The Tennis Podcast

Andy Murray experienced the full Fabio Fognini effect in a Friday night thriller at Wimbledon, and came through it to tell the tale. Fognini hit an array of outrageous winners, some terrible errors, and challenged a vital call mid-rally when he had not challenges remaining. He was also warned for visible obscenities. Tennis Podcast presenters Catherine Whitaker and David Law took a break from their BBC Radio 5 Live broadcasting duties to sit in the crowd and soak it up. Afterwards, they convened to talk all about it to Telegraph tennis correspondent Simon Briggs.Was Murray sub-standard and a little fortunate to get through, or was this a vintage performance full of Murray grit? The Tennis Podcast team discuss and disagree.Heather Watson came close again, but not close enough, losing out in three sets to Victoria Azarenka. Could Azarenka now go all the way? One of the podcast team think so. Jo Konta cruised, however, reaching the last 16 of Wimbledon for the first time. Is she starting to justify her

The day after the pre-tournament favourite Petra Kvitova went out of Wimbledon she was followed onto the sidelines by her compatriot Karolina Pliskova.That means The Tennis Podcast team’s two picks for the women's title are not going to win the event, and so our predictions lie in tatters …Was Pliskova losing really that big a shock? What does that mean for Jo Konta? Is she, as some bookmakers have suggested, now the clear favourite for title? It’s a question that led to BBC Radio 5 Live colleagues and Tennis Podcast presenters Catherine Whitaker and David Law having a massive argument on the show.All other significant day 4 results are covered, including straightforward wins for Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. And finally, we wish Bethanie Mattek Sands a quick recovery after her awful fall at Wimbledon yesterday.The Tennis Podcast is a downloadable tennis radio show which is produced in association with Telegraph Sport and Eurosport. A new Tennis Podcast will be out after play every night during Wimbl

The Tennis Podcast team reckon Jo Konta entered the consciousness of more British people than at any time in her career thanks to her classic 10-8 final set win on Wimbledon’s Centre Court against Donna Vekic. An Australian Open semifinal, a title win in Miami and a Top 10 ranking were enough to get year-round tennis fans on-board, but Wimbledon is where stars are made and this was a perfect setting. How did Konta do it? Was it a Vekic capitulation, or did Konta wrestle the win away from her? Presenters Catherine Whitaker and David Law, who are part of the BBC 5 Live Wimbledon team, discuss.What did they make of the form of Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray, who were both straight sets winners?Flying ants, a Daniil Medvedev meltdown, and a big old argument about who should be on Centre Court on Friday are also part of the show, particular after Heather Watson set up a showdown with Victoria Azarenka. The prediction of Law that Petra Kvitova would win the women’s title is also thrown under the micros

The Day Two Tennis Podcast from Wimbledon is dominated by discussion of injury retirements and whether the Grand Slam tournaments need to change their rules to stop players taking to the court with physical problems to ensure they still get a £35,000 first-round loser cheque.The team quote Andy Murray from the US Open 2015. He seems to have the solution.Meanwhile, presenter David Law gives us an insight into new Team Novak Djokovic. The three-time champion practised with his new coaching team of Andre Agassi and former Wimbledon semifinalist Mario Ancic. Afterwards, they fist-bumped and before going their separate ways, Ancic spoke to Law about the set-up of the new team. Law and fellow BBC Radio 5 Live broadcaster Catherine Whitaker also discuss the comments of Bernard Tomic, who admitted after a straight sets defeat that he took an injury time-out to try to change the flow of his match and interrupt his opponent’s momentum. He also claimed to have ‘no motivation’ at Wimbledon. The Tennis Podcast i

US Open champion Stan Wawrinka lost, Andy Murray’s hip looked fine, he revealed his penchant for watching Peppa Pig, and Jo Konta was calm personified in a first-round win. Those were the headline talking points on The Tennis Podcast after day one at Wimbledon.Presenters Catherine Whitaker and David Law, who are part of the BBC Radio 5 Live team at Wimbledon, convened to talk through a cracking opening day. Everyone was watching Murray’s movement closely, and he looked bemused by the interest after his straight sets win over Alexander Bublik. Rafael Nadal looked awesome against John Millman. Can Marin Cilic really see off both Murray and Nadal to reach the final, as Law has picked him to do in their pre-tournament predictions?Petra Kvitova had played only a couple of tournaments since returning from a knife attack in her home at the start of the year, yet she’s the favourite for the title with the bookmakers. How did she look on day one?And Whitaker and Law also discuss a marathon win for Aljaz

Andy Murray has a sore hip, Novak Djokovic isn’t in the form of 12-18 months ago, Rafael Nadal hasn’t reached the Wimbledon quarters for six years and Roger Federer is closer to 40 years of age than 30. But according to Federer, on the pre-Wimbledon edition of The Tennis Podcast, the Big Four are still the players to beat in the men’s draw. “Andy, Rafa and Novak are the clear favourites to me,” Federer told podcast host Catherine Whitaker. “Andy is the champion and Rafa is coming off an unbelievable run at the French Open. He comes with a lot of confidence even if he doesn’t have the matches on grass. Novak is going to pick up his game. Once he gets rolling and into the second week things are going to look very different - both in terms of how you guys in the media look at him and in the locker room. The same thing for Andy. The last five months have been good ones for me, I feel healthy, which is where I wanted to be for Wimbledon. I’m very excited.”Whitaker also interviews Nadal on his hopes at Wimbled

The final Tennis Podcast from the Aegon Championships at The Queen’s Club features the men of the hour, live.The champion Feliciano Lopez tells Catherine Whitaker and Gigi Salmon just what becoming the oldest man in the Open era means to him.“It’s the best week of my life,” says Lopez. “Not only to win at Queen’s but to beat those players (Stan Wawrinka, Tomas Berdych, Grigor Dimitrov and Marin Cilic in the final). It makes it so special. I take a lot of pride in being the oldest champion in the Open era. It’s a dream for me. This tournament is so special, and outside of the four Slams this is the tournament I wanted most to win.”After that, the vanquished Cilic joined the podcast to talk about the pain of losing 7-6 in the third after holding match point. In lighter moments, he revealed that his encouragement to himself during matches is to shout ‘Emperor’ in Croatian, that he didn’t mind Goran Ivanisevic calling him second favourite for the Wimbledon title - “So, there’s a...  See acast.com/privac

The final of the Aegon Championships is upon us, and although it might lack the top 3 seeds Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka and Milos Raonic, who all lost on Tuesday, the Tennis Podcast team is predicting an emotional day.The previous final appearance of Feliciano Lopez, in 2014, ended in an agonising loss in a final set tie-break. That was after he had held match point, and it hurt the Spaniard more than just any other loss in his career. 'I’ve wanted to win this tournament so badly throughout my whole career," Lopez told Catherine Whitaker. "Now I have another chance," she saiidMarin Cilic has reached the final before, and won the tournament. The only problem is that nobody can remember any of the tennis in it. On that day, his opponent, David Nalbandian was disqualied for kicking a wooden sponsor box that injured the leg of a lines judge. Cilic is in for a very busy day. After the singles final he plays the conclusion of his doubles semifinal against Jamie Murray and Bruno...  See acast.com/privac

While the world discussed the positive test of Dan Evans on Friday, Grigor Dimitrov, Feliciano Lopez, Marin Cilic and Gilles Muller were making their way to the semifinals of the Aegon Championships.In the latest Tennis Podcast, we hear the statement read by Evans after his positive test for cocaine. One of the semifinalist at Queen’s - Gilles Muller - joins presenters Catherine Whitaker (Eurosport) and Gigi Salmon (BBC) to celebrate National Luxembourg Day, talk about the first two titles of his career at the age of 23, and how his driving force to play through injuries had been to play in front of his two young sons. We also hear from Dimitrov, who is getting closer to the title he won three years ago, and Lopez, the man that he edged out in three tie-break sets three years ago.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Two years ago, Jonas Bjorkman was part of the Andy Murray coaching team. Now, he is a key cog in Team Marin Cilic, who is into the quarterfinals of the Aegon Championships at The Queen’s Club.In the latest daily Tennis Podcast from Queen’s, Bjorkman joins presenters Catherine Whitaker and Gigi Salmon to talk about life with the big Croatian, who won the US Open in 2014.For starters, they call him The President of the team, although Bjorkman jokes ‘actually he is more like a Dictator’, and that Cilic started a punishments process for any member of the team that is late for team dinners etc. “I was quite pleased,” said Bjorkman. “Marin was late twice this week.”Bjorkman also talks about Cilic’s chances of winning the Aegon Championships title again, having lifted the giant silver trophy in 2012.We also hear from Daniil Medvedev, one of the members of the ATP’s #NextGen group of 21-and-under players after reaching the last eight. Medvedev faces 2014 champion Grigor Dimitrov in...  See acast.com/privacy

Thanasi Kokkinakis takes on fellow #NextGen star Daniil Medvedev on centre court at the Aegon Championships today, and part of his pre-match preparation was to join Catherine Whitaker (Eurosport) and Gigi Salmon (BBC 5 Live) on the Tennis Podcast.How many text messages did he receive after his stunning win over Milos Raonic in the previous round? How stressful was it trying to close out a match of that magnitude after so long out? And most importantly, what superpower would he choose - invisibility, x-ray vision, or the ability to fly?Elsewhere, Tomas Berdych won the match of the tournament so far, edging out Denis Shapovalov, and Grigor Dimitrov overcame a set deficit against Julien Benneteau. The Tennis Podcast is a free, weekly, downloadable tennis audio show, with daily editions during the Grand Slam tournaments. It is produced in association with Telegraph Sport and Eurosport.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On a day of high-drama at the Aegon Championships as the top three seeds all fell, it was Andy Murray’s surprise defeat to Jordan Thompson that dominated the discussion on the Tennis Podcast.Catherine Whitaker (Eurosport) and Gigi Salmon (BBC) discuss the match in depth from a shell-shocked Queen’s Club. Would Murray of a year ago have won today? And should the World No.1 enter Eastbourne next week before he heads to Wimbledon to defend his title? There are more questions than answers right now.A disappointed Murray spoke to Gigi post-match. We hear that full interview.And what of Jordan Thompson? The Australian was a lucky loser replacement for Aljaz Bedene but he was far from an understudy. He played an impressively smart match, serving 12 aces, and deserves immense credit.Elsewhere, Stan Wawrinka lost to Feliciano Lopez. Catherine and Gigi agree that while it was an upset on paper, Lopez’s love for grass meant that many saw it...  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Queen’s Club was baked in sunshine as the Aegon Championships got underway, and The Tennis Podcast team of Catherine Whitaker (Eurosport) and Gigi Salmon (BBC) are on hand to review the day’s action.Billed as match of the day, Denis Shapovalov and Kyle Edmund didn’t disappoint, playing three sets of thrilling tennis in the late afternoon on Centre Court. Shapovalov in particular was impressive, building on his qualifying run to beat Edmund 6-4 in the third. Catherine could barely contain her excitement at his lefty single-handed backhand. We hear from the ATP #NextGen star.Elsewhere, there was disappointment for Nick Kyrgios. The Australian unfortunately had to retire mid-match against Donald Young but is still optimistic for Wimbledon.There were no other big name casualties on the opening day as Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Grigor Dimitrov and Tomas Berdych all looked good in straight-set wins.Looking ahead to day two, Andy Murray begins his title defence. His full pre-tournament...  See acast.com/priva

Clay has turned to grass, and in the first of the daily podcasts from the Aegon Championships, David Law (BBC 5 Live) and Catherine Whitaker (Eurosport) are together on a scorching hot day at The Queen’s Club to preview the tournament.One of the players Catherine spoke to on a busy day of media activity was Nick Kyrgios, who plays Donald Young on day one. The Australian is yet to win a match at The Queen’s Club, but as he told Catherine, he is in a very good place, physically and mentally, at the moment. Also on the schedule for Monday are Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Grigor Dimitrov. They will be the favourites in their matches, but the Tennis Podcast team believe both Adrian Mannarino and Ryan Harrison are capable of causing an upset. Monday’s headline match is last on Centre Court, between Denis Shapovalov and Kyle Edmund. They met in the Davis Cup in March with Shapovalov losing through disqualification - he hit a ball away in anger that smashed into the face of the chair umpire - an...  See acast.com

Rafael Nadal became the first man in history to win ten Grand Slam titles at a single event, and after completing La Decima at Roland Garros, Catherine Whitaker spoke to David Law about it on The Tennis Podcast.Where was the match won and lost? Is it fair to be disappointed in the performance of Stan Wawrinka? Or was Nadal just so good that a competitive contest was simply out of the question?Nadal will now travel to the Aegon Championships at The Queen's Club as he tries to transfer his form from clay to grass ahead of Wimbledon. Will his relatively easy passage through in Paris make him fresh enough to do what he did in 2008 when he won the Roland Garros-Queen's-Wimbledon treble? The podcast team also discuss the withdrawal of Maria Sharapova from Wimbledon qualies, and there's bad news for Dan Evans. The Tennis Podcast is a free, weekly downloadable tennis audio show, with daily editions during the Grand Slam tournaments at next week at The Queen's Club. The podcast is...  See acast.com/privacy f

Jelena Ostapenko is the French Open champion, but was it a red-hot couple of weeks and ultimately a flash in the pan, or will she go on to win multiple Grand Slam titles? It provoked a fiery disagreement on the latest Tennis Podcast between presenters Catherine Whitaker (Eurosport) and David Law (BBC 5 Live). Ahead of the men’s final, John McEnroe joined Whitaker on Eurosport to sum up the magnitude of achievement if Nadal were to seize his 10th title on Sunday.“Nadal winning ten titles at the French Open would be at the top of all sporting achievements,” said McEnroe. “Guys like Phelps have had all those gold medals, and there are so many other great achievements, and Federer’s are up alongside him, but then you think, has anyone ever topped this? I don’t think so.”Does McEnroe think Wawrinka could spring an upset?“Stan has to hurt him early on, he is incredibly fit, and we have to make sure people realise how great a player Wawrinka has become. But this is the ultimate...  See acast.com/priva

Jelena Ostapenko takes on Simona Halep in the final of the French Open.Few people know more about winning Grand Slam titles than Chris Evert, and she joined Tennis Podcast presenter Catherine Whitaker on Eurosport to preview the match.Where will the match be won and lost? What will it be like for Ostapenko to play in her first Grand Slam final at the age of 20? Evert knows - she met Margaret Court when she was just 18 years of age. How has Halep turned things around from some of her lows earlier in the year? And who is Evert picking to win?Listen to the interview in full on the Tennis Podcast.The French Open women's final starts at 3pm local, 2pm UK time time. It will be shown live on Eurosport and the Eurosport player.The Tennis Podcast is a free, weekly, downloadable tennis audio show, with daily editions during the Grand Slam tournaments. It is produced in association with Telegraph Sport and Eurosport.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

How could Andy Murray play that well and not win? That was the first thought of Catherine Whitaker (Eurosport) and David Law (BBC 5 Live) on the The Tennis Podcast, recorded shortly after the semifinals.The answer, they concluded, came from down the other end of the court, where Stan Wawrinka was firing his bullets for more than four hours. Where was the match won and lost? What did Murray think of his performance? - we hear from him. And what sort of chance do the podcast team give Wawrinka in the final against Rafael Nadal?Meanwhile, with the women’s final coming up on Saturday, what do they expect to happen? And what did Halep’s coach Darren Cahill say to Catherine when she asked him for an interview on Eurosport?Both finals will be broadcast on Eurosport and Eurosport player. The Tennis Podcast is a free, weekly, downloadable tennis audio show, with daily editions during the Grand Slam tournaments. It is produced in association with Telegraph Sport and...  See acast.com/privacy for privacy

Andy Murray is now playing like the man that reached World No.1 at the end of last year, according to Boris Becker. As Murray prepared to take on Stan Wawrinka in the French Open semifinals, Becker spoke to Tennis Podcast presenter Catherine Whitaker (Eurosport) to assess the British player’s improvement over the course of the tournament. “Andy Murray now looks like the Andy Murray of last year,” said Becker. Even after the match against (Juan Martin) Del Potro in the third round, he has looked like himself. I think Ivan Lendl arriving has made a real difference. It’s like Murray is unchaining himself from everything that has gone before earlier this year. He’s a champion, and champions know how to win. He’s No.1 for a reason, and with Wawrinka playing so well, this could be a classic between two titans.”Becker also previews the semifinal between Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem on the podcast, and Whitaker speaks to Eurosport commentator Chris Bradnam about the superb...  See acast.com/priv

After a busy day in which all four of the men’s quarterfinals and two of the women’s quarters were played, the question on everyone’s lips was ‘what was wrong with Novak Djokovic’.Listeners to The Tennis Podcast will know that it has been a recurring conversation over the past 12 months, and if anything, this latest episode - a straight sets defeat to Dominic Thiem - was even more mystifying.So, what is wrong with Djokovic? Did he, as John McEnroe suggested in commentary on Eurosport, ‘tank’ in the third set? Or, are we damning Thiem with faint praise after registering his first ever win over the former World No.1? Either way, what should Djokovic do from here?The Tennis Podcast team also talk about Andy Murray’s hard-fought win over Kei Nishikori, and the size of the task he will face against an in-form Stan Wawrinka in the semifinals. Who do presenters Catherine Whitaker and David Law think will win that one?They also talk about Rafael Nadal’s serene progress, the wonder...  See acast.com/privacy