In short
Wimbledon qualifying roundup and the wider Wimbledon week, dominated by extreme heat, plus later segments on (1) Marketa Vondrousova’s four-year ban for refusing an out-of-competition doping test and (2) a player protest over prize money/media access.
Guests
No named guests appear in the provided transcript. The hosts discuss interviews they did (e.g., with ITIA CEO Karen Morehouse) but she is not present as a live guest in this excerpt.
Guest/subject backgrounds (people discussed): Oliver Tarvit (British player; former UC San Diego college player; previously impressed in a match vs Carlos Alcaraz); Dan Evans (British; doubles with Henry Searle); Henry Searle (British; coached by Evans); Bianca Andreescu (former US Open champion working back via low-level qualifying); Robin Montgomery (recent tour-level grass winner); Marketa Vondrousova (2023 Wimbledon champion).
Key claims
Heat wave is severe enough to affect ballkids and player safety; qualifying is a route to breakthrough (Tarvit); Vondrousova’s refusal case is a first-of-its-kind out-of-competition refusal; refused tests must be punished like failed tests to deter evasion; Wimbledon prize-money protest expands to restrict media access across the first week.
Notable examples
Tarvit qualifying for a second straight year; Evans losing qualifying to “Schoolkate” (Tristan Schoolkate); Andreescu beating Alexandra Sastovich; Heather Watson missing Wimbledon main draw for first time since 2009; Sinner adjusting practice to warmer conditions after Paris/Melbourne incidents.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOThe Setup and Initial Challenges
0:46 to 2:05
Hosts discuss their location and technical difficulties preparing for Wimbledon.
“So we've sort of overcome that initial obstacle.”
Heat Wave Impact on Players
2:06 to 4:04
Exploration of how the heat wave affects players and tournament logistics.
“Four adults and a dog trying to fix a broken aircon unit.”
Oliver Tarvit's Qualifying Success
4:05 to 7:11
Discussion on Oliver Tarvit's performance and the benefits of qualifying.
“and an hour on the phone to the distributors.”
Dan Evans' Qualifying Journey
7:12 to 8:50
Review of Dan Evans' struggles in qualifying and the implications of his performance.
“the final round of men's qualifying at Wimbledon, which is a weird quirk that I personally could live without, but it is just one of those traditions that is just one of the things they do here at Wimbledon.”
Henry Searle's Future in Tennis
8:51 to 12:20
Examining Henry Searle's progress and his connection with Dan Evans.
“That's why he didn't get a wild card for the main draw.”
Bianca Andreescu's Return to Form
12:21 to 14:00
Analysis of Bianca Andreescu's performance in qualifying and her recent struggles.
“You know, he wants to carry on helping him.”
Andreescu's Return: A Sign of Hope
14:00 to 18:26
Discussing Bianca Andreescu's performance and potential comeback at Wimbledon.
“But look, I still think it's a nice win, that, for Andreescu.”
Emerging Players in Women's Tennis
18:26 to 21:02
Highlighting new talents like Robin Montgomery and their impact on the tournament.
“And there's a few of those that have come out of qualifying.”
The Absence of Heather Watson
21:02 to 22:55
Reflecting on Heather Watson's first absence from Wimbledon main draw since 2009.
“was distraught afterwards in tears on the bench.”
Qualifying Roundups and Notable Matches
22:55 to 27:08
Discussing notable matches and players from the Wimbledon qualifiers.
“Well, I hope I haven't made this sound creepy.”
Show all 24 chapters
Controversies and Player Actions
27:11 to 28:00
Discussing doping ban for Marketa Vondrosheva and player actions on prize money.
“Welcome back to part two of today's show.”
Svantec's Struggles on Grass
28:00 to 30:40
Explore the reasons behind Svantec's recent losses and her performance dips.
“Navarro is a heck of a grass court player and coming into some really good form.”
Jack Draper's Return to Form
30:40 to 33:52
Discussion on Jack Draper's comeback and his performance in Eastbourne.
“Navarro incidentally lost out to Elena Gabriela Rusa in the next round.”
Lucky Losers and Tournament Dynamics
33:52 to 36:21
Debate surrounding the implications of lucky losers in tennis tournaments.
“So he'd originally had what they call the pinpoint stance where you bring your feet together.”
Vondroshova's Doping Ban Controversy
36:21 to 41:24
Analysis of Marketa Vondroshova's doping ban and its implications.
“In Mallorca, the semi-final line-up is Nuno Borges against Ethan Quinn and Fabian Marijan against Alejandro Davidovic-Fekina.”
The Ethics of Doping Regulations
41:24 to 42:01
A deep dive into the ethics of doping punishments in professional sports.
Understanding Doping Regulations in Tennis
42:01 to 46:24
Exploration of the complexities surrounding doping regulations and player awareness.
“And then, you know, there's a question of, well, whose fault's that?”
Prize Money Protests at Wimbledon
46:24 to 49:17
Discussion on player actions regarding prize money and media access at Wimbledon.
“This was reported by the BBC and has now been reported very widely.”
The Impact of Prize Money Increases
49:17 to 53:38
Analysis of the recent increases in prize money and player responses to them.
“I'm only sort of guessing based on what I've seen and heard.”
Yannick Sinner's Adaptation to Heat
53:38 to 56:03
Yannick Sinner's experience with heat and adjustments made for future tournaments.
“Novak Djokovic pulled out of his scheduled match at Hurlingham.”
Sinner's Training Adjustments Ahead of Wimbledon
56:03 to 57:26
Learn about Sinner's proactive approach to training in warmer conditions.
“A good preparation before starting the tournament.”
Raducanu's Ongoing Injury Struggles
57:26 to 59:25
Discussion on Emma Raducanu's injury concerns and their impact on her performance.
“Well, as he said, to make it as low as possible.”
Anticipation for the Wimbledon Draw
59:25 to 1:00:22
Anticipation builds for the upcoming Wimbledon draw and its significance.
“So we will watch that situation closely and we will bring you updates on our many, many shows over the next 18 days.”
Upcoming Wimbledon Coverage Plans
1:00:22 to 1:04:22
Overview of the podcast's coverage plans during Wimbledon week.
“Is this the most hotly anticipated draw in your memory as a tennis podcaster?”
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:10Matt Roberts:Hello and welcome to the tennis podcast live from Wimbledon presented by Barclays, the official banking partner of Wimbledon. We are thrilled to have Barclays on board for the duration of the championships and our 18 shows from the championships in 2026. I say live from Wimbledon. I mean that in the loosest and most spiritual possible sense because we are neither live nor at Wimbledon.
0:41David Law:Not this time.
0:43Matt Roberts:We will be from tomorrow, folks. Right now, we are all together in the same vicinity. So we've sort of overcome that initial obstacle. We are down the road from Wimbledon at Tennis Podcast Towers in the Wimbledon area. And we will be in our usual wonderful spot at Wimbledon on the broadcast roof, overlooking the grounds, caught one in the background, live streamed on YouTube. We will be there from tomorrow. The plan for today was to do this show from Wimbledon qualifying at Roehampton. none of us made it to Wimbledon qualifying at Rampton uh it's yeah it's it's been a it's been an eventful start to our our 2026 Wimbledon journey David wasn't our fault folks we had all
1:32David Law:the plans in place we'd ordered a massive air conditioning unit for this apartment and then it arrived and then it didn't work and then troubleshooting started and the heat rose outside we were running out of time and we realized there's no possible way we can make
1:47Catherine Whitaker:this work so here we are here's plan b yeah we're just sweaty and putney instantly we were going to
1:55Matt Roberts:be sweaty somewhere uh and we've decided to be sweaty and putney for tonight uh yeah it's another grand slam where we're talking about the weather folks hopefully once the tournament gets started we won't be because this heat wave is scheduled to break it's scheduled to break when the new air conditioning unit is is now scheduled to arrive in fact it's a long-term investment if you are considering a purchase from appliancesdirect.co.uk i would think very carefully about it let's put it that way uh but yeah it is look by by monday by the time things get underway we should be in okay shape but you'll have probably seen you know yannickson has been wearing a cooling vest on the practice courts you'll have seen the scenes from Rahampton at qualifying the last couple of days they've been they um didn't use ball kids yesterday they swapped in adult stand-ins because I mean it's just not on to have kids out in in this weather it is it's worse than Paris it is it it might say only only only 34 degrees on the app but like there's there's and my my algorithm is is clogged with this sort of content at the moment it's different here there's some sort of bubble going on some sort of meteorological event there is no air conditioning anywhere it is disgusting first code red that i think we've ever had for
3:18David Law:hot weather isn't it in the area like a public announcement yeah i mean the the the moment that
3:25Matt Roberts:all air conditioning units sold out online was i think the moment that i received a bbc news alert on Monday which included the words risk of death in it like it's it's a pretty it's a pretty serious situation like in all of of Europe at the moment and I'm sure a lot of players are very relieved to see that the the heat wave will be breaking just as our air conditioning unit arrives so So that's our day, folks. 90 minutes of troubleshooting. Four adults and a dog trying to fix a broken aircon unit. An hour of live chat with the manufacturers and an hour on the phone to the distributors. But in that time, we were also watching Oliver Tarvit.
4:14David Law:Tarvit time.
4:14Matt Roberts:It is actually, David, Tarvit time.
4:17David Law:Absolutely. I knew it was coming and here it is. I mean, all joking apart, he is quite a player. And he proved it today for the second year in a row, winning three qualifying matches. And I just feel like he's another example of how qualifying is a really useful journey to go on if you want to make waves in a tournament. I mean, he looks so match tied. He looked fantastic today.
4:44Matt Roberts:I'd kind of forgotten because Oliver Tavik became a bit of a bit for us because you signed you were impressed with him last year when he took on Alcaraz what qualified won around took on Carlos Alcaraz on center court and became a real tabloid darling story here and then you signed him to your fantasy team not realizing that he basically wasn't a professional tennis player and was going to return to UC San Diego for his final year which is what he's been doing I had forgotten that it originally became a bit you wanted to sign him because you were genuinely so impressed with him as a tennis player like David really thinks Oliver Tarvitt is is the business I tell you I think he's
5:27David Law:pretty electric because I was courtside commentating on that match he played against Al Kraz and he went toe to toe side to side with him and just didn't look frankly he didn't look like a British tennis player who's not named Andy Murray you know he he looks like somebody who is from the the sort of mold of the of the current day tennis player okay he's not massively tall but he has he has movement you you commented today on the sort of strength of his base these legs you know he's really strongly built and he just moves incredibly well and and i found it i mean look that because you don't have any real life data because you don't we didn't see him play the second half of the year and then when he did play his results weren't great and and he i found it really interesting listening to him say after the match you know that i probably thought it was going to happen after that Wimbledon and I actually it sounds like he put too much pressure on himself and he regressed um and he feels like he's got it back again now because when I when I watch him play and I realize I've only watched him on grass I've never watched him on any other service um but I just see a player who's got great fundamental qualities and raw materials so I was confident he would qualify from this draw I mean I do think he didn't have it wasn't like an easy draw on paper he had some quite tough opponents to beat but I just thought well you know you this this kid loves it he's a bit like Norrie in that way he's come through university loves the the battle and the the the occasion so I I am encouraged that he's got a future a real
7:10Matt Roberts:future in this sport one of three British men to qualify today and they they play best of five in the final round of men's qualifying at Wimbledon, which is a weird quirk that I personally could live without, but it is just one of those traditions that is just one of the things they do here at Wimbledon. Billy Harris qualified and Max Basing as well. So good on them for doing that.
7:37Catherine Whitaker:He's also a US college guy, Max Basing, Stanford.
7:43Matt Roberts:There has been a big push in the last five or so years, hasn't there, to send the guys that aren't Jack Draper, the ones that aren't ready at 17, 18 to go pro, but have some unexplored potential. The LTA has been building relationships with US colleges, I think, and finding those pathways. I like it.
8:07David Law:I think it is good for them. It gives them a base, gives them other options in life, but I think it does build maturity and this kind of competitiveness within a team. I should have mentioned Jack Draper in my little not Andy Murray level conversation about Oliver Tarvit. Look, I don't know what his end result is. I mean, there's far more accomplished coaches and players and observers than me that might say, yeah, he's never going to make it because this. But when I look at him, I don't see that obvious gap. I see somebody whose raw material should be able to live with the tour.
8:41Matt Roberts:He's got good attitude as well. Great attitude. good head on his shoulders uh no qualification romance story for dan evans he lost in the second round beat prado angelo the the bolivian who had qualified in paris in round one and seemed kind of set for this fairy tale story so many people were invested in but uh lost to tristan school kate tristan shulhatay as we call him uh when the commentators were calling him school kate i was like no no you're saying that wrong it's it's sure hat a um he's a good player school kate i think he he ought to be a top 100 player really and that's that's tough for dan who i mean ultimately just wasn't good enough to qualify was he david i'm glad he's got that doubles wild card and he will we will see him at wimbledon but um yeah it was tough and there may
9:35David Law:Maybe some people say, well, there you go. That's why he didn't get a wild card for the main draw. He wasn't good enough. And you're right, he wasn't good enough. He got beaten. I don't think it was about that. I think that lots and lots of wild cards are given to people who've contributed a lot, particularly to the British game when the LTA has a say. And they may say, well, yeah, you were moaning when we were giving them out to not encouraging young players. I feel like the young players do better coming through the qualifying draw. I think Tarvis is likely to do better than all the ones who've got a wild card, personally.
10:05David Law:draw dependent but that would be my view um i think he should have got one out of frankly sheer respect and just just being thanked really and and given one last chance to see the crowds there but that's that's my opinion others will have different ones but in the first set there he was you know he was just down immediately against school kate who and and he he provided a really good comeback he He got into the match. In fact, he got into the school court side team. He started having a huge barney with them.
10:38Matt Roberts:He went very early with sledging the Australians, didn't he?
10:41David Law:It seemed to me he was doing it to get himself going, giving himself a reason to be pissed off. And that helped him. He played one incredible diving shot, Matt. That was on the end of a long rally, wasn't it? He'd done some incredible defence at the baseline,
10:58Catherine Whitaker:scampering and then yeah he had to move forward to a kind of drop volley-ish kind of shot from school kate and he just threaded this pass up the line with the forehand while diving and then did a fun celebration where he was pretending to swim on the court afterwards it was like it was the best shot i saw in qualifying all week it was unbelievable a reminder of his of his racket skills and his hand skills and his talent um but yeah i think actually qualifying was just
11:30Matt Roberts:step too far who's he playing doubles with he's playing with henry searle who he's been helping and coaching he was out watching henry searle in qualifying just hours after he had lost his own
11:42David Law:match yeah that's right and he lost on two tie breaks in the second round of qualifying he you know he wasn't far away actually so and it's quite interesting that evans was absolutely adamant that But if he had been offered, if Searle had been asked, here's a wild card, Evans said he would have rejected it. Because he said Searle isn't ready for getting main draw wild cards to Wimbledon. You know, it's kind of like he should be in the qualifying. And until he proves that he's better than that, that's where he should be. So anyway, second round of qual is for him. But he's making progress. He won that Dublin challenger, I think, Henry Searle last week on grass.
12:19David Law:So, you know, and look, I think Evans wants to carry on with that collaboration. You know, he wants to carry on helping him. He's from Wolverhampton, so it's a Midlands area like Evans. I think that probably makes a difference. And that would be cool, wouldn't it, if he was able to influence immediately a young British player who, did he win or get to the final of Wimbledon Juniors a few years ago, Henry Searle? I seem to remember. and so you know he's a very tall lad big serve again raw materials but what are you going to do
12:53Matt Roberts:with him you might call it target time David I call it Andrescu time quite understandably she's look this might sound small fry for a player that has won a Grand Slam title but I tell you what in the recent career of Bianca Andrescu this is such a big deal that she's qualified for a Grand Slam, that she's won three matches in a row against decent players. As qualifying goes, it's not an easy draw. Polona Herzog, who's passed her prime but had good grass court results before. Jill Teichman, who played brilliantly in Paris. OK, she had quite a lot of strapping on her leg, but she played some good ball, Teichman, and had won a round of qualifying.
13:41Matt Roberts:And then today she beat Alexandra Sastovich, who is definitive tricky, I think. You prepared to co-sign that, Matt?
13:50Catherine Whitaker:I'd certainly say unorthodox.
13:54Matt Roberts:Which is quite similar to tricky, isn't it?
13:57Catherine Whitaker:I think she looks trickier than she is maybe at this stage of her career. But look, I still think it's a nice win, that, for Andreescu.
14:05Matt Roberts:Look, I watch a lot of Andreescu matches and she looked a shadow of herself on clay, quite frankly. It was a tough watch. You could see the lack of confidence in her forehand in particular. It was dropping so short all the time. And because she's able to apply so much spin to it, I mean, she can flatten it out, but she also has a very, you know, she's got a great moon ball on the forehand. But it also means that if you're not hitting it heavy enough, not connecting with it and not committing to it. It's just dropping short and sitting up all the time. And there were periods of the clay season, okay, not her favourite surface, but where she looked kind of unable to hit winners anymore.
14:53Matt Roberts:Like the grit was still there. She was hanging so tough in so many rallies and thrashing around at the baseline. But that sort of fearless go for broke tennis that she was able to pepper in with the hanging tough in that incredible, unique blend she used to have. That seemed to have gone. And look, she's not back-back, but this is something. It really is something, and I'm so pleased for her because she's getting some wild cards here and there, but she's mostly, you know, she's mostly trying to make a go of it outside the world's top 130 at the moment, you know, qualifying at low level events, just trying to get some kind of momentum going, trying to get some proof that it's all worth it.
15:50Matt Roberts:And I think it's been, I think it's been trying for her and I'm, I'm thrilled. And it's another name that I'm very excited about coming out of the hat at the draw tomorrow who do you want it to be for Andreescu Catherine well I have given this some thought David I mean obviously if it's a if it's a proverbial good draw then that's you know that's good in a way but I'd quite like it to have a big show court moment really and you know obviously she'd need to be playing a big player these days to get that billing. But I still think she could rise to that occasion and sort of walk out and remember a little bit who she really is.
16:38Matt Roberts:So what I'm saying, I guess, is yes, I am here for Serena Andreescu, round one. Sign me up.
16:46David Law:Which would be a rematch of the 2019 US Open final. Yeah. Wow. Hard to believe, isn't it, that that is seven years ago. and yeah, I mean she gave a very emotional interview Andrescu after qualifying and made it clear how tough things have been how much she's questioned whether she wanted to carry on I would love Wimbledon crowds to see what we saw back then I'd love all crowds to get to witness it because I'm living off memories really and I kind of almost want to go back and watch the highlights of that final that we've just talked about you know it's because she is so fun to watch she's such an engaging presence on the tennis court her tennis itself is is just so different and such a combination of all styles and yet but
17:36Matt Roberts:it's her general magnetism her vibe she was hitting those crouched forehands well of both wings but the you know the deeply crouched Radvanska Kerber-esque muscled winners which I think is it's the bellwether for Andrescu it's like the Nadal forehand down the line like okay you are
18:02Catherine Whitaker:you're yourself today I'm not you just named two Wimbledon finalists there can you tell I'm trying
18:09Matt Roberts:trying desperately not to get carried away. But no, look, this is big regardless of what's next. And I'm sad that this is, that's where we are with Andreescu. But you've got to start somewhere. And she's still got time on her side. And it's a heck of a fun name to be anticipating coming out of the hat tomorrow, Matt. And there's a few of those that have come out of qualifying.
18:35Catherine Whitaker:There are, yes. sticking on the women's side I think the name which jumps out the most to me is probably Robin Montgomery she was a late qualifier this afternoon and that's interesting because she it's quite rare I think that someone will win a tour level title as she did a couple of weeks ago in St. Hogenbosch but then be in qualifying for a major she only dropped one set through qualifying, she did have a medical timeout today after the first set but then won the next two quite easily. But yeah, she's shown recently that she can win tour level matches on grass. So I think she's going to be in our dangerous floater pool of players, I think, in that draw tomorrow.
Read the full transcript
19:19Catherine Whitaker:A couple of big hitters made it through. Aisling Kruger, Polina Kudomatova. I can imagine those games working on the grass and being a bit of a nightmare potentially. A couple of names from the women's draw that didn't make it through of no Harmony Tan.
19:36Matt Roberts:gutted.
19:37Catherine Whitaker:A bit gutted about that.
19:39David Law:And she's the player who last played Serena, was that right? Yeah, and beat her.
19:44Matt Roberts:In an absolute shit show of a match.
19:47David Law:Albeit kind of a classic. You know, it was so intoxicated. You couldn't take your eyes off it.
19:52Matt Roberts:So, so compelling.
19:54David Law:We were in the press seats for that all together, weren't we? And you would just, you kind of have to keep a bit of a straight face in the press seats. You're not supposed to react. but I was basically sitting on my hands to stop myself reacting because it was so... Everything was just heightened in that crowd that day.
20:12Matt Roberts:Yeah. I mean, the person that beat her is a cool story but I'm sad that we couldn't have had Harmony Tan as well. I'm not hoping someone gets injured but if a lucky loser spot is going, I hope it goes to Harmony.
20:26Catherine Whitaker:Do you think Serena will... Well, she's going to have to play better, isn't she, than she's in that match? Yes. I mean, she did play better than that even a few months later at the US Open that year. It was just such a horrible match-up, Harmony Tans, bit of a junk baller. And Serena, yeah, didn't like it. And another name not going to be in the Wimbledon main draw is Heather Watson. She's going to be the first Wimbledon without Heather Watson in the main draw since 2009.
20:59David Law:Wow.
21:00Catherine Whitaker:She had played 15 main draws in a row at Wimbledon, was distraught afterwards in tears on the bench. Her coach came on. She was very, very upset. It was a real classic qualifying experience because the person who beat her, Maria Timmerfava, has had runs at slams before and feels like she's back in the main draw, back where she belongs. She was buzzing, talking about how she's going to be at the pub tonight, to celebrate with her team because her coaches are German and they want to watch the football in a British pub and experience all that. It was great vibes. And she was very respectful to Heather Watson, but absolutely gutting for Heather Watson not to make it.
21:47Catherine Whitaker:It was 2009. Crazy, right?
21:49Matt Roberts:And that was the year after she won the US Open Juniors. I think that was 08, wasn't it?
21:55David Law:It is one of those little moments of reminder of how long we've been covering tennis, I think. When Heather Watson, who we remember as a junior winning that US Open and coming on the scene with Laura Robson, and now one of them is out of the sport, but is a player, but is doing all these other roles so well, and a broadcaster. And then Heather Watson is still trying to get into them, and she's only just missed this first one in all these years. You did very well not to say, speak for yourself there, David. How old were you in 2009, Matt? I was looking at you the whole time I was speaking, Catherine.
22:37David Law:I was 13, thank you very much. Secondary school and everything. Were you a Watson guy or a Robson guy? Robson. Oh, okay. You liked the lefty game.
22:47Matt Roberts:Matt was telling me about Mr...
22:50Catherine Whitaker:Mr Sims.
22:51Matt Roberts:Mr Sims earlier.
22:52Catherine Whitaker:My English teacher.
22:54Matt Roberts:What a guy he sounds like.
22:55Catherine Whitaker:Was he a bit of a legend, was he? He was a legend, yeah.
22:57Matt Roberts:He ushered Matt into a... Well, I hope I haven't made this sound creepy.
23:03Catherine Whitaker:He let me go into his office.
23:05Matt Roberts:He let Matt go into his office to watch Roger Federer against Alejandro Fire in 2010.
23:11David Law:Oh, I commentated on that.
23:12Matt Roberts:I was there in Centre Court with my dad. That's why we were reminiscing about it, because my dad was present today for the air conditioning fiasco.
23:23David Law:Federer coming back from a big deficit do set still up down
23:27Matt Roberts:right
23:27David Law:yeah
23:28Catherine Whitaker:yes I remember the lesson very well we were reading Huckleberry Finn and Federer was in trouble as the defending champion first round and I was a huge Federer fan and everyone in my class was making fun of me that Federer was about to go out of Wimbledon and he saw I was in distress Mr. Sims and said you can read Huckleberry Finn in your own time go into my office watch the tennis oh what a legend what a hero and by the
23:55David Law:I want to know what your walk was like when you came out of the office with him having fought back and confronted all your classwork well the thing is
24:02Catherine Whitaker:it was only like a 40 minute lesson so I didn't see the full comeback but I think I saw the start of the comeback
24:09Matt Roberts:I reckon Mr. Sims somewhere is following the progress of Matt Roberts get in touch Mr. Sims
24:15David Law:I played a part yeah
24:18Matt Roberts:but he did
24:18Catherine Whitaker:he was a lovely man A few men to pick out from qualifying. We've got two guys this year who are 9-0 in Grand Slam qualifying in 2026. Jaime Faria and Michael Zheng have both qualified at all three slams this year.
24:41David Law:Faria's the guy who beat Dimitrov.
24:43Catherine Whitaker:Yes, at Roland Garros. And he pushed Tiafa to five. Yeah. So, you know, I think he's going to be a top 100 player now. I think he's going to be getting into these main draws off the back of all the winning he's done this year. And Michael Zhang is the guy that beat Corder at the Australian Open. And he also beat Jesper de Jong in Roland Garros qualies. And de Jong then got in as a lucky loser and had a good run. So, yeah, very impressive from both of those two. I also wanted to flag Sunwoo Kwon, who is playing his first Grand Slam main draw since the 2024 US Open and he's been doing military service in South Korea.
25:24Catherine Whitaker:He's had some compensation from the athletic core of the South Korean military to play some challengers this year close to South Korea. He's won a couple of them and he's now entered Wimbledon qualifying and got through and is going to be in the main draw.
25:41Matt Roberts:He's one of the OG Next Gen class alumni, I think. Sunwoo Kwon.
25:50Catherine Whitaker:He's been up to around 50 in the world. So, you know, he was getting into Grand Sam Main Draws.
25:56Matt Roberts:Him and BTS back from military service.
26:02David Law:Who's BTS?
26:04Catherine Whitaker:I knew that was going to be the next bit of audio. K-pop.
26:10Matt Roberts:they're a K-pop band
26:14Catherine Whitaker:gotcha I reckon your kids will definitely know
26:17Matt Roberts:if you can hear tittering in the background that's Matthew folks he was only sticking around for this podcast because we promised him free dinner afterwards or else he'd be out of the door like a shot
26:33Catherine Whitaker:Matthew was petitioning for pre-pod dinner
26:37Matt Roberts:so that he didn't have to listen to this nonsense
26:42David Law:you can just imagine all the takes that are going through Matthew's mind when he's just thinking well that's rubbish he's quite he's quite a tennis mind David's got his back to Matthew so
26:50Matt Roberts:he didn't see him absolutely lose his mind at the mention of Harmony Tan against Serena Williams
26:56Catherine Whitaker:it's a triggering match for Matthew I think big Serena guy okay folks that's it for your roundup
27:03Matt Roberts:of stories from qualifying there is still a lot to talk about on today's show though so make sure you join us in part two for that. Welcome back to part two of today's show. We're going to talk about the ban that has been handed out to Marketa Vondrosheva for refusing a doping test at the end of last year. We're also going to talk about some interesting news on the front of the player action over prize money that has broken in the last 24 hours. Just before we come on to those stories, Bit of a roundup of notable things we've seen at the events happening so far this week. We'll cover them in more detail over the weekend and in particular on our Sunday show when they've all wrapped up.
27:47Matt Roberts:But a few things to pick out. I think initially Igor Svantec's loss to Emma Navarro in Bad Homburg. Three sets, seven, five, two, six, six, three. Matt, you watched this. Navarro is a heck of a grass court player and coming into some really good form. How loud are the Svantec alarm bells ringing for you at this defeat?
28:14Catherine Whitaker:I think the shocking thing is how unshocking it was to me that she lost. I remember Svantec playing Navarro at the Australian Open, start of 2025 and watching that match and just thinking, well that is a matchup problem you know like navarro doesn't have big power how can navarro really hurt sviontek was kind of what i was thinking watching that matchup 18 months ago it's happened twice since and navarro has beaten sviontek both times but back in the last year and here on on the grass and look maybe i underestimated navarro in that matchup 18 months ago but I do think this is the kind of thing that speaks to the Egos Fiontech decline quite frankly um Fiontech's serve was a problem again seven double faults in the first set alone in this one and we talked earlier in the year about the second set dip that Fiontech's been having that's still a thing I think but what we're also seeing now is a third set dip you know sometimes she's getting back into a match as she did here but then just not being able to extend it and carry it and carry it on in the third and it's it's just increasingly rare right now that i see shvantec play brilliant matches from start to finish you know there's just way more dip she's way more vulnerable than than she was um and look it is a tough match as your first one on grass of the season and navara just reached the final in nottingham she had matches under her belt she was in form she played really well and it's it's it's good to see her back in in this kind of form but you know it it didn't really look like igu svjantek had you know cracked grass last year by winning the women title and is is now going to be really comfortable on this surface that's that's not I don't think what we're going to see um and yeah you can't ride her off because of what she did last year I have to absolutely respect that but I don't know I'm not feeling hugely confident about her going into this windmill mostly because of just the form she's been in for most of the season really beyond just specific grass court issues.
30:42Matt Roberts:Navarro incidentally lost out to Elena Gabriela Rusa in the next round. So the semi-final line-up in Bad Homburg is Rusa against Mukova and then Wong Jin Yu against Naomi Osaka, who had a great win today over Ekaterina Alexandrova. In Eastbourne, the WTA event in Eastbourne, the semi-final line-up there is Madison Keyes against Petra Marchinko, lucky loser, who beat Katie McNally today, 6-4 in the third. and the other semi-final is Tatiana Maria against Yelena Ostapenko.
31:14David Law:Oh, when is that on? Tomorrow. And what time? I need to be planning my day around that.
31:21Matt Roberts:It is first up, David, 11am.
31:24David Law:OK, just after the Wimbledon draw. Just after the draw.
31:26Catherine Whitaker:They are two of the most interesting names in the Wimbledon draw as well, aren't they? Like, can both cause havoc in very different ways.
31:36Matt Roberts:on to the men's event this week and the big story is I think the return of Jack Draper coming back in Eastbourne and he's into the semi-finals he's beaten Marcus Garone who ended up replacing Brandon Nakashima who withdrew at the last minute then he beat Jack Pennington Jones and today he's beaten Gabriel Diallo all of them in straight sets he's looked very comfortable Andy Murray's been there a bit but wasn't there today busy launching his new youtube channel is andy murray um but it i don't know it looks pretty incredibly early days but it does look pretty positive for jack
32:16David Law:draper my view is i think it's just further insight into the he is he is a very very good tennis player who doesn't need an awful amount of tennis to produce good tennis i remember thinking in that when he came out two or three months ago after his long layoff Art of Feast was the same, they just click into gear very quickly and their games stand up he had questioned himself a lot last year about his level on grass and he told us in our interview in November that he really wanted to target his movement and be able to slide into the balls like he sees these other players do on grass not try to completely over haul his game for the surface in that way.
33:02David Law:I think I heard a stat saying that his clearance over the net is a lot lower than it was a couple of years ago in terms of the shape of his strokes, which makes sense to me on grass. But the bottom line is there's just so little confidence that his body is not going to break down. And I say that hoping desperately that it does prove to be this time that it holds up but it's very difficult to get properly optimistic about the career prospects of Jack Draper until the physicality is just not a huge question mark all the time what I would say is I'm really pleased that he's had three matches because I did when he pulled out of Queens I did not expect this even so I really do you know I really do fingers crossed for Jack Draper.
33:54Catherine Whitaker:He's changed the service motion again.
33:56Matt Roberts:He's changed back? Yeah. Closer to what he had originally?
33:59Catherine Whitaker:Yeah, absolutely. So he'd originally had what they call the pinpoint stance where you bring your feet together. He changed to a platform stance where you don't do that. I never really understood how that was meant to be helping the injury. But anyway, he's gone back to the pinpoint stance. I do think he looks more natural with it.
34:20Matt Roberts:so yeah just something to keep an eye on he's got Ugo Mbair in the semi-finals so an all-lefty match-up that's probably be a step up against against Mbair good player on grass isn't he and the other semi-final is Zizou Berg against Toby Samuel yeah who came in as a lucky loser
34:39David Law:there are a lot of lucky losers in this draw six in total and he lost in the second round of qualities um in a in a close one you know um but got into the main draw made the most of it good
34:52Matt Roberts:fair could i just have a a minor rant about a lucky loser situation in eastbourne sure so taylor fritz ended up withdrawing from eastbourne he went all the way there and i do think think he intended to play at a practice session he ended up making the decision after his practice session on Wednesday he was the top seed he had a buy-in round one so by Wednesday you're deep into second round matches Fritz was scheduled to play that day and they had to rejig the order of play as a result of his his withdrawal I think but his freeing his withdrawing freed up a main draw place for a lucky loser even though they were already deep into round two so a lucky loser comes in and floats straight into round two yes same happened to samuel it doesn't that doesn't
35:46David Law:feel right no you say he's i mean samuel has won two matches to reach the semi-finals and look well done to him for taking advantage of his chance but it doesn't feel quite right does it i mean it also shows the the problem with these tournaments the week before wimbledon especially when most most Most of the players view the one the week before as the big one. I mean, four of the top five seeds in Eastbourne are on the draw sheet as withdrawals, so have been replaced by lucky losers.
36:16Matt Roberts:Get rid of buys and you get rid of that problem.
36:19David Law:Totally.
36:19Matt Roberts:And a bunch of other problems. In Mallorca, the semi-final line-up is Nuno Borges against Ethan Quinn and Fabian Marijan against Alejandro Davidovic-Fekina. Davidovic-Fekina having beaten Grigor Dimitrov. Is this the one?
36:33Catherine Whitaker:is this Davidovich Vakina's time to win a title tough to get a better opportunity than this
36:41David Law:how many finals has he had about now several
36:43Matt Roberts:and he's been so close
36:47Catherine Whitaker:he's choked a couple of times
36:49Matt Roberts:this feels like the one
36:54Catherine Whitaker:but you know he's going to be so tight if he gets to the final
36:58Matt Roberts:yeah big time hope he does it yeah he's too good not to have a title isn't he and he does love Graves it would be a bit
37:06Catherine Whitaker:of a two fingers up to Puerta who abandoned him mid French Open as well wouldn't it if he could finally get another title so many weird things happened at the French Open
37:15Matt Roberts:that that sort of got lost in the shuffle it's one of the
37:18Catherine Whitaker:weirder things
37:18Matt Roberts:my god that was weird yeah okay that is it for part two but do join us in part three because we've got two pretty big bits of news to cover and a mascot to unveil Welcome back to part three of today's tennis podcast. Want to touch now upon the news from a few days ago, the 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondroshova has received a four-year ban from professional tennis after refusing a doping control test at her home in December of last year. Four years was the maximum punishment available for that offence. and despite explanations that she presented at an independent hearing that took place on June the 11th that, as she claimed stress and her mental health had affected her decision-making on that night in December when she refused the test.
38:13Matt Roberts:She was handed the maximum punishment. It's news that has received a lot of attention and debate this week, I think, because of the severity of the punishment and the profile of the player involved, especially in the lead up to Wimbledon. For that reason, we did a special show yesterday where I interviewed Karen Morehouse, the CEO of the International Tennis Integrity Unit, about this case and this decision and more generally about doping cases of this kind. Because as I discovered during that conversation with Karen, this is a first of its kind. This is tennis's first case of a refused test outside of competition.
38:57Matt Roberts:There are cases in other sports and there have been refusal cases in tennis, but in competition. So this is a first of its kind. A lot of people, the initial reaction is this band sounds incredibly harsh. And I think it does on the face of it sound incredibly harsh. I do feel like I got a good understanding from Karen of why the ban is as harsh as it is. And I think ultimately what I've learned from deep diving on this case and speaking to Karen Morehouse over the last couple of days is how you feel about this. probably comes down to the existential question of the price you are prepared to to pay for clean sport or as close to clean sport as is practically possible because I do think if clean sport is your absolute priority and understandably that is for the ITIA that is their brief that is their reason for existing i think this is the price i do logically understand why the punishment for a refused test has to be the same as the punishment for a failed test but i think for some people they would be prepared to strike more of a balance and maybe think that price sort of on the human front is too high to pay and maybe are prepared to take more of a risk on the doping front in order not to see potentially innocent athletes or at least athletes who have just made an innocent mistake or not with no sinister doping intention um receive such career destroying bands and i think you know i don't think there's a right or wrong there it just comes down to how you feel about
41:16David Law:that existential question of what price is worth it yeah i i suppose i come down somewhere in the in between because i think this is as heartbreaking as hard as it sounds like this is and understandably hard for makata vandrosheva to be faced with this as your future even if it is like her fault um i i i feel this has been an important process to play out publicly for players to to be made to realize you know why this is all done why do we why do we as a sport do this this is why is because we test outside of your pre-agreed windows because we need to make sure that you're not trying to dodge the system or get around it that way it makes total logical sense and yet i do not think enough players are really aware of that i i wasn't really aware of that and former players that I've heard speaking weren't aware of that.
42:26David Law:And then, you know, there's a question of, well, whose fault's that? Are they not doing a good enough job of communicating it? Or is it just, frankly, that's on the individual to read the bloody rules? They're all out there. And we heard from Karen Morehouse that it's very clear that there's a WhatsApp channel you can go to, there's an app, there's all this sort of information out there. And we're available all the time to ask how it works. You should be in control of your career, and you should be on top of this stuff um and meanwhile you have the deterrent that this is providing but i do feel like in this case maybe it's just me being a certain kind of individual i hope she appeals to cass and gets a reduction because i my sort of gut tells me that she's messed up but that she hasn't cheated and that she hasn't been taking something and i don't want this to be a career ender for I'd like her to get two years not four for instance but I don't quite know how I reconcile
43:26Matt Roberts:that without diluting the deterrent I do see the problem yeah it's really tough I feel the same like I I feel for her she's done some interviews I mean she's she's clearly just absolutely devastated and in shock and is talking about that publicly you know there's some pretty tough quotes out there from Marketa von Drosheva and on a human level it's hard not to feel for her and yet I feel the same like logically yeah as I said logically I understand why this has to be the system if you are if you
44:07Catherine Whitaker:you're serious about policing doping yeah it makes total sense to me why the ban for refusing a test is as great as the ban for failing one because otherwise it wouldn't be enough of a deterrent i get that logic failing a top level one though because i mean you know you could look
44:30David Law:at lots of failed tests recently that have led to not much in the way of sentence yeah yeah
44:37Catherine Whitaker:Yeah, but I guess you, I still think that logically makes sense. It does, yeah, it does. That they have to make it the top level one. And look, I think one of my frustrations with this is that the full verdict takes a while to come out. And then in the meantime, you get everyone forming their opinions on it before the full verdict is out. We don't know when that's going to be released. But, you know, I think there's going to be a lot more detail in that that that might also inform how you feel about the case. It's just that that to me is a frustration with the system. And yeah, Bondroj has spoken to Czech press and she's talked about stuff that she apparently brought up at the tribunal regarding the in her opinion, the doping patrol officer not identifying themselves very well or and showing her a bit of paper that talked about a two-year ban rather than a four-year ban i think all of this detail is going to be in the full verdict um and i think it will be easier to to make a sort of form an opinion then but you know right now all i can say is i totally understand it from the itia's point i thought karen explained it very well very logically rationally but also with empathy and at the same time I feel for Vondrosha on a human level and the social media posts she's put out have been very moving and yeah, it's a horrible situation.
46:09Matt Roberts:And look, there's a lot of nuance to it and a lot of detail and if you're interested, it's only 25 minutes but I would urge you to listen to that show that we put out yesterday. It's well worth it, I think. We have had the news about 24 hours ago, which honestly I found to be a really big shock when this dropped, that player action over prize money is extending to not only Wimbledon Media Day, as they did in Paris, but to the entire first week. This was reported by the BBC and has now been reported very widely. so not only a continuation of the action from Paris but an escalation as well. Russell Fuller writes, leading tennis players will expand their prize money protest at Wimbledon despite a 20 % increase in this year's pot.
47:04Matt Roberts:Some players limited pre-tournament media to 15 minutes at the French Open but will go a step further at Wimbledon. They will not only limit the time they offer at the forthcoming media weekend but are also planning to restrict post-match appearances to 15 minutes throughout the first week of the championships, which start on Monday. And as was the case in Paris, this will most heavily impact those TV rights holders that pay huge money. And a lot of what they're paying for is the access to the players, the set visits, the sit-down interviews that they use for their glitzy VTs that set the scene for all the big matches and help them tell the stories.
47:51Matt Roberts:It might affect us a bit, but on the basis of our experience in Paris, that's who they're looking to hurt. And logically, that does make sense because they have the most power in the negotiating rooms and they have the most power to make their feelings heard to Wimbledon. and Wimbledon want to listen because they're paying them a lot of money for their broadcast rights.
48:17David Law:Yeah, I think in the same way that really this group have targeted the top 10 players on either tour and yeah, they'd like others to come along with them, but it doesn't really matter too much. They're doing the same with the top level of the media, attack them or at least, you know, impact them and the ripple effect will be that much larger. you don't need to get everybody on side you don't need to affect everybody if you affect the ones with the big enough pull you're going to get an you're going to get a result uh or at least a reaction i think i think where your surprise comes and i think i think mine too my initial surprise is that that was a really good increase of baseline prize money for those players to be getting i mean the the the first round defeated player is going to be getting 80 000 pounds and that you know a few years ago that was 30 you know it's it's if you look at the the actual amounts that have have ended up in the players pockets as a base figure as just a monetary figure it's it's a good increase the last few years 20 increase this is the biggest one wimbledon's ever done yeah so they got a result out of wimbledon wimbledon listened wimbledon and maybe we were a bit shaken by the reaction and thought, OK, we need to do something here to make them feel that they don't need to take any further action.
49:46David Law:I would imagine. I'm only sort of guessing based on what I've seen and heard. And the players responded by saying that they noted it. They noted that this is a major step in the right direction. They also commented that it's not what they've asked for. They haven't got the contribution to player welfare. They haven't got the percentage of revenue that they wanted. It's an increase, but it's not what they were after. My initial reaction of being surprised because it seemed like such a good result for them, as you said, record prize money, I've tempered that today because I've thought, yeah, I get what they're doing.
50:28David Law:I don't, whether or not I agree with it is beside the point. I get what they're doing. this is where they've they've had massive progress but they still haven't got what they've asked for so okay well we're going to carry on and we as long as they're not worried about public perception as long as they're not worried about people thinking oh you lot are just unreal with your money grabbing as long as they're not worried about that this is when they can strike and actually put more pressure on because who's going to stand up to them that's that's what they're
50:58Matt Roberts:trying to find out don't you think they are a bit worried about that though you know judging by how they dealt with it during French Open Media Day when they were very keen to sort of, they were trying to have their cake and eat it a bit, weren't they? Like, we know we earn a lot of money and it's fine. It's not about us. It's about we're trying to fight for the lower ranked players. That suggested that there was an awareness or a wariness of how it could be perceived.
51:29David Law:Yeah, they're not totally blind to that. That's of course. And they want the best result for them, which is, as you said, they want their cake and they want to eat it too. They want to get all the money and all the revenue share and they want everybody to think they're lovely. Of course they do. It's more a question of how much risk are they prepared to take. And I think that they thought that they could have all of it at the French Open with that approach. They're still not doing anything material to really piss people off. They're not withdrawing their labour to fans, really. I mean, this is going to annoy some broadcasters and therefore impact the tournament.
52:08David Law:I do get it. It's better to do that for them if they can get a result than going further, annoying people that will hurt them in order to get their own.
52:19Matt Roberts:I was thinking about it today, and I was wondering if this isn't actually about Wimbledon at all, if this is sending a message to the US.
52:26David Law:Yeah, I think it is, and I think it's to all of them.
52:28Matt Roberts:They're saying Wimbledon have put it up by 20 % and that's great, but it's not enough. You need to do more.
52:37David Law:And what is it they're taking a four-year view here? They want 1.5 % increase every single year, not of prize money, but of revenue share increase. That is an astonishing amount of money if they're going to get to 22 % by 2030 of revenue. you we are talking a totally different world to what they're getting now and so that is with that in mind if they're serious that that doesn't just stop this will happen again at the u.s open and they'll get a massive increase but they'll still put pressure on somehow so that your australian open have to do it this will keep going on and until they get to somewhere that they're satisfied or to a point where the tournament just says no no we're not going any further you've had your lot
53:26Matt Roberts:and then what?
53:28David Law:well that would be interesting won't it because that point may well come as well because Wimbledon have said they are surprised and disappointed with this reaction I reckon they're probably a bit shocked I would have thought so yeah
53:45Matt Roberts:yeah yeah as i say i was i was i thought they'd done enough yeah fascinating uh on the subject of yannick sinner by the way obviously the sort of most prominent of the players in terms of leading this charge and talking about it publicly certainly on the men's side there was a fantastic uh athletic article about him yesterday charlie eccleshare went to the hurlingham club to speak him after his exhibition match against Cam Norrie, which was interesting in itself that he played that because if I haven't mentioned it enough, it is disgusting in London at the moment. It is, it's Paris and then some.
54:30Matt Roberts:Novak Djokovic pulled out of his scheduled match at Hurlingham. He didn't fancy it. Yannick Sinner went ahead with it. And OK, it's an exhibition match. It was only ever going to be an hour and a bit. he was fine for an hour and a bit against Mamamal Surundalo in Paris. I don't think him beating Norrie in this match and looking okay I mean pretty frazzled but aren't we all? I don't think that necessarily means anything but the fact that he played it does I think and the comments that he made afterwards. Charlie reporting that he and bear in mind Yannick Sinner after that extraordinary unfolding of events on court philippe chetri came to came to press and said i don't have a problem with the heat which we all know isn't true and totally understood why he doesn't want to make
55:25David Law:it a bigger thing he certainly said that one wasn't about heat yeah didn't he he did well now just four weeks later he i mean is owning it in a very big way he he was asked about the fact that
55:41Matt Roberts:there were reports that he had been to the hospital to do some medical tests after what happened in paris he said yep we did some testing we tried to understand what happened he said we came to a conclusion which is very good so we worked very much we changed the work a little as well trying to see how my body reacts in different conditions we've made some changes in practice and we've made some changes in all other things said he couldn't predict the future but that they're doing everything they can to reduce the chances of what happened in Paris and Melbourne and Shanghai last year happening again he said today speaking of his match at Hurlingham He said today was no wind at all.
56:26Matt Roberts:So was maybe even warmer than Paris. But he said, it's good. That's exactly what I need. A good preparation before starting the tournament. In future, we will always try to practice where the warmer conditions could be. Because I feel like every tournament is getting warmer and warmer every year. So it's going to be important. But we did a lot of work and today was good. Was a good preparation. I'm pretty stunned by those quotes given what we heard from him in Paris I mean I'm not stunned that that is the case behind the scenes but I'm stunned that he's saying that publicly that is a massive shift from Sinner to confirm to us and all his opponents that this is what's going on with him and he's worried enough about it to be well making already some very significant changes by the sounds of things to how he how he trains Yeah it was quite
57:26Catherine Whitaker:interesting Charlie said to us that maybe you know maybe Sinner said too much here afterwards
57:31Matt Roberts:Sort of more than he intended to
57:33Catherine Whitaker:Yeah I think partly it is the difference of an immediate post-match press conference and one like this when he's when he's had a bit more time and i mean also if i was if i was an opponent of yannick sinner the last thing i want him to do is get on top of this you know like i think i was thinking the same i think you could read it as extra vulnerability but it could also be him saying yeah i'm gonna fix this and then you're in trouble i mean i i have to say i
58:05Matt Roberts:look i'm i'm no medic i don't think i don't think it's fixable is it he's trying to sort of do everything in his power to mitigate.
58:12Catherine Whitaker:Well, as he said, to make it as low as possible. Low as, yeah. Yeah. I mean, look, this tournament, the weather's breaking on Sunday, right?
58:21Matt Roberts:Right when DPD ring my doorbell.
58:23David Law:He's wasted his time like we have.
58:28Matt Roberts:Was he also on the phone to appliancesdirect.co.uk? Like us, he will be prepared for the next heatwave. Exactly. reports today that Emma Raducanu has been wearing an orthopedic boot, Clay magazine reporting that and then widespread reporting that she missed a scheduled practice session today. It's not good mood music from Camp Raducanu, which is, I mean, it's the same old, isn't it? It's just this tough sort of cycle you get into where she has a good run. you feel like she's getting something going and her body breaks down and she needs to be able to harden herself to the cycle of the tour. But to do that, your body's got to not break down while you're trying to harden it and feels like she's stuck in this vicious circle.
59:25Matt Roberts:So we will watch that situation closely and we will bring you updates on our many, many shows over the next 18 days. Our next one is tomorrow, which will be as advertised live from Wimbledon.
59:43David Law:Hopefully.
59:44Matt Roberts:The thing is, David, I've decided live from Wimbledon is a brand.
59:47David Law:Yeah. That's right. Yeah.
59:50Matt Roberts:So we are live from Wimbledon, whether we are literally live from Wimbledon or not.
59:54David Law:They do it on No Laying Up, don't they, Matt? Live from the Kill House. Exactly. They don't even live in the Kill House anymore. Haven't for years. No. Exactly. They're all over the country, but they make it work. It sounds great.
1:00:03Matt Roberts:Our show tomorrow covering the draw and any other shenanigans that take place tomorrow will be at 9pm UK time.
1:00:13Catherine Whitaker:There might not be any other shenanigans upstaging the draw.
1:00:17Matt Roberts:I think they'd have to be pretty good shenanigans, wouldn't they, to upstage this draw.
1:00:21David Law:Are there any shenanigans, Math, that you would accept? No.
1:00:26Matt Roberts:Tomorrow is draw day. Is this the most hotly anticipated draw in your memory as a tennis podcaster?
1:00:40David Law:I think it's got to be. Matt's most anticipated is the next one.
1:00:45Matt Roberts:But trying to be objective about it.
1:00:48Catherine Whitaker:Yeah, I think the Serena factor makes it that. And it's so great that it's happened at Wimbledon when we get the one-by-one drawing of names rather than Serena Williams just appearing in a PDF and us desperately trying to search and find her name. Or even happening electronically on the screen, like at the other ones.
1:01:06Matt Roberts:Yeah, imagine if she'd been in the bottom quarter of the French Open draw. We wouldn't have known for another hour.
1:01:13Catherine Whitaker:20 minutes later. Clint in the way, man in the way, trophy in the way. But like the drama every time a name gets pulled out of the velvet bag. Is it Serena? It's going to be great.
1:01:25Matt Roberts:10am tomorrow we will be there in the media theatre at the Wimbledon draw with the velvet bag Matt's favourite day of the year and then a mere 11 hours later
1:01:39Catherine Whitaker:we will have takes people
1:01:41Matt Roberts:we will have had 11 hours to percolate takes 9pm UK time we will be live on YouTube also available as a podcast as always Saturday our show is scheduled for 8pm plan is to be done in time for the football for your sake not for ours you you understand matthew's got a booking at some sort of box park situation that he needs to get to there's not going to be air conditioning there matthew i tell you it's all right they just
1:02:13David Law:throw the beer up in the air and then it just lands on them and they just cool down that way
1:02:18Matt Roberts:it just sounds just terrible anyway we did invite him to watch watch at tennis podcast towers he didn't fancy it had other plans it's all right and other plans and then sunday we'll be back in the evening time tbc but uh we'll advertise it widely uh give us a a uh like or a subscribe at all both both would be great give us a like and subscribe on youtube uh subscribe to the newsletter follow us on instagram that way you will make sure you know when we're going live why are you laughing I just feel like
1:02:52Catherine Whitaker:you've changed the script normally it's hit that like and subscribe button
1:02:54Matt Roberts:I can't pull off hit that like and subscribe button
1:02:57Catherine Whitaker:she will though
1:02:58David Law:when we're live
1:02:59Catherine Whitaker:tomorrow
1:02:59Matt Roberts:I think during the week
1:03:01David Law:you'll be saying that first sentence it'll be
1:03:04Matt Roberts:when I'm less sweaty I will give it some gusto maybe not tomorrow then I'm going to apologetically ask everybody to tap that like and subscribe button on YouTube folks one last thing to do before we leave you live from Wimbledon for today and that is introduce our mascot for Wimbledon 2026 it is a returning mascot it's a fave a real hand on heart fave for me I know I say that with all of them but this is Phoebe
1:03:38David Law:Phoebe's great
1:03:40Matt Roberts:Phoebe the Corgi owned by Priyanka we love Priyanka Phoebe was most recently a mascot for the Davis Cup last year and we know from previous stints that she lives in New Jersey with her people Priyanka and Greg spending her days watching for deer and eating cheese can't wait to find out even more about her this time says Vicky we love Phoebe so welcome Phoebe for Wimbledon 2026 she's got such a great face I do like a corgi god they've got a lot of fur though oh she's in america she doesn't need to worry about the heat wave sorry i just can't get my mind off the heat they do have heat in certain parts of america not this heat david and they've got air conditioning over there okay they take this shit seriously not like appliancesdirect.co.uk get them drag them
1:04:43Matt Roberts:hello to our mascots hello Bodie hello Maisie and hello Roger hello to our top folks and executive producers Greg Chris and Jeff no shout outs tonight but they will be back when we are in fact live from Wimbledon but I did just want to end the show tonight by giving a shout out to somebody that we've worked with and obviously that everybody in the tennis community knows and that is Chris Evatt who has told the world today that her ovarian cancer has returned. She is not going to be in London for Wimbledon this year. She's getting treatment and hopefully getting back on the road to recovery once again.
1:05:25Matt Roberts:It's been a tough few years for Chris Evatt. I've worked with her. I know that you have as well, David. And she's a heck of a woman and we wish her very well indeed. So our shout out tonight is for the one and only Chris Evatt. Get well soon. We are part of the Athletic Podcast Network. We will be back tomorrow live from Wimbledon. We'll see you then.
From the publisher
Catherine, David and Matt are together at Tennis Podcast Towers in Putney as Wimbledon qualifying wrapped up at Roehampton and excitement grows ahead of Friday’s Draw.
Part one (00:00 - 27:10) - Wimbledon Qualifying. We cover some of the main headlines from qualifying including Oliver Tarvet making it through, Dan Evans’ singles career ending, and a big moment for Bianca Andreescu.
Part two (27:11 - 37:29) - Tour Results Round Up. There’s chat about Iga Swiatek losing her first match on grass this season and some positive signs for Jack Draper in Eastbourne.
Part three (37:30 - 1:05:52) - News. We discuss Marketa Vondrousova’s four-year ban, the news that top players will expand their prize money protest at Wimbledon, and Jannik Sinner’s comments about his attempts to deal with the heat.
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