US Open Day 2 - Alcaraz wins, but what did he do to his hair??

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1:26Hello and welcome to the Tennis Podcast on day two of the US Open. It is 6.45 in the evening. We're in the media garden and the night session will soon be underway. So the key for part one of the show today is for Matt not to forget that Riley Apelka exists. I've learnt my lesson, I promise. Okay, we will be covering the night session, Carlos Alcaraz and his lack of hair against Riley Apelka. I was going to say, maybe this part one is an emergency part of Alcaraz's haircut. Yeah, we simply had to talk about it as a matter of urgency. We'll talk about that match. We'll cover Karolina Mukhova against Venus Williams and everything else that happens under the cover of night here at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Centre in part two of the show.

2:17But we've got plenty to get our teeth into from the day session already, not least the shock defeat of sixth seed and reigning Australian Open champion, Madison Keyes. She is out 6-7, 7-6, 7-5, a win for the world number 82 Renata Zarazua. Do you regret stopping short of predicting the upset, Matt? Or do you think you've banked enough credit, enough Zarazua credit from last night's show? That's for the people to decide. I will take a smidgen of credit, half credit for mentioning Zarazua. Having just watched quite a lot this summer, honestly not someone I had watched all that much of, Probably someone that I've been guilty of overlooking in draws in the past, but she's caught my eye this summer.

3:07I've watched her play a lot of big hitters, Rabatkinner, Ostapenko, Nisamova at Wimbledon, and I've seen her cause them problems. I didn't think she'd beat Madison Keyes. That's why I didn't go the full way, but I just thought she could be tricky, and, well, I think it was more than tricky. Madison Keyes had a terrible time out there. Yeah. What none of us saw coming, Madison Keys included, was 89 unforced errors. You know, Matt's been watching a lot of Renata Zarazua. We've been watching a lot of Madison Keys this year. And that was not the same Madison Keys that we've watched throughout 2025.

3:46No, it's more like the Madison Keys that we are familiar with periodically, really. Probably an awful lot more often than she would ever have wanted to be in her career. but which she's so often found difficult to iron out of her game when it just feels like the control isn't there. She'll hit a couple of belting forehands or backhands and if they come back and if she's stretched out wide she goes for even more off and down the line and invariably long. And there were some of them that were basically hitting the back wall because she just had no control at all. And, you know, Zarazu was in single figures for winners Madison Keyes hit over 40 but she lost the match because of those 89 unforced errors and talking to her afterwards I mean she she said she knew immediately that she was out there that she didn't feel right and I pushed her on that and asked her to give some detail of what that meant and she said nerves you know I I didn't really think they would affect me quite that badly but but I never really got to grips with my nerves.

4:55And it has been building up, but this was nothing like the Madison Keys, who was free and uninhibited at the Australian Open. She was looking for that, searching for that feeling. She just couldn't find it. Yeah, so often when top players put in a really out-of-character performance, even after they've been depressed, we're kind of left to speculate about what the reasons for it might have been. and invariably sometimes we'll get that wrong because we're not inside the minds of these players. But Madison Keyes has pretty much done it all for us here. She's laid it all out very clearly. She said this is the first time in a while my nerves got the best of me.

5:37She described it as paralyzing. She said I felt like I was just slow. I wasn't seeing things the way that I wanted to, which I feel like resulted in a lot of bad decisions and lazy footwork. and she attributed all of that to nerves. I think she had that heavy strapping on her thigh, which we sort of intermittently do see her with. And I think a lot of people are speculating maybe that the poor footwork was down to that injury. But it's easy to forget that nerves, you know, mental stuff affects people so physically as well. And kind of everything that was going on out there for her came back to those nerves.

6:18and she talked about the mental side of things in more detail. She said, and this was such a contrast to how she was talking in Melbourne earlier this year after winning that title, she said, I've just been feeling like winning matters way too much and I just couldn't quite separate myself from that. And it's that separation, isn't it? That process she went on with therapy that ended with her winning the Australian Open. and she said, look, it's just bad habits rearing their head and that's happening because it's the end of a bloody long season and implementing this stuff, you know, it's a rewiring of the brain, isn't it?

7:01And the more tired you get, the harder that is to do. It was very revealing stuff from Madison Keys. Yeah, it was. I thought it was a quite brilliant articulation, actually, that final point she made of what makes, for example, the US Open so different. You know, like we've been talking a lot, haven't we, about the fact that people on the men's side can't defend this tournament. And we've had, what, 10 different winners out of 11 on the women's side. And, you know, people have been looking for an explanation as to why that might be the case. I think Madison Keys has potentially provided a really, really good one there.

7:40You know, like she said at the start of the season, she's had an off-season, she's had a training block, she's rested. She's able to put her processes into practice more easily. And she's tired, she's burnt out, she's not able to do it now. And I'm sure other players might not be able to articulate it in the same way, but I'm sure we'll be experiencing those same things. What I thought was kind of surprising about this match is that it looked like she'd got it just about under control. you know like the first set she really was not playing well as we've talked about a lot of unforced errors a lot of double faults but she did maintain that quality that she's had all year of bringing it in the biggest moment she saved five set points and I mean saved you know like the tennis was not good but it was really good on the Zara Zua set points she kept coming up with the goods and then she went up three love up a break in the second set and you know I really did think that she was going to get through this one but never never fully was in control of her game never was as she said in the press conference able to get those nerves under control and and Zara Zoua got back into it and actually I thought Zara Zoua played better as the match went on she started to use a little bit more of her variety and Keyes had a very good description of what Zara Zua did it wasn't wasn't complicated she said she made a ton of balls and reset the points and if Keyes was not feeling her game which she wasn't it's kind of the nightmare opponent someone who just making you hit and hit and miss and miss and yeah look I think we've all so enjoyed Madison Keyes tennis this year her presence in these draws the dramatic matches she's played and it was almost just like this was just one too many really.

9:35The whole thing just kind of caught up with her. It was the kind of performance and press conference that makes you wonder how any top player and I say top player because top players play more because they win more. How any top player is able to sustain a level for a whole season. It made me feel absolutely ludicrous for not picking Yannick Sinner to win this title because he's the guy that's had three lovely months off making classical music in the middle of the season. And OK, I know that came with a lot of stress, but obviously that's... If everybody had a mandatory three-month break during a low-stakes period of the season, it would make them better in the longer term, for sure.

10:21I'd already asked a question second in that press conference, and I really wanted to try to ask a follow-up at the end, but the press conference was ended at that point. I wanted to ask, would you consider just building in an Australian, pre-Australian Open type block? Where, okay, you lose points, you lose money. You don't need those things, but maybe you can get back to feeling like you did head on an Australian Open. I didn't get a chance to ask that. Zara Zua was talking, you know, it shows what a mental sport this is. She was saying how nervous she was ahead of this match and when she went out onto the court.

10:57But the difference is, as Matt said, she's playing a ton of balls on the court. It's a different approach. It's probably a little easier to get through those nerves because you're not playing with those fine margins. And, wow, she was cool. I liked hearing from her. And I mean, Matt marked our card last night. I must admit, I haven't seen that much of her. But she played it to perfection. She used what she'd got. and I do wonder whether Keys will ever make the final here really but I kind of feel like if she could maintain the level that question I didn't get to ask is maybe the one she needs to reckon with Yeah, fascinating and while that was happening on the Arthur Ashe Stadium over on Armstrong Stadium we had Victoria Mboko going out to Barbora Krojcikovic 6-3, 6-2 very different type of a match Don't know whether to call this an upset because Barbora Krejcikova is a two-time Grand Slam champion.

11:57And I know there was more to this match and this potential upset than Mboko, than what I'm about to describe. Mboko is clearly struggling with the wrist injury that we saw her struggling with in Canada. But my goodness, are we all, the tennis collective, us included, guilty of underestimating Barbora Krejcikova. come on we've got to hold our hands up to that haven't we absolutely i i think all of the signs were there in front of us you know they were they were flashing bright red like mboko's dress you know like we were all we're all picking mboko through to the semi-finals and right there in front of us was barbara krejikova the two-time grand slam champion and look i think we did there was some logic to it you know like the last time we saw her she was very injured as well she was really really struggling with her foot it's kind of been the story of her career since winning that Wimbledon title injury I think there was a reason why we didn't go big on Kraychikova here and yet when you see her playing like that you realize that I think even when she's fit we probably underestimate her because her tennis is that good i mean pam shriver was on the commentary for this on espn and described it as a master class and it really was the precision with which she attacks the way she just went about dissecting the mboko game and it was it was clinical really it was a it was a dismissive efficient comfortable win for kray chicovo just asserted her authority from the start um and and as you said and Boko was part of it the wrist was was clearly a problem I think I remember after Montreal saying oh I'm a little bit worried about the wrist and so much happens in Cincinnati I honestly kind of forgot a little bit about it coming in here and then you know I thought maybe the decision not to play Cincinnati would end up helping her here you know she wasn't coming in straight off the back of all those matches but she was coming in with a lot of of tension a lot of hype it was always going to be tough to to keep that going on reflection and Kraychikova was absolutely awesome and just good to see that she looked fit and healthy and now you look at that section of the draw and we all picked Mboko because we thought the other seeds in there were vulnerable and really does feel like Kraychikova said what about me and feels like if she Which is very Kraychikova, isn't it?

14:30If she can stay fit, she can put a run together. Absolutely. Yeah, and again, as you said, flashing red. This was so Kraychikova, wasn't it? This match-up, while I was watching it, made me think of Daniel Medvedev saying a couple of years ago in Indian Wells when Carlos Alcaraz walked into the press conference room, oh, here's the famous Carlos Alcaraz. There was a bit of a, oh, here's the famous Victorian Boko about this performance from Kray Chikova. And I agree, I thought she played absolutely beautifully Kray Chikova, and I don't know how much to read into that because I don't think Mboko was able to apply a whole amount of pressure to her.

15:14But it was a real reminder for me of what a stunning tennis player Kray Chikova is. I don't, I mean, technical experts, I'm sure, can let me know if I'm wrong about this, but I don't think there are any issues with her technique at all on either wing. That technique looks pretty much perfect to me. I know she doesn't generate the most power on tour, but she generates enough power, and there's just no kinks in any of it when it's all working. That cross-court forehand was stunning from Craig Cheek of her, and just such a Craig Cheek of a thing to do, to pop up and do that and just take ownership now of that section of the draw?

15:57Yeah, she plays like an old-fashioned player because it's not all whipped topspin. It's arrowed shots into cross-court corners and darting backhands down the line. She hits such a pure ball. I don't think anybody hits it like that. There are players that hit it harder, but my goodness the timing of her game when it's on is just a joy to behold I think there's there's a certain kind of tennis fan that really appreciates watching her just play her game and I can understand why Pam likes it for instance anybody from the 80s 90s like that would would appreciate it um not to say that we can't either but but uh but I I've always loved it when it's in full flight and too often it's been denied really hasn't it she's she struggled to get repeated runs going because of ill health and then she'll suddenly come up and go and win something big so who knows she could do it again here it's muyukuro chijima next uh to face the winner of emma navarro and katie mcnally provided she stays fit i would have korechiva as the favorite in all those matches.

17:11I know Emi Navarro is the 10th seed, but Krejcikova has a higher level than Emi Navarro has available to her. And I'm excited for it. I go in and out a bit with Krejcikova. I surprised myself a bit today because I love Mboko and I was really here for the story, but I just found myself very pleased for Balbora Krejcikova and the statement that she made out there today. we have a round two match between Taylor Townsend and Elaine Ostapenko that has been set up big yes please that's fantastic isn't it yeah you said is Townsend playing someone fun second round your face lit up Ostapenko yeah straight sets win for Townsend today what court would you put that on selfishly I'd love to see it on Armstrong or something like that that we can get closer to and has a bit more intimacy to it and you're more likely to get a packed crowd.

18:12But fairness-wise, you might be sticking that on the big show. Comfortable wins for Elena Rabatkin, Dorek has it keener. Elisa Mertens, who I mentioned because Hannah has picked her to beat Sabalenka in unsolicited predictions news. They don't play next round. I think they play in the fourth round. A way to go. we don't know if Hannah's okay but she did make that unsolicited prediction on the barge earlier yeah it was during the Keys match she wasn't enjoying the Keys unforced errors and they sent her into a big Mertens prediction headspace so yeah I'm going to start mentioning Elisa Mertens from now on and we had an epic win for Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova over Diana Yastrzemska Petr Kvitovi's career came to an end on grandstand earlier.

19:08She won just the one game against Deanne Parry. And Caroline Garcia, I'm unclear about Garcia whether this is the end. It's certainly the end of her Grand Slam career, I think, until she comes out of retirement inevitably. But I think that's some sort of end that we saw for Caroline Garcia today. Lost to Camilla Rakimova. Yes, it is a bit bemusing, but I mean good luck to her you know it's been a good career and if this is it good luck to her I mean I felt a bit sad that Petra Kvitova was playing at a tournament she always used to look like she hated whenever I saw her play here because of the air issues and so forth it's not one of those days today is it it's not the hot humidity she used to hate but you know she's it would appear retiring at the right time because she is not competitive anymore Petra Kvitova and don't want to see that I want to have the memories frankly so I'd have far rather they just gave her a nice ceremony yeah then yeah it did always seem to me like a slightly curious thing that she played the US Open and retired here rather than at Wimbledon when you know the tournament she won.

20:25Can you assume prize money? Yeah and yeah it's not it's not for us to tell these players where they should retire but just in terms of like as a moment I think I think the Wimbledon one kind of felt like it really. Mental results that we've had so far today on day two Jack Draper needed four sets 6-4-7-5-6-7-6-2 against Federico Gomez said I was almost a bit happy when I lost the third set David. Yeah he seemed to just want to have more time on court I I mean, it's interesting, isn't it? We've had that conversation about Madison Keyes feeling a bit burnt out. We've got the other end of the spectrum with Djokovic and Draper, who are probably mentally really freshen up for it, and yet their bodies are just not used to it.

21:14So there's a tiredness that creeps in. He said, I needed more tennis in my legs, and so he wasn't disappointed. I mean, it was interesting him talking about his arm, which has caused the problem in the layoff, and how he's sort of trying to work out how far he can pull the trigger on the serve, how hard he can hit it. He's definitely being careful, Catherine, I think, isn't he, at the moment? Yeah, he said it starkly, didn't he? He said, I wasn't going full out on serve today. I thought he was being a bit careful not to sort of accidentally diminish his opponent I think I thought the impression he was saying he was like I'm going to pull the trigger as much as I feel like I need to on the basis of who's down the other end of the court and he obviously didn't want to be disrespectful to Federico Gomez who played well today and got a set although apparently Draper wanted to lose that set so that was my interpretation of it but it's obviously not ideal that feels like he needs to do that feels that that's something that's in his brain he said it's helping him increase his accuracy on the serve the fact that he's not able to totally rely on just serving bombs the whole time which I thought was interesting he did say it he said he wasn't in any pain today which obviously is a good thing But he also, he was quizzed a bit more on the timeline of the injury rehab.

22:55And he said, ideally, it would have been eight weeks. And the US Open came at seven weeks. So, yes, he is coming back slightly sooner than is ideal. But I guess skipping a Grand Slam for the sake of a week, I can understand why that's a risk he felt like he wanted to take. So, I don't know. There were comments from Jack Draper in that press conference that made me feel a bit down about his prospects and there were others that made me think, huh, okay, everybody's managing something, aren't they? Maybe he's just telling us a bit more about it. He told us about his gut health today and he wasn't asked about that.

23:39Not the first time. He's a very open book, is Jack Draper. but you know he said I wasn't ill and I wasn't really nervous I just have problems with my gut sometimes when I'm a bit anxious yeah expect more post puke Draper I think in the future it worked out alright for him in the past we had Joel Fonseca win speaking of post puke thank you Matt that was going to be my line post puke Fonseca beating Mirme Ketsamanovic. Three tight sets, well two tight sets, 7-6, 7-6, 6-3, setting up a second round meeting with Thomas Mahatch. I was so pleased because I had in my mind that that was third round and I thought, hmm, they've both got to win another match.

24:28It still feels like quite a long way away. And then the draw flashed up, second round. Can't wait for that. I went to his press conference for NSECA, which was in room two, which is not big enough. there's only nine seats in room two he's wild yeah it's not big enough, certainly not big enough for Joel Fonseca and he's just you know, there's no bombshell moment in there but he's got this, he treads this very fine line of confidence and humility with absolute perfection he he was asked about whether he's desperate to play on Ash and get a big stadium The answer is categorically yes. He wants as big a stadium as possible.

25:14Whereas I think we'd rather that match be on Grandstand again. Grandstand feels right for that, doesn't it? Another great atmosphere there for it, wasn't it? Yeah. He was asked a lot about the football shirts or jerseys, as the Americans say, the football shirts that a lot of his supporters wear. and he seems to... I should have researched the details of this, but there are two big teams from Rio and he supports one of them, but apparently lots of his supporters were wearing shirts of both the teams. He was sort of asked about uniting the people of Rio. Oh, wow, that's a lot of pressure. Yeah, I mean, he doesn't seem to...

25:59He genuinely doesn't seem to see any of it that way. He sees only positives from the amount of support he gets. But he did very... He was getting asked so much about football. At one point, he did sort of panic and say, I'm not a huge football fan. And I did think, that is the sort of line that could get you cancelled in Brazil. Brazil turns on Joel Fonseca for shunning football. but no I think he's so likeable and so charismatic that he'll be absolutely fine and I you know been thinking about the Mahatch match and the losses I've seen Fonseca take recently the two I'm thinking of would be Jarry at Wimbledon and Atman in Cincinnati both of those two have had a real ability to rush Fonseca particularly on their serve so Fonseca's been rushed on return I think he's still really learning how best to return and what to do with that shot block it or hit it I don't think Ketsmanovic was able to do that today I'm not sure Mahatsch is necessarily going to be able to do that either he's not got a big serve I think the emphasis is going to be on him to rush Fonseca with taking the ball early, which he can do, but it's a very high-risk game plan.

27:28We've obviously been a little bit concerned about some of the losses Fonseca's been taking, but I do think there maybe has been a stylistic thing that these players have had against him that he's still finding his feet with a little bit. I'm not sure Mahatch is that test. Obviously, Mahatch has got other skills. It should be a great, great watch, that one. He said he feels that much more settled at the US Open because he's just played it that many more times. I think he played juniors here a couple of times. He won the juniors here, didn't he? Beat Lerner-Tien in the final. I think he's played main draw at least once before, whereas he's used pretty much everywhere else this year to everything being new and a first.

28:10So, yeah, can't wait for that one. Francis Tiafoe, straight sets on Ash earlier over Yoshihito Nishioka, 6-3, 7-6, 6-3. Nishioka having beaten him the last two times they played. So straight sets win. Pretty good going here for Tiafoe. Although how Nishioka didn't win that second set, David, I'm not quite sure. No, I went rushing out for the start of the second set tie break because I could see where that was going and managed to get a really good seat not too far away. and really Nishioka, he had set point, he had the ball on his racket, he top-edged a forehand into the crowd and he was so upset with himself and I think actually, in a way, his upset at that moment cost him the tie-break because you could see Tiafoe just kept his pulse rate low and was relaxed and still hitting the ball with feel and moving it around.

29:05I think he realised then, I think I've got him now and he eventually won the tyre break. Pretty spectacular racket crack from Nishioka on set point when he lost it three into the ground and then the third set just wasn't competitive at all and as you say, given that record, that's a good win for TFO. That's one he would have been probably a little bit annoyed about getting as a first round or maybe he's just thinking, great chance for me to put that record right but he's had great results here and I still think he will feel he should have reached the final a year ago against Taylor Fritz and he couldn't quite get over the line there but he still believes that this tournament TFO's capable.

29:49Yeah and I do wonder how motivated he is by Ben Shelton taking over from him as being kind of the American man this year. I know they've got a few of them and Taylor Fritz is still there but if the Americans fans I think had to pick out one guy that they both think will succeed and maybe even want to succeed I do wonder if Ben Shelton would edge it this year I know they're mates, Shelton and Tiafa and I'm sure there's no kind of bitterness there but I do wonder if there's just an extra edge of motivation if it were needed Holger Runa managed to avoid trouble when have we ever said that before?

30:33against Bertik van der Zanschel because he was right on the precipice of, I think, some quite serious trouble at two sets to love up in this match on Grandstand. He looked really ill. Bertik looked like he didn't want to be there, which is, you know, Bertik right in the sweet spot. He was starting to really middle the ball. And, yeah, I felt like Runa really could have got knee-deep in some trouble he didn't want to be in. and he actually managed to skirt around it for once, Matt. Yeah, he did. He was two sets and I think a double break up and then ended up in a third set tie break. Look, I think we were all thinking we are heading out to Grandstand if he loses this tie break because that could very much have got really, really difficult for him.

31:24He lost from two sets up against Jarry at Wimbledon, didn't he, in his last slam. that may well have happened again today so he did well to steady the ship in that third set tie break but yes, he didn't look comfortable out there he had the medic on at the end of the second set it was hotter today, wasn't it? it's cooled down a lot now maybe that's why he went sleeveless, Holger he did, yes he's trying to get in on the sleeveless act good luck, Holger, good luck Another retirement from Sebastian Korda today. He might be a new cursed player, Sebastian Korda. So Cam Norrie through to round two. David, you watched a bit of Flavio Caboli winning against yet another talented Italian.

32:14They're crawling out of the woodwork. I mean, you can't move for these Italians. Yes, I forget his first name. Pissarro is his surname and yeah it was I was really expecting I mean I've got Caballi going through to the quarterfinals in this in his section of the draw and and he was in some trouble here when when it was leveled at two sets all and it was close in the fifth as well I mean it's it's it's adjacent to where we are right now sitting outside the media center there's courts four five and six just just a few meters away and the first thing that struck me when I went out there I mean it was absolutely packed and that's where six foot seven comes in handy because I was able to see over everybody's head but what really struck me was the wind and how difficult it must be to control that ball when you're taking cuts at it the way these two guys are and we're sitting here now I mean it is blustery it's blowing all over the way place different directions and it was it was challenging for them both Flavia Panetta was was out there she She sort of stayed until she realised one of these guys was going to actually win and the other one was going to be disappointed, I got the sense, and she didn't want to see that bit, and so she left.

33:31But, I mean, I turned up and Pissar didn't win another game. It was 3-0. He suddenly lost his timing and he started hitting double faults. Caballi just that bit more experienced, I think. And he's got away with one a little bit there, I think, Caballi. and I still think he can have a real run in this tournament. David, the Kabbali believer, always. I do like Kabbali. He's got Jenson Brooksby next. Yeah, and that's not easy. He was five sets, I think, today. Yeah, 6-4 in the fifth for him over Alexander Vukic. Coleman Wong won today. Alex Kovacevic for him, so continuing the run. I was just going to say, a real theme of this tournament so far is players from countries that are not normally that well represented in tennis.

34:21Yeah, from Hong Kong. Wong from Hong Kong. We had Zarazua, Mexico. We've got Cheng from Indonesia. Ayala, the Philippines. It's really, really been a theme of these first couple of days. It's really good to see. It feels apt somehow it's happening here because it is just by far the most diverse slam, isn't it? It's so notable. and it feels you feel it out there at the courts when they're those players are playing that they have their their own with them they're the the expats or what the the local community that of people from their nation are right there and and just lapping it up loving having a player to support it's great to feel that last result i wanted to mention from uh from the day session And Alex Mickelson is out to Comissania.

35:10And, I mean, that's disappointing from an American point of view, from a Mickelson point of view. Obviously, we were kind of keeping an eye on after his big win in Australia over Tsitsipas. And the rest of his season so far hasn't really lived up to that at all. But it's also a tricky opponent removed from Novak Djokovic's section of the draw. He was one of those Americans that was kind of on Djokovic's scheduled route. Although Matt's a Comissania fan, so maybe that's not an obstacle removed for Djokovic at all. Yeah, I think he's a very talented player. I would say he's more dangerous on the clay.

35:49But I think I'm right in saying that Comissania plays Norrie. Is that right? And Norrie, as a potential third-round opponent, leans into David's theory of make it physical against Novak Djokovic. Look, I don't think Cameron Norrie is going to beat Novak Djokovic, but like there's one thing he's got you know it's those lungs it's those lungs big pair of lungs right that's it for your day session roundup let's go and watch the night session just before we do that a bombshell to leave you all on you david and matt and the listener on you ready for this I've got the scoop on the Alcaraz haircut via the US Open Instagram account oh yeah it's is it a mistake?

36:42it's a mistake I mean we could see that he said I had a haircut that I struggled with and I had to start fresh oh so there was a worse haircut there was a worse haircut than this one somebody needs to get the scoop on that one to eliminate. Wow. What do you think he had? I don't know. And do you know who got this scoop out of Carlos Alcaraz? Rory McIlroy. Oh, it was worth him coming to the US Open then. Rory McIlroy, back at the US Open for the second day in a row, goes to have a conversation with Carlos Alcaraz. Obviously, you have to mention the hair. So poor Rory McIlroy. Because Rory's had quite a severe haircut as well.

37:27Yeah, not as severe. I think Sevilla has been redefined by Carlos Alcaraz tonight. So Rory in the awkward situation, can you imagine being filmed in a sort of having to comment on somebody's new clearly bad haircut? Yes, he told him it looked good. Wow. With a bit of conviction. He said, I just got a haircut that I struggled with. I mean, I had to start afresh. and Rory goes, yeah, good, I like it, I think. It's just what you want to hear. And then they start talking about golf swings. So, should we go watch Carlos Alcaraz? Let's see if we can recognise him. That's it, but we'll be back in part two.

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40:26Welcome back to part two of the Tennis Podcast, where it's now half past midnight. We're back at Tennis Podcast Towers, and we have watched wins on the Arthrasch Stadium in the night session for Carlos Alcaraz over Riley Opelka and Karolina Mukova in three sets over Venus Williams. Turns out skinhead Alcaraz might be on to something. He was damn good tonight. Locked in. All business. Particularly first set in which he didn't lose a single point on serve. That was pretty astonishing. 85 % of his first serves in. And that's what we were asking for, really, wasn't it? From an Alcaraz perspective, come out, concentrate, get your serves in and see where you are.

41:17And what that revealed is that Riley Opelka's return is not up to much. It's not what you need. I mean, he got it going in the second set a bit. Alcaraz had his little wonder, sort of mind-wise. But look, I think that should be a very satisfactory day's work for Carlos Alcaraz to come through in straight sets against a guy of nearly seven foot tall with that serve. Yeah, it was notable really early how many returns Alcaraz was putting in play. And really playing with his return position, you know, he would stand in to receive the first serve. and then he'd go on a little walk, actually quite a long walk, to literally the back of the Arthur Ashe Stadium, as far back as he could go, back there with the ball kids, to return the second serve.

42:13And he started doing that and then occasionally would come in on the second serve as well, just giving Apelka a lot of different looks, making a lot of returns, and he just grabbed the one break that he needed in that first set. And he was, as David described, rolling through his own service games. I thought the rhythm on his serve in that first set in particular was brilliant. I really liked how quick his motion was. He wasn't pausing at all during it. It seemed like there was a real flow to that serve tonight. And, yeah, the sort of one break in each set was what he ended up requiring. So a very, very efficient Alcaraz performance tonight, exactly the kind that he would have been looking for against, yes, an opponent who didn't play particularly well, but has that singular threat.

43:06And Alcaraz just neutralised it really impressively. Yeah, I mean, on reflection, kind of the dream first round draw for Carlos Alcaraz. Like, what an excellent sharpener for him. Yeah, that's true. and actually he needs to now hold on to that because he's had to start at a high level. I mean, I think quite a lot of grand slams we've seen him play indulgent first round matches against flashy players and then he gets embroiled in all that because there's no real threat and he ends up looking sloppy. Well, he wasn't sloppy tonight because I think in his mind he couldn't afford to be And that's, I don't know how you prepare your mind for that, really.

43:52I don't think, he doesn't seem to be able to trick himself into doing it unless there's a real threat there. It's real grist to the mill for the lads it's Bertic theory, isn't it? Big time, yeah. Like, as we've often described, when he plays Sinner, there's a different energy about him. You know, he's obviously loving that rivalry, but he knows he has to be good. And, you know, in the last year or so of their rivalry, he's had the better of it, and he's generally played really well in those matches. And I'm not saying Riley Opelka was like Yannick Sinner, but just that idea of, okay, this guy's a problem, I need to do this well, I need to lock in, I need to focus, rather than, lads, it's poetic.

44:42and someone who he doesn't quite have those feelings against. So, yeah, very promising signs for Alcaraz. His next opponent is Balucci, who might fall in the category of causing Alcaraz's mind to wander, given his penchant for flashy shots. And he won't want to be outflashed. Absolutely not. Could be fun, though. I hope so. I feel like I often learn quite a lot when I'm going through the Getty images for a match and I'm looking for a thumbnail for our YouTube, our show going up on YouTube every night. And I don't always learn something, but I've just been through all the Carlos Alcaraz shots because now, of course, all past Carlos Alcaraz photos are out of date.

45:35Yeah, because it looks totally different. He's caused an absolute nightmare for VT producers everywhere. And these ones won't last very long. No, because his hair will grow so quickly, which is probably a relief to him right now. Although, maybe not. Maybe he'll stick with this. Yeah, it's striking to me, looking through all of the photos, that even though he was so locked in tonight, his face looks really relaxed. Really, really relaxed. for a first round of a Grand Slam. We know he can sometimes really feel it. I know particularly at Wimbledon, he did talk about that at Wimbledon and that is, you know, that's Wimbledon.

46:16But I do think generally, he's talked a lot about how prone he is to nerves and I'm sure he felt them tonight, but there's a real relaxation to his face, even though he also looks totally dialed in and now with the new hair, sort of vaguely terrifying. You know, I've got a little theory about the hair being good news for him. Because this may be just my imagination running wild, but I could imagine that will help focus him. He's just shaved all his hair off. He looks in the mirror. He says, I'm ready for the US Open. I'm ready to win this thing. This is my US Open haircut. And every time he looks in the mirror, he's ready to go.

47:02I could believe it. except we know that it wasn't intentional and he was also on the practice court in a cap so he's obviously a bit self-conscious about it and francis tiafo is well been extremely mean about it very rude in a like i'm sure enough like they're mates aren't they i'm sure al grouse you know he's already commented on the the video that the us open have posted of the the press conference clip, you know, he's taking it all well. But he was clearly a bit self-conscious about it. And having Francis Tiafoe go before the world's media and say it looked terrible and horrible all in the same sentence.

47:47And horrendous. Yeah. Pretty brutal. Pretty brutal. Anyway, he's never won a Grand Slam in a sleeveless outfit, Alcaraz. It's a good colour, isn't it? Really good colour. I liked the aubergine. Yeah, and different to the one that I was expecting to see him in. I wonder whether this was the night version. Yeah, I think the advertised one, the brighter pink, might be a day session. It also looks different on the TV, I felt. When I looked on the screen, even in the stadium, and then looked down at him on the court, it's a different shade that comes through. But, oh, I loved it. It's interesting you're describing him as sort of looking, sort of vaguely terrifying and i only when he wasn't standing next to riley apelka then he looked like a child because i always felt like sort of alcaraz's look has kind of mirrored his his game you know in that there's kind of like a hardness to it a power to it you know he's incredibly strong he's incredibly muscular but he's but there's also sort of a softness as well i think when his hair is long like that and his and his face he can kind of disarm you whereas with the shaved head the sort of softness is gone and i suppose that kind of leans into david theory there about sort of just a sort of readiness feel to him the sort of coming to get your feel is it a far free feel Maybe.

49:19Absolutely no time spent on your hair. What a world. I cannot imagine what that must feel like. He, yeah, as you said, he has Mattia Bellucci next, which I imagine will be a very different match. Yeah, and it's a good test for the theory of business-like efficient tennis because Bellucci is exactly the sort of guy who could embroil him in an indulgent shop-making match. the likes of which I very much expect Carlos Alcraz to win, even regardless of whatever he gets himself into, but which could bring out the sloppiness. And I think he needs to try to steer clear of that. As much as it would be fun, and whoever's got tickets for that night are probably going to have the time of their lives.

50:08All day. All day, yeah. If you're Alcraz, and if you're Juan Carlos Ferreira, and anybody who's supporting Alcraz, You know, you want him to, if you want him to rip through this draw, you want him to just sort out Bellucci in no time. We will see. That'll be in a couple of days' time. Who can say? With round one over three days, anybody could be anywhere in this draw. I'm not going to commit to saying when anyone is playing until we've got through the second round. All a bit of a nightmare. Right, just a few other men's results for you before we move on to Venus Williams and Karolina Mukova. Kaspar Rude beat Sebastian Ofna comfortably 6-1, 6-2, 7-6.

50:52Karin Hashanov again beat the curse of Tennis Podcast Meets. He got the better of Nishesh Basavaredi, 6-7, 6-3, 7-5, 6-1. Watched a bit of this on the screen. I still really believe in the talent of Nishesh Basavaredi. I mean, Hashanov is a really tough out over best of five. and he loves these courts, doesn't he? So it doesn't surprise me that he came through in the end, but he's such a smooth tennis player, passive ready. If you get the chance to watch him, I would recommend it, although he did lose today. Moving on to the women and the match of the night, the headline match, Karolina Muka in Muka beating Venus Williams 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 in the match that everyone hoped it would be, and certainly the USDA hoped it would be, when they gave Enos Williams this wildcard and scheduled her to play first up in the night session in the prime time slot.

51:54Yeah, if you think it's a couple of years ago when she was playing Wimbledon and there was concern over how her match would look, and I think that might have been when I came out with the Jasmine Paolini would be a good draw line for her and how well that went. And actually, when you look at her results at the US Open, she had lost eight sets in a row at the US Open, and the last one she'd won was six years ago. And the most recent match she'd had at the US Open, on that Arthur Ashe Stadium court, she lost 6-1, 6-1 to Griet Minnan and played nothing like how she played tonight. Tonight, she was a force.

52:39Even in the sets that she lost, the first set that she lost, it was really double faults and a slow start that was her undoing. She then managed to get back on serve, having it been broken initially. In the second set, she was hitting the living daylights out of the ball, hitting it so sweetly. The woman is 45 years of age, And she's playing a top player in Karen Namuka who knows where to put the ball, who's 29 years of age. I mean, I just find it astonishing the level that Venus Williams was able to produce tonight. And, you know, she recently revealed a diagnosis that she'd been given for uterine fibroids.

53:22and she talked about how she'd been misdiagnosed for years and a year ago she'd been having surgery for it, a serious surgery. And she was really emotional at the end of her press conference tonight talking about how she proved to herself what she can do when her health's good or not in her mind the whole time and holding her back. And I found that very moving watching it. And I thought, goodness, that is a hell of a performance to come out there tonight and kind of expose her game to the world one more time. Whether she'll do it again, who knows. But we're talking about somebody who's been playing for more than 30 years.

54:10She played her first match as a kid. and here she is at 45 putting up a really serious performance on the Arthras Stadium court. I thought it was fantastic. Incredibly powerful and the fact that she's talked about that as well. I mean fibroids are incredibly common and so often misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all. They're not always painful or harmful. They don't always require surgery in the way that Venus is required But as with so much of female specific medicine, it is under researched and under diagnosed and and undertreated and under understood, under understood. Wow, it really is late.

55:00But yeah, well done, Venus Williams on on all fronts. And yeah, OK, she's she's not as quick around the court as she was 10 years ago. But if you didn't know she was 45, I don't think you would remark upon her slowness around the court. She, you know, I feel like there are there are equivalently athletic players in their 20s out there. And I don't know if she'd be able to sustain that match after match. Well, you know, who knows? It doesn't matter. But like it was extremely competitive out there today. And, yeah, that was so impressive. And the sweetness of the strike was incredible. That will never go away, I don't think.

55:49Like, it's such a mighty strike of the tennis ball that she has. There was a dry volley early in the second set that just rocked me back in my chair in the media centre. And then when I was out there in the third set, there was one forehand that she just absolutely leathered um beautiful to see that and yeah i feel like that's as good a tennis as a 45 year old has ever played like it was unbelievable and it's it's sort of it's sort of beautiful because it defies what we think and what we know and what we say about aging you know like she's like venus is better now than she was two or three years ago as you said like she's playing better tennis despite being that bit older because she's she's healthier and her serve kind of let her down today i think her serve was actually a shot that i really felt was working really well for her when she played her first match a few weeks ago um but actually was you know it was kind of a problem for her today it was quite a lot of double faults and just generally quite erratic but from the back of the court the way she was middling the ball off both forehand and backhand was just a joy to watch and you know she shared quite a content look on her face I thought as she left the Arthur Ashe Stadium and she and she took in the crowd and she said in the press conference she lost but she was proud of her performance and I think that's ultimately why she's why she's still playing right like she's still got something to give and you know she feels like due to health in the last few years she's not been able to give that but she can now and she's here I don't think she's going to be travelling internationally by the sound of things to play to play again maybe but it seems unlikely maybe Wimbledon if she were if she were fit, but it wouldn't surprise me if she pops up at an American event next year again.

58:05I bet she'll just pop up. I think it's definitely possible. With very little explanation, she'll pop up, be fun, and pop back down again, and that'll be fine. Yeah, she'll be back in orbit. Can I just have a little moment to talk about the completely unnecessary ceremony that happened between matches on the Arthur Ashe Stadium tonight? so it was a long first match which was late onto court don't advertise a 7 p.m start if you know damn well things aren't really starting until 7 30. so it's 9 30 p.m and they start rolling out a red carpet on the arthur ash stadium and there's a best of five set match to come which for all they know could have been four and a half hours long it's riley pelker and carlos alcaraz out comes the carpet oh out comes a podium out comes a committee of of of people kim kleister's is in it and they they start doing a an international tennis hall of fame presentation look which is which is fine i i realize that that a hall hall of fame halls of fame are a big deal here in a way that us brits don't quite get i respect it it's a very american thing for us but i i get that it's it's a big deal and it matters and good good luck to it brilliant but we had the ceremonies every everybody has seen the ceremony taking place at the international tennis hall of fame in newport rhode island big fanfare don't know if you saw serena williams was there all over the internet they got their rings the speeches were made it was a big deal they decided to do it again tonight Presumably they all had to give the rings back so they could be re-presented with them, so they could do more speeches and hold up the whole evening.

59:58And this time we didn't even get Serena Williams. I found it all totally indulgent and baffling and there just isn't space. Tennis does not have space for faff like this. You can't be having a best of five and a best of three set match in a session that starts at 7.30pm if you also want to have a load of ceremonies in it. Tennis seems to be really keen on ceremonies at the moment and intent on forcing more ceremonies into the party. I'm not a fan of that, but if that's what tennis wants to do, fine. Something has to give. We can't keep playing best of five sets. Stop just adding more shit in when nobody's adding more time to the day.

1:00:46It's quarter to one and it was a straight sits match? Absolutely. Abso-frigging-lutely. Think of the podcasters. At one point, they ran a VT on the big screens, which was a highlight reel of the ceremony that took place two days ago elsewhere.

1:01:08Absolutely outrageous. And then there was about a 10-minute DJ set after that finish, before the players actually came out onto court. I quite enjoyed that bit. Yeah, look, the DJs are great. And in fact, the DJ was clearly an Alcaraz fan because he played a lot of Bad Bunny tonight. Didn't he play Bad Bunny during the warm-up? And I thought, this man is not an Opelka guy. OK, that's the night session on Ash. Elsewhere in the women's late matches, Mira Andreva demolished Alicia Park. Six love, six one. she said her goal for 2026 is to learn to drive in the on-court interview afterwards it's a very achievable goal very achievable I think what else we've got Anna Bondar beat Alina Svitolina 6-2, 6-4 we didn't get the chance to see much of this but it did not look like Svitolina was right in this match and certainly the scoreline there suggests so as well and it could have been even more one-sided because Bondar served for it once and got broken back got a bit nervous at the end there.

1:02:14But yeah, you're right. Svitolina, I watched a little bit of it at the end and she just looks really miserable out there. Hope all is okay in the world of Alina Svitolina. Right, that's it for part two. We'll be back in part three to look ahead to tomorrow. AI is only as powerful as the platform it's built into. That's why it's no surprise that more than 85 % of the Fortune 500 use the ServiceNow AI platform, While other platforms duct tape tools together, ServiceNow seamlessly unifies people, data, workflows, and AI, connecting every corner of your business. And with AI agents working together autonomously, anyone in any department can focus on the work that matters most.

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1:03:42Welcome back to part three of the tennis podcast, where we turn our attention to day three of the US Open. Let's open the order of play. Of course, this has been out for more than 48 hours, so you probably know it by now, but let's go through it anyway. We have Emilia Arango to take on Igor Shvontek, first up on the Arthur Ashe Stadium starting at 11.30. Now, apparently the 11.30 start is to make sure the night session starts on time. I'll just let everyone sit with that for a moment. It's to make sure the night session starts on time. Second on the Arthur Ashe Stadium is Yannick Sinner against Vit Kopriva.

1:04:23Night session starting at an advertised 7pm. I feel quite confident the night session is going to start on time tomorrow. Yeah, except, I mean, no, I feel quite confident the United Session can start on time tomorrow, but inexplicably still won't. Scheduled at 7pm, Isla Tomljanovic against Coco Gough. Does anyone want to make a prediction there? Yeah, I think Coco Gough's going to win. I'm fascinated to see what Gough's serve looks like. Yeah, that will be really interesting. Is it suddenly going to be a new motion in the space of a week? trying some stuff out? Is she going to be saving that for the practice court at this stage?

1:05:04I really don't know. I wouldn't be surprised with either of those things really. Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if she lost in straight sets tomorrow and I wouldn't be surprised if she won the whole tournament. Yeah, that's pretty much where I'm at as well. Second on Ash tomorrow, Alexander Zverev against Alejandro to below. Armstrong starts with Lorenzo Mazzetti against Giovanni Mpeci Pericard. Second is Amanda Renesimova against Kim Birrell. Nowhere Matt will be. Around about 1pm tomorrow. I'm parking myself on Armstrong for the day session tomorrow. Night session is Grip Minnan against Naomi Osaka and second on Elmer Moller of Everyone Talks About His Backhand fame against Tommy Paul.

1:05:56I think they played at the French Open, didn't they? They did, yeah. I think Moller won a set. Grandstand tomorrow opens with Katie Bolter against Marta Kostiuk. Those two are in the very open section of the draw, aren't they? I feel like there's a real opportunity for Marta Kostiuk here. And look, you would have said Katie Bolter, except that she's in not a good vein of form at all. Second one is Alexander Bublik against Marino Cilic. You've got Ashton Kruger against Sophia Kennan, third on. And Chris O 'Connell against Alex de Menor, fourth on there. Daniel Collins is on Stadium 17. Hayley Baptiste against Katerina Siniak over the final match on 17 tomorrow.

1:06:40That's probably the tip of the outside court matches, unless you'd like to highlight any others. Matt Siegmund against Schneider, if you've got three hours to fill. maybe more we've got the tennis podcast meets Derby Frank Jones against Ivalice court six that gives me complicated feelings I might need to avoid it altogether just find out one at the end I'm sure I can emotionally cope with that Sitsa Pass is you know we were talking about him being in the interview area well he's out on court seven goodness me he'll be posting a map to that against Muller I think that's a really, really intriguing match.

1:07:24You know, I think, you know, the bookies probably have sits past the favourite there, but... He's never even done anything here. No, even in his peak, he found this tournament hard. He always was a first half of the season guy, wasn't he? You know, Australia, Duell, Frank Chopin, McLeod. But, yeah, he did always struggle here. Yeah, I think there's a lot of intriguing matches, actually, tomorrow. Fun day. Okay, just before we get into our mascots, and we do have a lovely mascot today, some sad news that you might have heard about that we heard about earlier on this morning, and that is that Angela Mortimer Barrett, the former Wimbledon champion, of course, has passed away at the age of 93.

1:08:13A lovely tribute to her on the Wimbledon website today that we'll put a link to in the show notes. But just the All England Club released a statement to say that they're deeply saddened to learn of the death of our 1961 ladies singles champion, Angela Mortimer Barrett, MBE, who died in the early hours of Monday, the 25th of August, aged 93. During her career, she won three Grand Slam singles title and one doubles title. Deborah Jevons, CBE, chair of the All England Club, said Angela will be remembered for her determination and extraordinary dedication which saw her overcome significant challenges to rise to the top of tennis.

1:08:56On behalf of everyone at the All England Club, I offer my sincere condolences to Angela's husband, John, their children, Michael and Sarah Jane, grandchildren, family and friends. And yeah, we would echo those sentiments. We saw John and Angela together a few times, didn't we, at the All England Club? Yeah, most recently when we went to interview Christine Truman, who, of course, played against Angela Mortimer Barrett in the Wimbledon final. And, yeah, it's always special to see them at the club, which is where they always wanted to spend time. And they would socialise every day. And you can hear in the words of Deborah Jevons there just how much she meant to everybody and how much she's meant to British tennis, I mean, a Wimbledon champion.

1:09:54Yeah, there are some really, really terrific, heartfelt tributes around. and she's absolutely deserving of that. So, yep, her family very much in our thoughts. We have a mascot for today's show. That mascot is staring at me with beautiful green eyes and it's Barmy, owned by Heather McIver. Barmy and his brother Boko, a bit like Mboko, who is thrilled to be the mascot for the 2025 Australian Open Women's Final pod. I remember that now, but I don't think I knew about Victoria and Boko to make that reference at the time. Gosh, things move quickly. So Heather says, Barmy and Brother Boko were born in our back garden in spring 2023.

1:10:44They decided to stay and over time they bonded with Heather and her husband, Kendall. They also became fast friends with Gussie, the indoor cat. All three are named for PG Woodhouse characters. This is all coming back to me now, Heather. So now they all live with us, along with Boko and Barney's mum. Barney loves chasing things, some of which exist only in his imagination. And he particularly enjoys wrestling with his brother, Boko. He is a stunner. Look at those eyes. Thank you, Heather. It would be wrong for Boko to have a mascot slot and not Barney. So you've absolutely done the decent thing there.

1:11:24and you can see those beautiful green eyes in our newsletter tomorrow and do make sure you subscribe to that newsletter. We, of course, have our mascots. I have Phoebe, David has Maisie and Matt has Roger with his big, big paws. I can only imagine how big they are now. We have our top folks and executive producers, Greg, Chris and Jeff. Hello to you. And it's over to Matt for some shout outs. Yes, just the one shout out tonight. a very special one for Tara Marvin. Hello, Tara. And Tara says, my son bought this shout out for me as he knows I refer to the three of you as my friends and is glad I have someone who shares my love of tennis.

1:12:11Now my husband asks what my friends thought of that tennis match. For my 50th birthday in 2023, I went to the US Open for the first time, but hopefully not the last. My trip was cut short as I learned that my mum passed away unexpectedly from a complication with breast cancer treatment. This was during a Yannick Sinner-Stan Wawrinka match on Armstrong. The US Open employees and my husband were so sweet and escorted me to the back of house so I could make phone calls and grieve. It's all a bit of a blur, to be honest, but I remember giving away our night session tickets to a mother-daughter duo on our way out.

1:12:49although my trip was cut short my mum would say well that's just another reason why you should go back she loved watching me play tennis and encouraged me to keep playing as an adult thanks to the three of you for getting me through those crazy days as I listened to your daily pods like I was chatting with good friends that is incredibly moving thank you for that that's um gosh that's a lot to take in but um thank you tayra that is incredibly moving and uh yeah you'll be back you'll be back at the us open what will carlos alcaraz's hair look like when he finally come back who on earth knows not carlos alcaraz probably thank you Tara that really is yeah incredibly moving and powerful thank you a beautiful note to end tonight's show on we'll be back tomorrow of course we are part of the Athletic Podcast Network thank you for listening if you'd like to become a friend of the pod the link is in our show notes anything else you need to promote Wrexham always come to Wrexham please come come to Wrexham in October it's going to be great enjoy tomorrow we'll speak to you after the day is done

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