties the perfect reminder of why we care about tennis? Lastly, we introduce you to Courtney's new WTA Insider podcast, Ben talks about architectural karma, and these pretzels are making Courtney homesick. As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes or whatever your podcasting platform of choice may be!

Episode 121: Opening the U.S. Open

Live from under the new partially finished roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium, Ben and Courtney are here to break down the 2015 U.S. Open draws. And, of course, this tournament begins and ends with Serena. How does her road look? Who poses the biggest threats? And is it fair to keep making her into something that transcends tennis and bears a larger societal responsibility? By the way, who *can't* come out of that bottom half? Also, who will come out of this strangely second-fiddle men's event? Djokovic? Federer? Murray? Also, Courtney likes pants and Ben's bus driver avoids an accident. As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes or whatever your podcasting platform of choice may be!

Episode 116: Ask Away!

On the cusp of another long plunge into the blue and green waters of the summer hard court season, Ben and Courtney answer more listener questions! How much should tours be trying to promote players who aren't the stars? What do we make of Tennis Forum? Which player's past success is the most #huh? #thathappened? Also, lots more! Then, by popular demand, we take a number! And then Courtney rants about throwing bones at skulls and Ben goes off the grid ever so briefly. As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes or whatever your podcasting platform of choice may be! 

Episode 107: French Open Midi-Tations

Midway through the French Open, Ben and Courtney get together to discuss the French Open so far, including Roger Federer's selfie scare, Stan Wawrinka's official website outrage, Rafael Nadal's umpire requests, Venus Williams' press conference no-show, Serena-Azarenka, Halep loss, and more! We slay, we drag, we rant, we rave, and we think you'll enjoy! As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes or whatever your podcasting platform of choice may be! 

Episode 106: Draw Me Like One of Your French Opens

Live from the dirt of Paris and the glitter of Vienna, respectively, Courtney and Ben break down the momentous draw of the 2015 French Open, and give our predictions in pathetically crapshoot fashion. Firstly: the Djokovic-Nadal quarter, ever anticipated, actually happened! Now what happens? As you can guess if you've been listening, we disagree. We also have different players coming out of the men's bottom half, so it should make for a fun men's tournament. On the women's top half, we have even less clue. Serena against the field, but who exactly is capable in the field? Augh, it's tough. As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes or whatever your podcasting platform of choice may be! 

Episode 105: Rome Uncorked!

As the B-52's once said, "Rome if you want to." Or maybe it was "roam". Whatever. 

On Episode 105, Ben makes Courtney jealous by talking about his mozzarella adventures in Italy, while Courtney makes Ben jealous by talking about how she spent her week in a non-third world country. We break down the results from Rome, which include Novak Djokovic's near assassination at the hands of a rogue Moet cork, and Maria Sharapova's triumphant week, which saw the return of the Black Swa-- er, we mean "Claypova". We also check in on Courtney's "Rafael Nadal Panic Button (TM pending)" and weigh in on two WTA hot topics: grunting and on-court coaching. 

There is dragging, there is slaying, and there is talk about venture capital funds and history of Netscape Navigator. We do it all, folks. And make sure you sit through Ben's terrible pick as an outro song -- spoiler alert: Eurovision -- to hear what Ben and Courtney talk about before the mics go hot. 

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

Related viewing/reading for this week:

• Courtney's incredibly geeky rave for The New Yorker's fantastic profile of Marc Andreessen. 
• No, Ben and Courtney aren't accidentally mispronouncing "Moet & Chandon". They're playing off one of their favorite SNL sketches, which you can see here. 

Episode 104: Ubaldo Scanagatta

Ben and Courtney reconvene to discuss the madness in Madrid, where Andy Murray rolled to his first ATP Masters title on clay, while Petra Kvitova did what Petra Kvitova does and wins things when you don't expect her to win things even though we all know she should win all the things. Oh, you fickle grassophiles. We wish we knew how to quit you!

Then we get in the mood for this week's Italian Open in Rome, as Ben sits down with the man, the myth, the legend, long-time Italian journalist Ubaldo Scanagatta of UbiTennis.com. Ubaldo talks about his pro playing days, how he built one of the most successful tennis blogs in the world, and the current crop of Italian talent. 

Ben and Courtney wrap things up with two rather emotional confessions: Ben's a big ol' softie who cries on airplanes, and Courtney is a big ol' jerk but is trying her best to be less so. SO MANY EMOTIONS! ALIZE WHERE ARE YOU???

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

And here's a final note from Ubaldo: Ubitennis.com, a tri-lingual tennis website, is recruiting. If you can write in English or Spanish and are interested in what the opportunity may entail, you can email direttaubitennis@gmail.com.

Episode 103: Eric Butorac

With Madrid in swing, Ben and Courtney reflect on what was a quiet week in tennis, except for the snug pants which Andy Murray had to don on court. Did his title, or Federer's, mean anything? And what IS a WTA rising star, anyway? Who is likeliest to break out with a surprise run? Then we discuss if the hype explosion of Mayweather-Pacquiao has any possible applications to tennis, as well as what the role of illegal streaming is in tennis. Then we talk about streaming and all sorts of other things with ATP Player Council Eric Butorac, who rose from playing lower-tier college tennis to sitting next to the likes of Federer, Djokovic, and Nadal as the sport gets governed, about all sorts of issues in tennis today. As always, thanks for liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes or whatever your podcasting platform of choice may be!