2026 - Who’s started well, and who hasn’t?

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1:06Matt Roberts: Hi, this is Tommy Hayes in Oakland, California, and you're listening to The Tennis Podcast.

1:21David Law: well hello and welcome to the tennis podcast and a huge thank you to tommy hayes there for introducing this first edition of 2026 and if you'd like to introduce the show you can as one of the friends of the tennis podcast subscription tiers just go to tennis.supportingcast.fm to see what we have to offer, including, and this is time-sensitive, so you better listen closely, your pet could be the mascot for our entire Australian Open coverage. Your pet will be mentioned in every show and appear in the newsletter during our coverage of the year's first Grand Slam, the Australian Open. Wimbledon, the US Open, they've already gone.

2:01David Law: So you've only got the Australian Open and running arras if you want your pet to be a Grand Slam mascot. So for that or for all of our other tiers or just to get access to the many Friends of the Tennis Podcast benefits go to tennis.supportingcast.fm We will announce our presenter mascots at the end of this show. Big news, Catherine Whittaker. We're announcing presenter mascots. The big news that everybody wants to know though is why am I presenting this podcast? it's because you are not in Putney.

2:35Matt Roberts: No, it's because it's 2.26 in the morning and I'm in Perth and tennis finished at 1.28 in the morning. We are so back, folks.

2:50David Law: We are. Matt's already had a rant.

2:53Matt Roberts: In ways that you might not want us to be, but we are definitely back in Kansas.

3:01David Law: yes matt thoughts late finishes 2026 edition yeah i mean i looked up the rules halfway through the

3:09Catherine Whitaker: tie being like do you remember they introduced that thing on the atp and wta tour where it was like a couple of years ago people thought maybe we shouldn't be starting matches after after 11 p.m let's make that a rule but let's put a clause in it that people have to agree to it so of course no one ever adheres to it and tennis just keeps going until the dead of the night and there's no No one left in the stadium and it's a dead doubles match that doesn't mean anything. And yet we're still going and Catherine's still commentating. It's all just so tennis. Yeah. Happy New Year, everyone.

3:45David Law: My favourite bit was when Catherine went and actually tried to consult the officialdom in Perth to find out whether the rule might be invoked.

3:56Matt Roberts: Yeah, I went to chat with, I took the issue direct to the top. Matt, I went to chat with Claire Wood, the WTA supervisor, and she confirmed, yep, that is the rule. And yep, there is a clause in it, which states that with the agreement of the supervisors, and if this is a combined ATP and WTA event, so two supervisors were required to agree to this. And they did. And they do. And it's fine. And here we are. It's 2.30 in the morning.

4:28Catherine Whitaker: and and i think that is my like that is my big takeaway from the first few days of the season was like has there even been an off season because everything is the same like you know those those great young players feast and draper yeah they're still injured tennis is still happening in the middle of the night caballi's playing epics zverev's being too passive uh Coco Goff struggling with her serve. Men and women are playing an event together and it's great. If any of this is sounding familiar, it's because we were talking about it just a few weeks ago. There's not long enough for things to have changed.

5:08Catherine Whitaker: So, yeah, that's kind of been my big takeaway. And yet, because you can probably tell from the tone of my voice, I am kind of buzzing that tennis is back.

5:18David Law: It's been amazing, isn't it? It's great, tennis. I tell you, I've only been back from holiday about two or three days. I've had a great time the last two or three days. And if Catherine wasn't trying to find her way through a podcast at 2.30 in the morning, she'd be like we are at sort of normal time in the day. Oh, I am having a great time.

5:41Matt Roberts: A man has just brought me two gin and tonics to my room with that sort of little smirk on his face, like, don't worry, I'm not judging you. which also subtext means I'm judging you a little bit. Yeah, I'm having a great time. Look, I was at my lowest ebb when the dead rubber mixed doubles between Neil Skubsky and Olivia Nichols and Despina Papa McHale and Stefanos. Oh, I've driven myself down a cul-de-sac here.

6:19Catherine Whitaker: I was going to say, I was going to be so impressed.

6:22Matt Roberts: I did it on air for an hour and a half Skelleridis

6:31Matt Roberts: Saccolaredis tall bloke, tall fella tall Greek fella yeah it was a low ebb when that match began but then managed to focus all of my commentary on Petros Sitsapas and managed to remind all of the four people watching and listening that He was once unironically dubbed the hardest working man in tennis by his brother Stephanos. So I feel like I've been able to use my time wisely.

7:06David Law: You have. You have excellent work. Actually, one thing has changed. They finally figured out a way to make electronic line calling a visual medium. By sticking a red light on the net.

7:22Matt Roberts: And it turns out that's just really easy. And they've done it. And it seems really sensible. And it's fine. And there are no downsides. And we should have been doing it all along. And hopefully everybody will just do it now.

7:36Catherine Whitaker: Taylor Fritz doesn't like it. What's his problem?

7:41David Law: He says he finds it distracting or something.

7:45Catherine Whitaker: But to be fair to him, he did say, it's good for the fans. We should do it. It makes sense. I need to get over myself.

7:52Matt Roberts: Oh, good for him. I mean, it is distracting, but it's distracting at a point where it doesn't matter that the player is distracted, right? Because if you're being distracted by it, it means the point is over. So, yeah, I agree, Taylor. You should get over yourself.

8:07David Law: You'll get used to it in precisely four days. He won't be even thinking about it.

8:12Matt Roberts: David, it's the least of Taylor Fritz's worries right now.

8:16David Law: Yeah, he's had an interesting couple of days, hasn't he? Listen, we're going to get into all of this. We're going to talk about all the United Cup matches and controversies. We're going to talk about the early stages of Brisbane. We've got Auckland underway. We've got various other tennis news bits, including a pretty explosive Novak Djokovic statement about the Professional Tennis Players Association. We're going to get into all of that. We've got Igor Svantec on Battle of the Sexes. We've got just general hype. general hype because the tennis season is underway and for once I feel like I've had a bit of an off season I've I've had a lovely couple of weeks without a podcast I must admit I didn't really know how to plug the the podcasting equipment in when we got here today um so two weeks has slightly sent me off kilter but before we get into the nitty-gritty of it all Catherine How long have you been in Perth?

9:13David Law: What have you made of it? What is this, Edition 3 of the United Cup?

9:20Matt Roberts: Well, it's Edition 3 of my United Cup, but I think it's been going, I think it existed before me.

9:27David Law: Is it?

9:27Matt Roberts: It's like the podcast before Matt. We don't acknowledge it, yes.

9:31David Law: Yeah, and there were a couple of ATP Cups, weren't there? Because, I mean, just from afar, I mean, I'm only a couple of days in, and I know that the event has changed a little bit because the first edition, I think, had five rubbers in each tie and seemed to go on forever. This feels just pitched perfectly from afar to me. I'm not a great fan of Round Robin. I'd still rather have Knockout. But just as a general concept of an event that is kind of half Hopman Cup and half Davies Cup, if you like, I absolutely love it where it is in the calendar and how it feels what do you think?

10:13Matt Roberts: Yeah look I hands up I'm here I'm working for the tournament here I'm very happy to be working for the tournament here moonlighting so you know take that into consideration with all of my comments I'll try and be as objective as possible but I feel the same I really love it as As Matt and Charlie and I discussed last week, I think this event is hugely built on the foundation of where it sits in the tennis calendar. I think pick this event up and move it to post the Australian Open or move it to post the US Open, you know, post the Grand Slam season. and I think it is sort of a bit meaningless and gets lost and nobody pays much attention to it.

11:04Matt Roberts: But because of where it is, I think people pay a lot of attention to it and I think it does mean something and it is worthy of that attention. And I think, critically, the tournament is fine with that. I think the tournament knows what it is and isn't trying to sell it to anybody as something it's not. And for me, sort of my enjoyment of it, of these types of events is quite impacted by whether the tournament is able to do, is aligned with me on how I feel about it. And I feel like I and the United Cup are quite aligned on how we see ourselves. So, yeah, look, I love it. I think it's great. I loved seeing Stefano Sittabas coaching Maria Sakharie.

11:55Matt Roberts: tonight and being as invested as he was. I've loved seeing singles players play mixed doubles. I love seeing Andrea Vavasori and Sara Rani take on singles specialists at mixed doubles. You know, it's a lot of good things here that tennis doesn't get to see nearly as much as it should. And it's right at the beginning of the season when everybody's fresh or certainly relatively fresh and raring to go. And you're sort of like, oh, you're so on alert for things that could be new or different that everything, your senses just feel heightened. So, yeah, look, I think it's great. It wasn't necessarily what my internal monologue was saying.

12:52Matt Roberts: when Dispina, Papa, McHale, and I've done it again,

12:59Matt Roberts: Stephanos, Sackleridis, won the second set to take it into a deciding tie break at one o 'clock in the morning. But, you know, highs and lows, that's tennis.

13:10Catherine Whitaker: But also for that hour and a half or whatever, you loved your sudden death deuce. You loved your deciding set tie break rather than playing out the full set. You know, we're very adaptable people to the situation.

13:24Matt Roberts: Yeah, I have principles until it's one o 'clock in the morning and I'm riffing on Petros Sitsapas. Yeah.

13:30David Law: Matt, one of the things that Catherine mentions there is you're looking for, you know, what's new? Does anything feel different, start of the season? And one of the things that I always think about and look for is how do players come out? And is there somebody that looks like they've got a new Lisa life or has rolled back the years or maybe the opposite and is struggling and looks like they're just a bit out of kilter? And how has the offseason treated the various players? You know, and I wonder sometimes, you know, is it configurable if you come into the offseason and out of it with a different approach?

14:12David Law: Has it worked for you? Has it not? I mean, I've got a couple of views of my own on a couple of players, but I mean, right at the top of the agenda, because we're talking about the US having got through to the quarterfinals beating Argentina and Spain, yet their number one male player, Taylor Fritz, looks a little bit out of kilter. and the guy that's beaten him um Baez has has gone and beaten Munar as well for Argentina and suddenly looks like he's playing out of his mind so who who stands out to you who's

14:48Catherine Whitaker: what are your early impressions in that regard well I think you know Taylor Fritz sort of always being on court is an experience that we've had before, isn't it? You know, like we're kind of used to Taylor Fritz getting entangled in some quite lengthy matches. But I wasn't really expecting that necessarily to be the case here with this draw. Like I thought USA had a really comfy draw relatively, you know, with Argentina and Spain. And obviously they've got good players as well. But, you know, Coco Gauff has lost sets today, 6-1 and 6-love, which really, really stand out against Jessica Boutas-Monaro.

15:30Catherine Whitaker: And kind of, as I'm saying, like the double fault problems are still very much there for Coco Gauff. I think it was 14 or 15 today in that match. And then for Taylor Fritz, like it's a kind of health problem that he seems to be having in terms of this knee and this tendonitis. And he spoke about how he wasn't doing that much actual tennis training over the off season. He was rehabbing the knee and he is still experiencing pain with it. And at the moment he's playing through it and that's his plan to keep playing through it. But he said there may come a point where he has to take a break and kind of deal with it.

16:09Catherine Whitaker: So straight away there, you've got the two, you know, two of the very leading players in the tournament, Coco Goff and Taylor Fritz, having got through the group. They both sort of did well to do what they needed to do despite some issues to get through the group. but they're not plain sailing at all and if you go back to last year Coco Goff came out at the start of the season looking awesome in the United Cup and I was reframing her entirely in terms of what her upper limits were and just what a threat she seemed going into that Australian Open whereas now obviously we're only halfway through the competition it's going to be interesting to see how it plays out but right now I've sort of got the same doubts I had at the end of last season about Coco Goff and I've got these new ones about Taylor Fritz because I really don't think that that knee is is sounding too good

16:58Matt Roberts: yeah I I think it's pretty startling given it's the same leading personnel with Taylor Fritz and and Coco Goff I think it's pretty startling how different the vibe is in Team USA this year compared to last year because everything looks the same okay Desiree Kravchick's not there in the background but you know to all intents and purposes the headline things are the same it's those two leading the line it's Michael Russell Taylor Fritz's full-time coach he's there as the captain and he seems pretty good at that role they're back in Perth and yet the vibes are so so different I I sent you I think I was on the plane at the time or at the airport I sent a link to you um you both in our group chat of the video of Coco Goff landing at Perth airport you know they they they post they post all the arrival videos on on their socials the United Cup and I said is it just me or does Coco Goff look a bit miserable and and you very gently kind of put me away with with the reply like she's just got off a 20-hour flight or whatever and you know like And I thought, yeah, God, God forbid anybody judge me for what I'm going to look like when I get off the flight that I'm about to board.

18:23Matt Roberts: I thought, you idiot. But I actually, I stand by that because she's continued to look pretty miserable, I think. I don't, and look, I have present in my mind the incredibly wise words of Matt Roberts that I quoted on air today in commentary. Coco Gauff is never as high as you think and never as low as you think. And I'm very aware that last year I was so taken with how brilliant Coco Gauff looked here at the United Cup and Taylor Fritz. And it turned out they'd peaked too early. You know, they didn't have great Australian Opens, either of them, did they? So I am aware of all of that. And yet I also think she looks unhappy.

19:16Matt Roberts: And that's tough to see. And I don't know whether it's the Gavin McMillan of it all, not him personally, but just the pressure of the biomechanist there and knowing everybody's watching that serve and the forehand, trying to see what the changes are. And honestly, look, there are some technical changes on the serve. The ball toss looks higher. She's trying to give herself more time, I think, to get some leg drive up onto the ball to prevent the deceleration issue. But it clearly, even if that is the right change and will work out in the long term, it clearly needs loads more time to bed in. She was a disaster today, quite frankly, against Boothas Monero.

20:06Matt Roberts: She hadn't won a second serve point for a set and a half. For the first set and a half of this match, she hadn't held serve. Now, it was an incredible, goth-esque rally and feat of will from her in the second set to take it and even make a match of it. But then that made the drop-off in the third, that she lost six love. That made it all the more alarming. And she came back out for the mixed doubles with Christian Harrison. She did eventually win that. But it didn't look like it did and feel like it did when she was playing mixed with Taylor Fritz last year. And it felt vibe central. And I remember doing an on-court interview with them afterwards.

20:52Matt Roberts: And I remember feeling like I had the confidence to ask them some slightly sort of edgier questions. because I felt like their vibes were so good they would take them in the right way. I remember asking Coco Goff how she felt about Taylor Fritz being as chatty as he is as a mixed doubles partner. And I just, I haven't interviewed Coco Goff this year, but I don't think I'd be asking questions like that. You know, it just doesn't feel like that's the vibe. And that probably means she'll go on and win the Australian Open because what does any of this mean? but it's definitely definitely different fascinating isn't it really is fascinating and

21:38David Law: yeah I mean they've both had their own little bout of controversy as well to deal with with some online criticism and I always take those words online criticism with a pinch of salt like why are we reacting so much to what online criticism has to say but that having been said And Taylor Fritz got accused of making fun of Sebastian Baez's height when he lobbed him, which was a sort of celebration that I think is used in some of the other American sports. and Coco Goff got some blowback when she criticised or at least acknowledged how little US support she and other American players get from crowds when they're in other parts of the world and compared it unfavourably.

22:33David Law: I mean, it was just an observation really, wasn't it? I don't think it was criticism. I think it was just an observation that, you know, Aniga Svantec and Hubert Herkacz, as we saw today, got absolutely incredible support from Polish fans or expats from Poland who are in Australia, in Sydney, roaring them on. And that does tend to be the case. I mean, we've seen it with Romania and Samana Halep, the smaller countries where they take enormous pride in their tennis and player successes are there and out in force. And I think Coco Goff made a pretty valid point that, you know, we're a huge country who has huge success in loads and loads of different sports.

23:18David Law: Frankly, a tennis player in the United Cup ain't that big a deal really in America. And so people aren't coming with their chests puffed out in quite the same way. It just doesn't have the same vibe.

23:33Catherine Whitaker: Yeah, and I thought she explained that really well and really clearly. She did.

23:36Matt Roberts: And then the internet happened.

23:41Catherine Whitaker: And then she had to put out, or she felt like she had to put out a statement clarifying her comments. And I think she did that, Catherine, like minutes before she then went on court.

23:52Matt Roberts: Half an hour before the match. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean she was there in the locker room doing the post 30 minutes before. I don't know if she does it herself. But certainly, yeah, that timing's not ideal. and maybe that was a factor in her performance today. Had she looked, I don't know, had I not had, had today felt like a performance in total isolation and a vibe in total isolation, I would attribute it more to that episode. But I felt like today was pretty in keeping with what I've observed throughout the week from Coco Golf, even though she won her first singles match. But yeah, I mean, she did.

24:39Matt Roberts: She explained herself really, really well. But the internet has no room for nuance, does it? I do think the Taylor Fritz one is pretty different. I mean, it's obviously a different set of circumstances. But I do think, look, I understand with the context of that being something that happens in US sport. I think it's an NBA thing, maybe. The whole, like, can you describe the motion that Taylor Fritz did, Matt?

25:12Catherine Whitaker: I could give it a shot. He sort of, yeah, lobbed Baez and then put his sort of hand down quite low to the ground as though he was sort of patting a small dog or something. sort of I suppose it's sort of I think it's used in NBA when someone is sort of too small to be able to sort of block you dunking or something I am not an NBA expert at all but that's my that's my understanding from a quick google I mean I look it's probably not great from Taylor fritz but i but i do think tennis has a bit of a sort of get off your high horse kind of thing here going on like we want players to show personality and be kind of fun and they do a bit of a celebration like that and everyone gets mad about it and like it's it's probably not the best but also like baez and his team obviously picked up on it and i think he was told by his captain wasn't he that that fritz had done this celebration and it it fired him up so look sort The karma came back to Taylor Fritz within the match, and Baez ended up playing brilliantly and doing something he'd never done before, which was beating a top 20 player on a hard court.

26:32Catherine Whitaker: In fact, he'd only ever won two sets in 17 matches against top 20 players on a hard court. This was unbelievable from him. And as you said, David, he'd done well against Munar as well. So really nice start to the season for Baez. And if Fritz has done something wrong there, well he's sort of had his comeuppance by the fact that buyers has has come back at him like i'm not gonna i'm gonna hate on taylor fritz for doing that because i do want people to sort of have a bit of i do yeah it would be it would be uh hypocritical of me if i if i said oh come on taylor fritz you know that's that's really disrespectful i don't think it was that bad i think he was caught up in the moment he was pleased with his lob and he's and he knows about this celebration and he's done it.

27:18Catherine Whitaker: I don't think he was really aiming to be horribly mean to Sebastian Baez.

27:23Matt Roberts: No. Yeah, I agree. Yeah, I agree with all of that. But I also think it was totally legit for Baez to be extremely pissed off.

27:32Catherine Whitaker: Yeah.

27:33Matt Roberts: And I thought the way that he channeled it was incredible. I'm not sure he would have won that match without it. I really don't. I loved the way that his coach, who was also the Argentine captain, like snitched because buyers hadn't seen it his coach snitched on him at the change of ends and said do you know what he just said about you and then he said something about taylor fritz being skinny like you go out and show that skinny guy what a short guy can do it was absolutely incredible and yeah calm calmer in real time um and And yeah, it was an incredible performance from Byers. And I don't know how I feel about Taylor Fritz because I've seen him this evening save or this afternoon.

28:22Matt Roberts: When was it? Time is a flat circle. I've seen him save match point against Jaume Munar today and really create some vibes in that Team USA side and provide a lot of entertainment and some incredible tennis. But also that's not what his knee needs, clearly, is it? Three hours of tennis. Tendinitis is chronic, isn't it? He's going to be... It's all very echoes of Rafael Nadal. He's going to be going through periods of rehab, trying to keep it at bay for the rest of his career, which is sort of a bit bleak isn't it but I can understand given that why he's not desperate to sort of miss a grand slam to rehab it because he's not going to be able to get rid of it altogether I don't think but yeah it's not what you want

29:23David Law: If we continue down the sort of columns in Perth of players who've come out really flying and others who look a little bit short and a little bit jarringly so. The ones that really struck me were Belinda Bencic, looks fantastic, as does Maria Sakharie, who is a player who has struggled so much. I mean, I was looking back at her results a year ago, and she lost both of her United Cup matches in straight sets, and she's not even making those sets particularly competitive. and yet she's beaten Naomi Osaka, she's beaten Emma Raducanu today in a three-setter, raced away with that one in the end. There were some doubts as to whether Raducanu would take to the court.

30:09David Law: She's had a foot problem, but I think that's good that she got out there. I feel like that ended up being quite a good news match for both of those two because Raducanu's probably a little bit rusty, a bit short of match stamina, so now she's got out there and as long as she hasn't had any sort of real reaction in a negative sense on the foot, then that should be positive. Just a word, Matt, on those two players, Bencic and Sakharin, in terms of the level that they've come out with. I mean, Bencic perhaps not that surprising because I think we saw her do it before here. She does do really well in the team competitions, but Sakharin's been a pleasant surprise, I would suggest.

30:52Catherine Whitaker: Yeah, Sakharin has been a revelation, actually, and kind of as Catherine said at the start, like nice to have some Tsitsipas-Sachary vibes between them again, you know? Like I really thought that Sakary-Sitsipas vibes would, you know, carry, you know, like the Australian swing for years to come when I first saw them have such sort of success together at the Australian Open and saw their fans marching through Melbourne supporting one and then the other And I think their sort of decline together really has been a real blow to the Australian swing because there are so many Greek fans and they can bring the vibes.

31:33Catherine Whitaker: And they're two, I think, who really do love being in Perth. I really get that sense from them that they love being there. And it's been good to have that back. And, yeah, Sakri are really impressed. I think Osaka was way short. she would go definitely in my column david's of players who've come out looking nowhere near what i thought they would look like her she's been ill she she's clearly had some kind of uh virus or something that she's recovering from so that's to take into account but her serve was all over the place she looked underpowered and sakari absolutely bossed that match from start to finish and then And today, Raducanu had been such a nightmare opponent for her, having beaten her four previous times and never having dropped a set.

32:19Catherine Whitaker: And she just did really, really well, Sakari. You know, Raducanu clearly is, again, as you said, short. She's not hit much. I think she said she only started playing points a couple of days ago. She'd actually been practicing in the offseason with a Yonex racket rather than a Wilson, but decided to switch back to Wilson for the match so like there's clearly a lot going on there and she's not match ready either but even so i was still impressed with with what i saw from sakari and um i i would really like it if sits pass and sakari kind of just feed off each other at this event and just sort of build each other back up a little bit more uh there's still there's still i think way too many members of the Sitsipas family involved and the vibes there remain 50 of the page the vibes there remain extremely problematic Apostolos was you know sort of interrupting Stefanos's post-match interview earlier and Stefanos actually sort of called him out on it in a slightly awkward moment but Sakari and Sitsipas have got that kind of chemistry together and I just sort of hope that hope that they can keep pushing through it despite sort of all the chaos that's that's going on around them but i'm not massively hopeful it's going to lead to anything hugely meaningful for either of them but i'm enjoying it at the moment zachary has developed incredible sit to pass family management skills like she's really good at being like yeah that's great i

33:59Matt Roberts: love you we're we've you know you're you you're part of my family boundary i've had enough now

34:10David Law: sensation yeah she's so listen that's that's gonna be great to watch actually her process progress because it's been quite sad watching maria sacker with the last couple of years i i've taken no enjoyment to seeing her look so so sad and miserable and lost out on the court and there was a vibrancy to her the last couple of days. There was a real stride of purpose about her as though she finally knows where she's going and that's lovely to see. So she and Stefano Sitsipas have taken Greece through to the quarterfinals because they've beaten Japan and Great Britain. Sitsipas had a real struggle today to get past Billy Harris in a final set tie break but he did it.

34:53David Law: we also had the Belinda Bencic inspired Switzerland going through to the quarterfinals Bencic beating Jasmine Paolini pretty easily and Irani and Vavasori lost in the doubles which which takes some doing as we know in mixed doubles but but that was that was a good a good contest yesterday and a word finally from Perth about Stan Wawrinka who at the age of 40 is in his final year as a tennis professional. He's retiring this year. He's kind of having a lap of honour. He played two fantastic matches, won one of them against Sartor Rindeknesh, winning that in a deciding set tiebreak. And then he lost one of those against Flaviev Kabbali in a match that had a hindrance drama in the middle of it.

35:40David Law: I mean, first of all, Catherine, what was the hindrance drama? And Stan Wawrinka, I assume now is going to play the Australian Open. Surely he's going to get a wild card, isn't he?

35:49Matt Roberts: gosh those are two big big questions uh that you've tethered together there okay we'll try and be pithy the hindrance drama gosh i mean please don't tune out that sounds so boring doesn't it i'll try and keep this short um flavio caballi uh they were he was mid rally with Stan Werenke and a ball fell out of his shorts. Now, the rule is that that's provided it's unintentional. That's called a hindrance by, you know, an official. The umpire would spot it, call a hindrance, you replay the point. Everyone knows those are the rules. It's fine. What happened in this instance was Flavio Caballi knew that was the rule and kind of preempted the umpire calling the hindrance and went, yeah, balls fallen out of my pocket.

36:49Matt Roberts: I know what's happening here. Stop the point. Hindrance, let's go. Turns out the rule is it has to be the official that stops the point and calls the hindrance. You cannot call a hindrance on yourself if it's you that caused the hindrance. Stan Rorinka could have done that. Flavio Caballi could not do that. The hoo-ha about this went on so long. I mean, it was brought up in my commentary this evening, more than 24 hours later. I mean, tennis loses its mind about this stuff. But yeah, we've all learned a boring nuance to an already boring rule in tennis. And there we go.

37:40Catherine Whitaker: And we got to see Wawrinka explain it to Irani on the sidelines, which I did enjoy a lot.

37:48Matt Roberts: That was the best bit. Anytime you can get Sara Irani involved in these situations, they're enhanced. Your other question, David, Stan Wawrinka. Well, my understanding, he's here as player captain for Team Switzerland, and he's helped get them, well, played a big part in getting them through to the quarterfinals. And honestly, they look like a prospect in this competition. Like, Stan Wringer's won a singles match against Arta Rindeknes, a serious player these days. he's driven Flavio Caballi right to the brink and he's got Belinda Bencic in prime Belinda Bencic form my god does she look good and she was awesome in the doubles yesterday Belinda Bencic and I've driven myself down another cul-de-sac Jakob Paul they beat Vavasori and Arani the best mixed doubles team in the world like that's how good But I mean, Jakub Paul really grew into that match.

38:55Matt Roberts: But that is how good Belinda Bencic is in doubles. She doesn't play that much. But when she plays, she's good. And yeah, in this kind of form, she fancies it. So look, he's provided incredible entertainment to the United Cup. But what I hear is that he's asked for a wild card to the Australian Open where he won the title in 2014. He'll need one if he's going to play and what he's announced is his last year on tour so this is his last chance to play a farewell Australian Open. And my understanding is he's not first in line to receive one. He might receive one but it depends on whether other sensations that are ahead of him in the pecking order are able to get their ranking up enough this week to get direct entry and i'm a bit torn about how incensed to be about this because

40:01Catherine Whitaker: it's a it's a thorny issue for you it's a it's a real mind very complicated for me ultimately

40:09Matt Roberts: my umbrella opinion is that this just exposes how ludicrous the concept of wild cards is and how anti-competitive and how institutionalized we all are about what is actually a really

40:29Matt Roberts: quite silly at best silly and at worst well anti-competitive but also sort of it extra privileges grand slam nations to an extent that I think is completely unnecessary and unhelpful. And I think, you know, the bigger take from this should be, wow, this is really exposed how stupid wildcards are. Let's get rid of them. But my other take is, OK, well, obviously, no one's with me in that movement. So I accept that we're going to have wildcards. And if we're going to have wildcards, you have to be giving them to former champions. If you're a former champion at an event and you're still competitive, which he has proven that he is, you should be getting a wildcard.

41:25David Law: I agree. Do you think he should be getting a wildcard, Matt?

41:28Catherine Whitaker: Yeah, I think it would actually be terrible if he doesn't. Like, if you're going to have wildcards, they are for people who are, like, draws and for people who have given service to your event. He's actually won your event. He's played some of the most iconic matches of the last few years at the Australian Open. And I'm not on board quite get rid of wildcards altogether, because I would want Stan Wawrinka to be able to have this opportunity to play. I would want him to have the sort of vehicle to be able to do this. But I'm totally here for quite big wildcard reform, and I would start with getting rid of the reciprocal wildcards.

42:10Catherine Whitaker: And I'm sorry to single them out, but I think it's Patrick Kipson and Kirian Jacquet who have got them here. Like purely because they're American and French and the US, the French and the Australian Open have these reciprocal wildcard thing going on and that is a nonsense. And Stan Wawrinka should absolutely have one of those spots.

42:30Matt Roberts: How is that not like sort of corruption or collusion or some sort of corporate... Like, in the... Doesn't... Come on! Yeah.

42:45Catherine Whitaker: It's outrageous. It's outrageous.

42:49Matt Roberts: They've done it. They've done it. They're allowed to just do a deal with one another.

42:54David Law: Yeah. Yeah. Delighted to be finishing part one of the show on Outrage.

43:00Catherine Whitaker: And also delighted, by the way, that we're back in sensation season. I really enjoyed, really enjoyed Catherine just saying sensations. We all knew what she meant. It was just, it was just great.

43:11Matt Roberts: Yeah, basically what I've done here is I need to, I need to be outraged about some sort of wildcard situation here, but I'm willing to hitch my wagon to whatever variety of outrage will get the most momentum and support. I'm willing to be political about this. So I'll go with Matt's brand of outrage and we'll be in this together.

43:40David Law: Splendid. Well, that's Perth covered in part one. We'll be back to talk about Sydney and all the other tournaments that have been going on so far in part two. Today's show is brought to you by Vanguard. To all the financial advisors listening, let's talk bonds for a minute. Capturing value in fixed income isn't easy. Bond markets are massive, murky, and let's be real, lots of firms throw a couple of flashy funds your way and call it a day, but not Vanguard. Vanguard bonds are institutional quality. Institutional quality isn't a tagline. It's a commitment to your clients. It means top grade products across the board.

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46:00David Law: Welcome back to part two and let's go across to Sydney because basically what happens at the United Cup is they play the first few stages, the group stages, don't they, across Perth and Sydney. and then they move, is it to Sydney to play the quarterfinals and onwards or is that from semifinals and onwards, Catherine?

46:20Matt Roberts: There are two quarterfinals in Perth, two quarterfinals in Sydney. Then there's a fallow day where the Perth, the winners of the two Perth quarterfinals make their way to Sydney and then semifinals and finals are all in Sydney.

46:38David Law: Gotcha, right. So basically, you'll be in Perth until the conclusion of that section, and then you'll come to Melbourne to hang out with us when we arrive.

46:48Matt Roberts: Yeah, via some quokkas on Rottnest Island.

46:52David Law: Via some quokkas. In fact, yes, quokkas. There have been some quokka action, hasn't there, from what I understand. David, there is always quokka action in Perth. And Jasmine Paolini's been involved? Has she taken an acceptable brand of Quokka selfie?

47:10Matt Roberts: It was all right. It wasn't...

47:14Catherine Whitaker: Okay. Was it the distance between Quokka and Paolini that you didn't like? Yeah, it was. I remember you came up with some kind of list of important things to have in a Quokka selfie. I thought Paolini ticked a lot of the boxes, but yeah, she wasn't quite next to it.

47:31Matt Roberts: It was a good Quokka and it was a good Paolini.

47:33Catherine Whitaker: Yeah, there was a lot of open space in the selfie.

47:37Matt Roberts: Yeah, yeah.

47:40Catherine Whitaker: Gotcha. But Mackenzie McDonald you liked?

47:42Matt Roberts: Mackenzie McDonald's is an all-timer. His big United Cup contribution.

47:47Catherine Whitaker: He's getting a great Quokka selfie.

47:49Matt Roberts: Yeah. In what world is Mackenzie McDonald in a big three with Elena Rabatkin and Roger Federer? It's in the Quokka selfie rankings.

47:59David Law: I want to hear that in the tennis quiz at the end of the year.

48:04Catherine Whitaker: And Emma had a car news. I don't know why she bothered posting it.

48:08Matt Roberts: Yeah, now I have been told that there was some tricky circumstances for Team GB when gathering their quokka selfies. They had limited time. But honestly, I'm not really interested in those defences because I know on those Team United Cup visits to Rottnest, they get these quokkas laid on for them. I scrabbled around in the dirt for hours in about 40 degrees getting my quokka selfies. Like, I'm afraid when they're... David.

48:53Matt Roberts: That was such a dangerous comment at three in the morning

48:57Catherine Whitaker: or whatever it now is.

48:59Matt Roberts: I'm genuinely so pissed off

49:04David Law: I can't actually remember them all I've got in my mind is Raducanu's pathetic attempt

49:09Matt Roberts: if you can't remember them David then don't be throwing stones for everybody watching on YouTube I will be getting this up on my phone and producing proof Marvellous Raducanu's was rubbish

49:25David Law: shall I distract you by talking about Igor Sviantik against Eva Lee? because that happened today in Sydney and was, oh, now I'm seeing the photo. Okay, that is quite good. Yes, all right. Well, go to our YouTube if you're listening to this as a podcast and you'll see a beaming Catherine Whittaker with a fairly happy-looking quokka.

49:48Matt Roberts: You can see my scratched up knees from scrabbling around in the dirt.

49:52David Law: Yes, yes. Proper work was done in the gathering of those photos. So, Iga Svantec, proper work was done in her match against Iva Lees. I'm seeing another photo of a quokka now, but that's also quite good. What do we make of... I mean, it was classic sort of first match of the season situation for Svantec, trying to find her feet, but also playing against somebody, Matt, who was playing out of her mind. I don't know whether... I mean, I very much hope this is the new Iva Lees, But even if it's not, that was a snapshot of just how capable she is. What a performance she put up and won the first set.

50:35David Law: It really took a good Svantec to turn that around and eventually get the win.

50:41Catherine Whitaker: Yeah, I absolutely loved this match. And I did not go into it with particularly high expectations because I think Lise had won seven games in three previous matches against Igor Sviantek. For those watching, well, for those listening to the pod, I'm going to be briefly distracted because Catherine's continuing to show me photos of crockers.

51:06Matt Roberts: David's really, really pissed me off.

51:12Matt Roberts: Carry on.

51:15Catherine Whitaker: So, where was I? Didn't go in with high hopes because it's just been a match-up problem for Lise against Sviantek in the past. And yet it was fantastic. It was one of my favourite genres of tennis match, like a great Inigo Sviante having to hold off a kind of peaking, redlining opponent. And that's exactly what Lise was doing, playing with such aggression, laughing at her own brilliance. She was shocked, I think, at how she was playing. There were occasions where she just was going toe-to-toe and hit a winner and literally burst out laughing. She's such a real one, Lise. I think she really, we've had a lot of good experiences doing interviews with her and stuff.

52:00Catherine Whitaker: And I just like her vibe on court. And honestly, she was fantastic in this match. From a Svantec perspective, Casey Delacro said it in commentary, actually. She was giving Lise the ball that she wants in that first set. Lise is an incredible player when she has pace. She wants pace. She wants to be able to turn it back on you and counterpunch. And Svontek was just hitting and hitting and hitting. And Lise was loving it. So I wondered whether Svontek was going to be able to change things up. And she did. She started changing the shape of her shots, looping the ball, getting Lise moving a bit more, taking pace off it.

52:41Catherine Whitaker: And that tactical change really helped to turn the match in her favour, especially in the second set. the third set went back to kind of both players playing really really well at the same time and lise had some great points at three all i thought she was potentially about to be in a winning position but fiontek kept it together and and and kind of did brilliantly but but honestly lise was outstanding like it was genuinely like and i don't use these words lightly it was like an amanda nissim over impression from lise the way she was going after the backhand the way she was taking on Igor Svantec's game.

53:18Catherine Whitaker: It was brilliant to watch. So I want to see more of that from Leigh. She's one of these players, isn't she, who goes out to Australia really early for her pre-season. She's been there a while. She's been training in the conditions. She doesn't like the cold European winter. She wants to get to Australia early, do her training block there. Slightly worrying amount of strapping on her knee already. But she was great.

53:41Matt Roberts: All that time she's been spending with Laura Siegmund.

53:47Catherine Whitaker: so she was brilliant and yeah look for Svantec there were definitely moments when she was racking up unforced errors in that first set especially off the forehand where I was a bit alarmed but I was having to tell myself it's the first match of the season and I think she's still stuck in that zone of trying to unlearn a lot of what she had with Witkarowski and that is just going to be something that we're just going to have to track through through the season whether she can do that a little bit more successfully than she did at times last season. But a very good reset. I think impressive to come through a match like that.

54:21Catherine Whitaker: It's going to get all the competitive juices flowing straight away. And it was just a great vibe. And it came, David, off the back of her catch's win over Zverev, which I know you watched sort of every ball of, I think. So Poland ended up winning that tie.

54:39David Law: yeah and they they they were fantastic poland but but i didn't really expect it would be hubert her catch putting in that sort of performance against alizander's very when you when you consider the guy was playing his first match since june because of knee surgery and and i i mean i remember us seeing matt um her catch playing against chua fonseca at the french open how uncomfortable he looked. I didn't realise quite the severity of the knee problem he was going to have to have surgery for. That sounds like it's been a dark time. When you consider a year ago he was just announcing his new coaching alliance with Massou and Ivan Lendl at the time as well.

55:29David Law: I actually was looking around thinking, I wonder if he's got the same team and Massou is still there. He was in the coaching box. but actually when I was watching this I just thought, crikey, he looks so unencumbered by expectations here Hercats, you know that nervous looking player even at the end I was waiting for him to just sort of wobble a bit and he didn't at all and he was playing really exactly as Alexander Zverev should be trying to play, i.e. standing inside the baseline I realise there's a technical issue for Zverev that he sometimes needs more space in order to wind up his shots than other players do but the intent was to go forwards and every time he hit a serve he's either following it in or he's trying to follow it up with a big shot he's trying to take any chance he can to get to the net and he absolutely comprehensively outplayed Alexander's Verve which which was interesting because her catch is going to be in that draw and nobody's going to want to play against him I mean if he's fit enough you You know, if his body can handle it at the Australian Open and there's no guarantee that it will, I mean, it's a bit of a different situation playing two out of three sets in Sydney as it is to three out of five, maybe in sweltering heat in Melbourne on a particular day.

56:52David Law: But I think it's just another example of how Zverev feels vulnerable against the right kind of, or wrong in his view, kind of opponent playing a certain brand of tennis. And this was hugely impressive from Hubert, her catch. And actually, just generally, Catherine, I mean, I know you've been in Perth, but you've been keeping an eye on what's going on in Sydney. It's just, again, looking at the results and the matches that have gone on over the last week, certain players have not started quickly. And Alex Dimonor was one of those who just started a little bit rustily and lost to Kasparud.

57:31Matt Roberts: It's a tough start to the season, that, isn't it? First match straight in against Kasparud. Usually in an ATP event, you get to ease yourself in. Now, I know that matches against... The fact that you're guaranteed matches against top opponents and guaranteed more than one of them is one of the draws of the United Cup. So it's kind of swings and roundabouts there, isn't it? It's a double-edged sword. But Alex de Menor wasn't quite right in this match, I don't think. We'll see him again tomorrow in Australia's second group stage match against Czechia. So it'll be Jakub Menchik, who beat Kasparud today, Menchik.

58:21Matt Roberts: So, look, that's really tough for Alex de Menor. I know he had flu sometime over the Christmassy season. And as much as it seems like he's saying he feels OK now, I know that that can have kind of an impact on your aerobic capacity. You know, it can really linger. So I do wonder if there's some of that. And, you know, look, Kasparud is a blooming tough bloke to play first match up. But I don't know, the pressure on Alex Demenor here in Australia ramps up every year because he gets a bit better every year. You know, when he was ranked 20 in the world, they were doing road to the title graphics for him at the Australian Open because that's how they roll here.

59:16Matt Roberts: And I, you know, have a have a complicated relationship with that fact because it's it's absolutely it's so silly. But I also feel quite sort of affectionate towards the Cockanackis road to the title graphics that TJ delivers with a totally straight face.

59:38Matt Roberts: And like now, you know, Alex de Minori is now like I don't think he's a contender for the Australian Open title, but he's more of a contender for the Australian Open title than he was when they were first saying he was a contender for the Australian Open title. And, you know, that's two years in a row qualifying for Turin. He does get a bit better every year and that just magnifies and amplifies the pressure on him. I think he deals with it magnificently, but he's a player that is, he's a maximiser, right? So I don't think he can afford to be a bit off. I think being a little bit off for Alex de Manor is a bit catastrophic.

1:00:23Matt Roberts: So look, this is it's one match. We'll know more soon when we have more data points. But I am a touch worried for him.

1:00:37David Law: they did end up winning that tie because Storm Hunter stepped up she she's had that terrible time with the Achilles rupture that she suffered you know good couple of years ago a year and a half ago now and great to see her back out on a singles court I mean I think she was like third choice in the end because because Hewitt's team got decimated but incredible achievement to come out and and be able to play the singles match for her um but that that kid i'll tell you what what you did get in sydney i mean you really did get a vibe in in the the mixed doubles they had in that match i mean the crowd really so into it yeah it was great um

1:01:19Catherine Whitaker: again it was happening quite late uh but but there was a good vibe uh there was a lot of support and And like, I'm so pleased for Storm because like she was world number one in doubles when that Achilles injury happened. It meant she missed the Olympics, which I know was like a massive, massive goal for her. And she's actually going to be teaming up with Maya Joint at the Australian Open, I was reading. And it was Maya Joint who was meant to be playing in the singles, but was ill. And then, as you said, Madison Inglis as well would have been the next in line, but she was also ill. So in came Storm and won the singles, won the doubles.

1:02:03Catherine Whitaker: Yeah, fantastic. Like really good. And I always think it's impressive when an Australia team still manages to perform without Alex de Manor being the leading guy and doing everything. You know, like that's could have been their story in Davis Cup. They've needed other guys to support Alex de Manor. And I think, you know, if they can get through this group, I suspect Alex de Manor will grow into this tournament. He does typically like playing in Sydney, doesn't he? But he needs some help because they've got a tough group there and it's not going to be easy against Czechia. I think arguably Czechia are the favourites there because Krejcikova played in one, two matches today and Mensik has beaten Root.

1:02:46Catherine Whitaker: So you want Australia to stay in though because of what you said, David, about the vibes. You want the home nation to be there. So let's see how it goes over the next few days.

1:03:00David Law: We also have Canada looking very nice early on. They won 3-0 against China with Victoria Mboko and Felix Augiali-Assim combining for a straightforward win. Those two will be fascinating to follow over the next months to come.

1:03:18Catherine Whitaker: fantastic little line in the press conference from Orjee El-Iassim saying that while he was playing that doubles with Mboko he said he was thinking about the Olympics the next Olympics and what they might be able to achieve together I kind of like the idea of him like bagseeing Mboko now being like I'm playing with you in the mixed doubles hands off Dennis right

1:03:43David Law: yeah like brilliant Catherine's eyes lit up with the Olympics mentioned and I think I think we

1:03:49Matt Roberts: might have put the quokka thing behind us I love that from Felix yeah awesome that's superb um so

1:03:59David Law: yeah we're getting towards the the quarterfinal stages of the United Cup our next show will be on Sunday when it's all over Catherine will be finishing up the event there and actually on your way, in fact you'll be in Melbourne by then I think you won't you Catherine? You'll be on your way.

1:04:16Matt Roberts: It's the day before round one of the one point slam

1:04:22David Law: Ah right ok well there you are I like the way your calendar is

1:04:29Catherine Whitaker: working I've got a feeling

1:04:32Matt Roberts: that I might enjoy obviously I'm going into it all with an open mind and an open heart because that's what the one point slam has taught me and I take that life lesson with me wherever I go but I have a hunch that I might enjoy round one of the one point slam actually more than than the final of the one point slam but at least I get to enjoy round two with you two.

1:05:03Catherine Whitaker: Coco Gough not looking forward to the one point slam she said in her press conference no she basically said they made me sign up i'm not looking forward to it yeah but that's what katherine said yeah i know

1:05:15Matt Roberts: i wanted to intervene but katherine didn't have to play i've been in your shoes katherine didn't have to serve oh god i can see why she's worried actually oh it's a nightmare but she didn't also

1:05:26David Law: have that she didn't have the chance to win a million dollars either so um you know got to Put all these things into consideration. So anyway, we will bring you right up to date with what's happened in the United Cup in our next show on Sunday. And we'll bring you up to date with what's going on in Brisbane as well, which hasn't had an awful lot go on so far because it starts a little bit later than the United Cup. But here's a little bit of a rundown. In fact, the first line of it suggests that actually maybe something has happened of note, which is Anastasia Potipova beating Dario Kasikina. And this is Kasikina's first match in Australia as an Australian against an Austrian who's never played as an Austrian before.

1:06:13David Law: So there's a lot going on there. And it was very close. Potipova won it. And there was a bit of beef between those two, wasn't there, in the process of all that. So, yes, very early.

1:06:25Catherine Whitaker: Well, the Austrian who copied her homework. and copied her statement.

1:06:30Matt Roberts: And who played in the Gazprom Open about six weeks ago.

1:06:35Catherine Whitaker: Yeah, like for the draw to pull that one out, first match of the season was pretty wild, actually.

1:06:45David Law: Yeah, extraordinary. We've had Magdalena Freck beating Marketa Vondrosseva in a deciding set tie break. absolutely packed field isn't it in Brisbane Sabalenka, Ostapenko Keyes, Rabakina and Mukova all in the top half of the draw Amanda Anisimova, Jesper Gula and Mira Andreeva in the bottom half and actually Anisimova and Drava is a potential third round match I think in that draw which I very much hope happens

1:07:16Matt Roberts: bit rich from 2-1 first set medical I don't think that's a direct quote but you get the idea

1:07:25Catherine Whitaker: I think it is it was good one

1:07:28Matt Roberts: good one from T1 First Set Medical yeah

1:07:33David Law: oh I love it and in the men's event which is also going on there poor old João Fonseca has withdrawn with a back injury before his first match we've had a win for Daniel Medvedev looking very neat and tidy in a new kit and a new haircut I mean, he didn't look dishevelled.

1:07:52Matt Roberts: Yeah, well, that's a worry. I think he plays his best. Well, actually, no. Some of last year disproved that theory. The theory used to be the more dishevelled, the better he plays. But new year, new year. He always pledges to be a new him, doesn't he, at the start of every year?

1:08:08David Law: He looks different anyway. And look, he's playing. Go on.

1:08:13Matt Roberts: Not to be a downer, but could I just say, I know we're going to come on to this, But, you know, we've covered Jack Draper pulling out of the Australian swing with his chronic injury. We're going to come on to Art of Feast pulling out of Hong Kong and his scheduled comeback after seven months, is it now, on the sidelines with his chronic back injury. and look I don't know how bad this Fonseca injury did but it is but it always worries me when you're pulling out of something at the start of a season after an off season it suggests something longer term like these are the three of the most exciting young prospects in men's tennis and they're all missing at the start of the season with at least two of them injuries which make us all pretty anxious in the long term.

1:09:09Matt Roberts: Like, this is bad. Tennis should be looking at this and thinking, is there a way that we can prevent this? It's a bit of a nightmare. Yeah.

1:09:21David Law: Yeah, for sure. I mean, it's testing even my upbeat nature. I've got to be honest at the start of this tennis year. So, yeah, I can only cross my fingers really for Fonseca. But yeah, you're right. Feast and Draper not playing the Australian Open is a downer. And my only hope is that they're making a sensible decision that avoids putting them back several more months. And I'd rather that, you know, the short term loss. But it shouldn't be like this. It doesn't feel right, does it, that such young players with it all before them are having such debilitating injuries that are not just costing them a few weeks, but several months.

1:10:06David Law: By the way, Dana Medvedev up against Francis Tiafoe next. And Tiafoe obviously with a new team and a new outlook. And so, yeah, it's a bit of a battle of the new me's in that one. So we'll see. We've got Yuri Lehechka, who's defeated Thomas Mahatch, his compatriot in three sets.

1:10:28Matt Roberts: Is Thomas Vahatch just a UTS guy now? When was the last time he did a thing that wasn't UTS? It's been a while, right?

1:10:41Catherine Whitaker: He looked amazing at the US Open for three rounds and then lost to Taylor Fritz.

1:10:47Matt Roberts: That sounds familiar.

1:10:49Catherine Whitaker: And quite worrying that he seemed to be cramping after about two sets in that match today against Lechka, who is the defending champion in Brisbane. I'd actually forgotten that. But he came out of the blocks, didn't he, last year? Hadn't we all?

1:11:08David Law: Sebastian Corder has ruined the narrative of Valentin Vachero. What's the narrative? By beating him. Well, that he might be about to just storm through the rest of the tennis year after his incredible title in Shanghai. but anyway I didn't see that match so I can't tell you too much about it I just know the result but I'm still fascinated to see how Vashro gets on over the course of the year. Good win in Auckland which is a tournament that's also just started with Fran Jones beating Emma Navarro. Fran Jones, British player who's now inside the top 100 Emma Navarro not in the sort of form she was a couple of years ago but that's still a heck of a win and yeah Hong Kong is going as well Feast Out but Marin Cilic still going and has beaten Adrian Manorino gotta love him so that's what's been going on it'll continue going on over the next few days and we'll bring you right up to date with the lot on Sunday's show but that is the end of part 2 and we'll be back with some news in part 3

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1:13:34David Law: Welcome back to part three of the tennis podcast and news involving Novak Djokovic. And he hasn't been on a tennis court yet, but he's been making headlines. And those headlines are that he has decided to completely distance himself from the player body that he basically invented, which was the Professional Tennis Players Association. you may remember several years ago, him and Vasek Pospisal, but really led and spearheaded by Djokovic. He's the man who gave it credibility in the first instance and said whilst he was on the player cast at the ATP that actually the players needed a voice of their own, which was independent, and set this thing up and threw his weight behind it and did the publicity for it and has spoken for years about it.

1:14:29David Law: well he's been kind of gradually distancing himself from it over the last several months ever since the Professional Tennis Players Association launched a lawsuit against the Tours and the Grand Slams and he said I agree with some of what they're talking about but not other things at the time well today he's put out a statement which reads thus After careful consideration, I've decided to step away completely from the Professional Tennis Players Association. This decision comes after ongoing concerns regarding transparency, governance and the way my voice and image have been represented. I'm proud of the vision that Vashik Pospisil and I shared when found in the PTPA, giving players a stronger, independent voice.

1:15:14David Law: But it has become clear that my values and approach are no longer aligned with the current direction of the organisation. I would direct you before we have our own little say here on the matter to an article written in The Athletic by Matt Flutterman which really gives you chapter and verse about the launch of the Professional Tennis Players Association and all of the moves they've made and the role that Djokovic had to play in it which it just brings you up to date and tells you exactly where we've been and where we are now. But whilst I'm not surprised, Catherine, that Djokovic is distancing himself from the organisation generally, I'm quite surprised that he's made such a sort of emphatic public pronouncement on the eve of a Grand Slam.

1:16:12David Law: and, I mean, really put them in a position that is difficult because they've got ongoing litigation, which is serious. There's millions and millions at play. And, I mean, there's a line in Matt Futterman's piece where it says it can kind of seem as though he's trying to have the best of both worlds, kind of having his cake and eating it too, which is to sort of ask the Grand Slams, demand more money from them and more better conditions, but doesn't want to piss them off sufficiently that they turn against him or don't support him in his final years on the tour. It surprised me that he has said anything, really.

1:16:56David Law: I didn't feel that there was necessarily a need for it, but he has done. And it's kind of big for all of the organisations involved.

1:17:05Matt Roberts: Yeah, that was exactly my reaction. it doesn't surprise me at all that he is distancing himself from the PTPA. That's been the mood music for a while. I thought he would just sort of slowly moonwalk away from the PTPA and we just sort of would one day go, huh, haven't heard much from Djokovic about the PTPA. Yeah. I really wasn't expecting him to do something like this and Novak Djokovic is an incredibly smart guy. He's an incredibly political guy. He knows exactly the consequences and ramifications of putting out a statement as incendiary as this. And he knows them better than I do because I think we've tried to educate ourselves on that lawsuit and they've settled, haven't they, with Tennis Australia they settled with Tennis Australia but it's still an outstanding suit against the other slams and the ITF maybe some other people but those are the main ones and look I imagine there is all sorts of stuff going on behind the scenes about this machinations that we cannot possibly imagine and probably don't want to know about.

1:18:36Matt Roberts: But I definitely think that there is nothing naive about Djokovic making this move. As much as we're shocked, he knows what he's doing. He knows whatever ruckus this is going to cause. Yeah, he's accounted for that. and I think it's pretty it feels like a fatal blow for the PTPA doesn't it? It surely has to be. I certainly think publicly

1:19:14David Law: I certainly feel like that is the case I think that PR wise this is just a terrible terrible blow and yet they are continuing we are led to believe with these lawsuits which are worth a heck of a lot of money I mean, for a start, they are disrupting the sport. I mean, you could say for good reasons if you view it through that lens. The Athletic have contacted the executive director of the PTPA, Ahmad Nassar. They didn't get an immediate response to their request for comment. they did though have put out a statement which referenced inaccurate and misleading narratives about the governance of of the organization which they said is is causing problems for them and and and they they're really quite angry it sounds like about about what they're they're accusing of various entities within the sport of doing.

1:20:19David Law: And I mean, it's difficult to know where this goes next, really, because does this empower the Grand Slams and the Tours to sort of turn around and say, right, well, you haven't got Djokovic, so you haven't got much, but they've still got to deal with these lawsuits. So it's going to be another interesting one to follow, and it's probably going to take months and months to untangle itself, I suspect.

1:20:46Matt Roberts: Yeah, I mean, if they've got a case, they should have a case regardless of whether Novak Djokovic is putting his name to it, right? Like it should just kind of be an optics thing. But also that's not how the world works, is it? You know, all of the politics that we know are going on behind the scenes, even if we don't know the details of what's going on, And all of that will involve people's relationships with Novak Djokovic. You know, those will be a factor. He is such a presence and a figure and a power within the sport that all of the various institutions and people involved, their relationships with him and the importance of their relationships with him will be a factor in how they proceed with the legal stuff.

1:21:37Matt Roberts: So it shouldn't matter, but it obviously does.

1:21:44David Law: Yes, Djokovic, the tennis player, meanwhile, he has withdrawn from the Adelaide tournament that he was entered into initially. He says he's not quite physically ready yet to compete, but he remains still one of, if not the most interesting player on the circuit, just as to in terms of what he's going to do next and how much longer he's going to play for, how well he's going to play and what role he might take in the sport thereafter. Meanwhile, off the back of your show a week ago, in which you were talking about the Battle of the Sexes, Iga Schwentek has been asked about that match. She said, I didn't watch.

1:22:23David Law: I don't like to watch stuff like that. I think for sure it attracted a lot of attention. It was entertainment, but I wouldn't say that it had anything to do with social change or any important topics. I think the name was just the same as the one from the Billie Jean King match in 1973 and that is it. She said there were no more similarities because I feel like women's tennis stands on its own right now. We have so many great athletes and great stories to present. We don't necessarily need to compare to men's tennis. It's a totally different story. That is quite strong, Matt. And I mean, on a very personal note, I'm really pleased that she stood up and treated the whole thing around that with the disdain it deserves.

1:23:14David Law: And also stood up for women's tennis as something that doesn't need to be doing things like that.

1:23:21Catherine Whitaker: Yeah, I thought it was a great answer from Svantec. quite sort of quietly scathing and damning. I really enjoyed stuff like that. That was a fun turn of phrase. And then I just really liked the point about the WTA has so many stories to present and we don't need to compare to the Met. Like, that's it, isn't it? That is it. And I think she put that across well. And I don't know. I don't have a sense really of how the WTA locker room would have viewed something like that. Like I'm not surprised that Shiontek feels like this. I'm pleased that she said it. I'm not surprised that she feels like this.

1:24:07Catherine Whitaker: But I don't know about the rest of the tour. It'd be interesting. It's one of those things where I don't really want loads of people to be asked about it because I think it is sort of so relevant that we don't need to be talking about it in the weeks to come. It was sort of hot topic news for Shvantec at the start of the season, so that's why she got asked. But I don't know. I don't know whether you have a sense of how other players might have felt. Like, are people going to be annoyed with Sabalenka or are they just going to brush it off and, you know, everyone will go about their business? I suspect mostly the latter.

1:24:43Catherine Whitaker: But people might be quietly annoyed.

1:24:45Matt Roberts: yeah I suspect there's a lot of quiet annoyance that quite passive annoyance that nobody will speak up about and people will forget about quite quickly but if they were asked privately how do you feel about it they'd sort of roll their eyes and go well you know a man run as a move posted on the morning of the battle of the sexes a picture of herself in a in the nike together everybody watches women's sports hoodie could have been a coincidence could very well have been a coincidence could have been pointed you know she appeared in a TikTok with Sabalenka today like she obviously isn't like I'm never speaking to Marina Sabalenka again I'm so pissed off about that battle of the sexes I agree with you Matt all other things being equal I'd expect any feeling that there is to fade away quite quickly except that Irina Sabalenka keeps bloody talking about this and keeps talking about how she wants there to be more of them and I assume she made a load of money from this one and that's a big part of why she wants there to be more of them and unfortunately she is incentivised to keep bringing this up and keep keep it in people's consciousness and that's a shame and and there

1:26:20Catherine Whitaker: probably are other players on the tour that fall into that spot as well like would think yeah i'd do that for some money yeah for sure um a couple of bits of coaching news grigor dimitrov who i

1:26:38David Law: I know he's been cast in the net a little bit in the off-season, trying to figure out a best way forward. After stopping working with Jamie Delgado and Danny Valvedu, he is now working with Xavier Melis, who's had some experience as a coach, was kind of a similar player to Dimitrov in a way. Huge potential as a young player. Had some results, got to a Grand Slam semi-final, but still had the general feeling of not fulfilling his potential. as a player. I'll be interested to see what he tries to do with Dimitrov because he was a player who always used to have loads of options, but I never really felt packaged his own game that well.

1:27:22David Law: And Dimitrov finally seemed to have done that with the last couple of years. But the body obviously kept breaking down. So personally, I'm not convinced that that will lead to anything much better for Dimitrov, but we'll have to wait and see. Nice bloke that Xavier Millise is. I'm enjoying our new segment.

1:27:43Catherine Whitaker: David takes on the coaches of the ATP tour.

1:27:47Matt Roberts: Nice bloke, but not sure that's going to work out. Any messages from Danny Valverdeau, David?

1:27:54Catherine Whitaker: No.

1:27:55David Law: No, not a whisper. So I'll wait for the tap on the shoulder. Katie Bolter is working with Michael Joyce, which is a move that she said is designed to try to get her back in well hopefully for her inside the top 20 one day she's been just outside it in the past but she's got some some rankings spaces to make up she's had a tough last 12 months in terms of the ranking so michael joyce who used to work with maria schaup over and johanna conta so um That's your tennis news. That's your tennis podcast, the first one of 2026. However, we do have some further news of a mascot variety, because as well as filling loads of episode mascot spots, and you can get one if you want one as part of Friends of the Tennis Podcast, you can get a Grand Slam mascot space at the Australian Open.

1:28:56David Law: but you cannot get a presenter mascot because they've all been filled and they are all filled by me getting Maisie again because Maisie only wants me which I'm delighted about so thank you Maisie. Matt's got Roger back and that's important because we want to Just track Roger's general growth. Enormous dog that Roger is. And Catherine has got a new mascot. And we welcome Bodie, owned by Maxine and Catherine. I believe we have some very exciting news about Bodie. Because Bodie is not only mostly a black lab and German shepherd, also has a touch of

1:29:51Matt Roberts: Bernese Mountain Dog I've scored myself a bit of Bernese yes as Vicky pointed out our pet mascots are now more than one third Bernese and look I love all breeds of dog but I do have a I do have a soft spot for a Bernese And I think it's because I know that I'll never be able to have a Bernese Mountain dog. You know, all the other breeds of dog that I love, which is all of them, feel vaguely achievable for me one day in my utopian future where I have a dog sanctuary. But I think a Bernese is out of my reach because I don't think I'll ever live on a ranch of any kind or sort of a big mountain estate.

1:30:45Matt Roberts: so yeah this is me vicariously living my bernese mountain dog dream through bodie and maxine a 12 and a half year old rescue dog from a shelter in rural maryland mostly black blab and german shepherd touch of bernese mountain dog just a dash spends time with maxine and her family in Oregon and in Todos Santos, Mexico. What a life. I am thrilled to bits to welcome Bodhi into my fold.

1:31:23David Law: Hey, and we will have pictures of Bodhi and Roger and Maisie in our newsletter, which is returning this week. And yes, so if you're not on the newsletter list, sign up. the link is in the show notes and you can get a newsletter every week from us which features Matt's stats you'll get a daily one during all the Grand Slams and loads of other stuff as well so make sure you're getting our free newsletter but that's it for this edition of the Tennis Podcast aside from telling you that we are brought to you in association with The Athletic we're proud to be part of The Athletic Podcast Network and Matt we might have some shout outs

1:32:06Catherine Whitaker: yeah I mean if it were what is it now four o 'clock in the morning where I was and I was doing shout outs I would probably cut this show short so Catherine are you are you ready for shout outs are you are you happy to accept some shout outs or would you like me to save them for next time

1:32:25Matt Roberts: whatever in for a penny in for a pound it was it was the quokka photos that really cost us time I I think.

1:32:32Catherine Whitaker: OK, let's do it. Three shout outs, starting with Dallas Nelson from West Jordan, Utah. Wow.

1:32:42Matt Roberts: Go on, Dallas. That's a lot of great names. What a name. Brilliant. West Jordan, Utah, Dallas. Wow.

1:32:49David Law: Don't know any other Dallases. Oh, actually, I do. I remember a wonderful press officer at the Queen's Tournament before my day called Heather Dallas. sadly no longer with us but a wonderful person and yes part of tennis history there you go

1:33:12wow

1:33:14Matt Roberts: you just never know where you're going no

1:33:17Catherine Whitaker: Dallas has been listening to the pod for 10 years and says even though I listen to a lot of sports podcasts I can say without a doubt this is my favourite one shout out to my three girls Emma, Lily and Nora, who love watching tennis with me, even though we desperately miss Rafa.

1:33:36Matt Roberts: Oh, Dallas, you're our favourite Dallas. Thanks, Dallas.

1:33:43Catherine Whitaker: We've also got Sue Humphrey.

1:33:46Matt Roberts: Hello, Sue. I think we know Sue.

1:33:50Catherine Whitaker: Sue says, I've gotten Sue Barker in the past, which is, of course, a great honour. but I would also happily accept a Susan Lammons as Sue is short for Susan. Same church, different pew.

1:34:01Matt Roberts: I think she had a tough start to the season, Susan Lammons.

1:34:04Catherine Whitaker: Yeah, she lost to Elise. Yeah.

1:34:09Matt Roberts: Still though. Susan Lammons, there you go, Sue. That's requested.

1:34:15Catherine Whitaker: Sue is from Canada, from New Brunswick but now living in Vancouver and says that she has Eugenie Bouchard to thank for becoming a tennis fan. Started following the sport during her run to the Australian Open semis in 2014.

1:34:31Matt Roberts: Wow. Sue and Jim Parsons. Yes. Jeannie Bouchard folk.

1:34:41Matt Roberts: Love that. Thank you, Sue.

1:34:43Catherine Whitaker: And Sue says, David, that she recommends the podcast to every tennis fan she meets.

1:34:52David Law: that's what I want to hear Tennis Podcast listeners take your lead from Sue

1:34:57Matt Roberts: persuade them one by one yes

1:35:01David Law: if you all tell somebody we'll double our audience amazing and then if they all tell somebody how many is that? lots

1:35:09Matt Roberts: thank you Sue

1:35:13Catherine Whitaker: and finally we have Mary Patkus from Freehold New Jersey yes No way. That one, Mary says.

1:35:22Matt Roberts: Oh, come on.

1:35:25Catherine Whitaker: Good work, Mary. And another big one for you, David. Mary is a tennis fan from the 90s.

1:35:33David Law: Now we're talking.

1:35:35Matt Roberts: Mary's ticking all of our boxes here.

1:35:37Catherine Whitaker: Mary sounds great. One of my favourite matches was the Capriati Celes US Open semi-final. But sorry, David, I'm an Agassi fan, not a Sampras fan.

1:35:49David Law: well I've become one in later life Mary you know we all learn don't we

1:35:57Matt Roberts: Mary like Mary Carrillo soon to be Hall of Famer exactly

1:36:03David Law: thank you Mary Sue and Dallas you're all legends thank you Catherine for staying up until 4am for this

1:36:11Matt Roberts: you did well there David to remember the shout out names you did better than me I know

1:36:19David Law: I'm flying

1:36:23Matt Roberts: oh no I'm even further from it than I was at the start of the pod Stephanos

1:36:29David Law: you'll remember it tomorrow it was a bit like Saccharide at the start

1:36:33Matt Roberts: Skelleridis something like that Saccolidus

1:36:42David Law: I'm sure you're right we'll find out tomorrow we'll check it out and Catherine will be saying it right on air. We'll be saying it right next week. Oh, no, they're not out of the tournament.

1:36:50Matt Roberts: Oh, God, yeah. I'll get it right.

1:36:53Catherine Whitaker: No, but they're going to have to play meaningful mixed doubles from here on in, right? Yeah, no, no.

1:36:59Matt Roberts: I don't think Sackleridis will be getting a call up again.

1:37:01Catherine Whitaker: It'll be a six-past Sackery situation. Yeah.

1:37:04David Law: See, rolled off the tongue there, didn't it? And a big thank you to our executive producers, the returning Chris, Greg and Jeff. So we'll be back in a few days' time with another edition of the Tennis Podcast. Do tell your friends and do join us then.

1:37:43Catherine Whitaker: points.

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