A podcast discussing the happenings in the wacky world of professional tennis. Hosted by Ben Rothenberg and Courtney Nguyen.
Episodes
Tuesday Sep 26, 2017
Tuesday Sep 26, 2017
As she returns from covering the inaugural Laver Cup, NCR's Middle East correspondant Reem Abulleil chats with Ben about the new competition, which proved to be stunningly successful and compelling despite being an exhibition made out of thin air by Roger Federer's marketing team.
What did Laver Cup get so right in its first try? Why were players so invested in it? And how can the stale and neglected Davis Cup learn from it to adapt for this changing tennis landscape?
Reem is the hero of our times.
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 #NCR199!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!
Monday Sep 11, 2017
Monday Sep 11, 2017
The 2017 U.S. Open wrapped up with an unsurprising men's champ in Rafael Nadal and a very surprising women's champ in Sloane Stephens. How did we get there? We discuss.
What do we make of how the draw broke in Rafa's favor? And how was Kevin Anderson the one able to seize the opportunity on the bottom half?
On the women's side, how did Sloane Stephens go from not being able to walk to playing her best tennis ever so quickly? What's next for her? Also, how should the other Americans in the final four--Madison Keys, CoCo Vandeweghe, Venus Williams--feel about their tournaments? And what sort of #1 will Garbine Muguruza be after unseating Karolina Pliskova?
And snaps to the USTA for one heckuva tournament.
Also, we discuss the new tennis movie Battle of the Sexes, as well as Maria Sharapova's new memoir "Unstoppable."
Mentioned on this episode: Chloe Cooper Jones' GQ piece on Dominic Thiem and Kelsey Anderson talking taxes on NCR.
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 #NCR198b!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!
Tuesday Aug 29, 2017
Tuesday Aug 29, 2017
In one of the biggest and best Slam first rounds ever, Maria Sharapova beat #2 Simona Halep in three thrilling sets. Ben and Courtney didn't quite see that coming, so we break it down in this special Day 1 episode from the U.S. Open. What are Sharapova's chances going forward in what's turned into a very open quarter suddenly?
There were some other upsets, too (Ferrer? Konta?). Also, Aleksandra Krunic is a delight.
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 #NCR198a!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!
Monday Aug 28, 2017
Monday Aug 28, 2017
It's our U.S. Open preview show! Ben and Courtney catch up on the happenings of the hardcourt season, and make all the tough picks as we breakdown the women's and men's draws in New York this year.
With Andy Murray's withdrawal the last of five from the ATP top 11, how should we feel about the men's field? And just how open is the women's draw, really, with eight women who can reach #1?
Lots of fun tangents, as per.
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 #NCR197!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!
Thursday Aug 24, 2017
Thursday Aug 24, 2017
To set the table for the upcoming US Open, Ben chats with two guys who see tennis through very different lenses. First up is Paul Annacone, a former ATP #12 and a past coach of Pete Sampras, Roger Federer, Tim Henman, and Sloane Stephens, who is out with his first book Coaching for Life. We talk all sorts of aspects of coaching relationships, and how they evolve with a player's age and experience.
Next, Ben chats with Giri Nathan, who has taken the helm of Deadspin's suddenly robust tennis coverage. How does the reverence of tennis mesh with the irreverence of Deadspin?
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 #NCR196!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!
Tuesday Aug 01, 2017
Tuesday Aug 01, 2017
Long-time friend of the show Lindsay Gibbs joins Ben this week to discuss the intersection of all sorts of societal issues--which she covers in her work as the sports reporter for Think Progress--specifically as they apply to the world of tennis, which has plenty of layers of equality and inequality, both visible and invisible. There's lots of work still to be done in women's tennis, even just how we talk about it.
From equal pay to LGBT visibility, from WTA streaming to athlete activism, from Ilie Nastase to Andy Roddick, we touch it all.
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 #NCR195!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!
Sunday Jul 16, 2017
Sunday Jul 16, 2017
Wimbledon 2017 is done with two great champions in Garbine Muguruza and Roger Federer...but why does it still feel unsatisfying? On the letdowns that defined the second week of this tournament too often.
Ben and Courtney talk about what their wins mean, why scheduling remains a crucial variable for both, and other various stories from the undercard draws at Wimbledon.
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 #NCR194!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!
Monday Jul 10, 2017
Monday Jul 10, 2017
Second week already? I was just in the middle of a dream (about flying ants, probably).
With four rounds of Wimbledon in the books, Ben and Courtney chat about what has happened and what will at a Wimbledon that hadn't been super eventful, really, until Manic Monday clarified some things. What do we make of Angelique Kerber, who will depart the #1 ranking? Should Bernard Tomic face scorn for his comments? Why is Gilles Muller such a dad? All this and 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 #NCR193!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!
Saturday Jul 01, 2017
Saturday Jul 01, 2017
Ben and Courtney are full of Wimbledon joy as they inhale the vaunted fumes of Centre Court, where the 2017 tournament will soon start.
They start breaking down the men's draw by discussing Sasha Bublik, the highly-entertaining Russian-turned-Kazakh who lucked into a spot playing Andy Murray in R1. You'll hear some of his pre-tournament press, then we break down the paths of the top-four seeds, who happen to be the Big 4 again. We both agree on who's tournament this is to lose, which doesn't always happen.
On the women's side, we discuss Angelique Kerber's possible steps in the right direction, Karolina Pliskova's pole position to #1, and Petra Kvitova's improbable (but logical) role as the favorite to win this event in just her third tournament back.
Also, lots of other shenanigans, including a dog. God save Queen.
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 #NCR192!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!
Tuesday Jun 27, 2017
Tuesday Jun 27, 2017
We are delighted to finally be able to fulfill one of our most frequent listener requests: an interview with a chair umpire!
Felix Torralba, a gold badge chair umpire who worked full-time with WTA and has also worked around the world of tennis on all corners of the globe, recently retired from officiating to take a full-time position at the Mallorca Open, where Ben caught up with him. He answers all those pressing questions: when to give a time violation? What is the hardest language to call score in? What happens if the chair umpire has to use the bathroom?
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 #NCR191!), and subscribing/reviewing on iTunes on iTunes or whatever your podcasting app/platform of choice may be!