No Challenges Remaining

Ben and Tumaini wrap up their U.S. Open preview double header with a discussion of the women's field at the 2024 U.S. Open. We discuss topics such as the paths for Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka, our relief at news of a coaching change by Elena Rybakina, the reliably broad resonance of Naomi Osaka's vulnerability, frustrations with Emma Raducanu's scheduling, the recent woes of Coco Gauff, and the golden glow-up of Zheng Qinwen. Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.

Ben and Tumaini discuss the men's field at the fast approaching U.S. Open, leading off with Jannik Sinner, the man who was the focus of our emergency episode earlier this week. How did he handle the press conference better than the USTA did? And (scattered throughout the rest of the episode) what were the reactions of other players in the draw? We also discuss how contenders like Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, and Daniil Medvedev are positioned in the draw, the uniquely international flavor of the wildcards at this year's Open, and how the qualifying week ballooning in popularity effects the experience. Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.    

Ben and Tumaini jumped on today for an emergency episode about the stunning news today that ATP #1 Jannik Sinner had tested positive twice earlier this year for the banned substance Clostebol, a revelation that came simultaneous to the announcement that he had been found to bear "no fault or negligence" in the case. We lay out the timeline of Sinner's year, and how this revelation adds depth to what was already a busy stretch in the young champion's life. We discuss what parts of the story about how his physiotherapist transferred the substance via unwashed finger injury we find most and least credible, the ramifications for the sport more widely, and the state of anti-doping in tennis.  Also, a little bit right at the end about the possible curtain call of Venus Ebony Starr Williams.  Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D

Former WTA No. 1 Karolina Pliskova, still top of the ladder of most honest and direct players in tennis, talks with Ben in this interview episode about the current state of her career and her expectations, and how the tour has changed during her long career. Pliskova discusses the aura that stars like Sharapova and Serena had, how Serena compares to Iga Swiatek on court, what it's been like since her twin sister Kristyna retired, and more. Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.

Ben and Tumaini reunite to discuss all that happened in the Olympic tennis events, and a bit in the wider Olympics as well. We start with the biggest story, which was Novak Djokovic, who has won everything else there is to win in tennis multiple times, finally claiming an elusive gold medal. At 37, with everything complete, could be the right time for him to retire on top? We also discuss his peers Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray, and how these Olympics served as farewells for them as well in different ways. We discuss the doubles, and the tension between favoring singles guys over doubles specialists, the surprisingly spicy flameouts of the American women, the triumph of Zheng Qinwen over Iga Swiatek and then winning gold, and the romcom-ready magic of mixed doubles. We also discuss the Olympics more widely and where tennis fits in, and how this event affirms tennis' place on the top tier of the sporting world.  Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-f

Ben is joined by Alex Gruskin of Cracked Racquets to preview the 2024 Olympic tennis event starting this weekend in Paris at Roland Garros, a quirky quadrennial event. Can Iga Swiatek handle the pressure of the occasion? Can Barbora Krejcikova sustain her momentum from Wimbledon? And what does Coco Gauff need to do to reverse her fortunes against Swiatek? We also discuss the women's doubles, where Gauff might have a better shot at gold, and the mixed draw, which is jam-packed with unique meetings like Errani-Medvedev. This is a home-and-home series joint podcast, so this episode here focuses on the women's singles, women's doubles, and mixed doubles draws, while our episode over on the Cracked Racquets feed focuses on the men's singles and men's doubles.  Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running as of this week to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.  

This is an update on our main feed to let listeners know that we have a new mailbag episode (with a beloved and deeply missed NCR person) just up on our Patreon feed today! We answer listener questions about tennis things like the impact of mid-match coaching and longer 1000 events and non-tennis things like our current favorite music and board games. Thank you for listening and supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.

Ben and Tumaini reunite the morning after the Wimbledon Ball to discuss the champions who danced together after dancing alone atop their respective draws, Barbora Krejcikova and Carlos Alcaraz. We discuss what makes Krejcikova so good (with an assist from Andrea Petkovic), where she goes from here, and the state of the top of the women's game after this result.  After debuting an original song by NCR's bard Dan Bern, we turn to the men's champion Carlos Alcaraz, who delivered a decisive domination of Djokovic that clarifies their respective places in men's tennis right now. Is Alcaraz the best player in the world right now? And can Djokovic still win another major someday? Also, exciting news of an upcoming show for our Patreon backers is (sorta) revealed.  Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running as of this week to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.

Ben and Tumaini reunite now that the Wimbledon finals are set, to discuss the unexpected women's final between Barbora Krejcikova and Jasmine Paolini, and the far more predictable rematch of last year's final between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic. We discuss the great women's semifinals, including Paolini's epic battle against Vekic, and how Krejcikova is proving herself to be a generational talent. On the men's side, we discuss Medvedev's near-default, and the disparate styles of locking in that Alcaraz and Djokovic both use with such success in best-of-five. Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running as of this week to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.

Ben and Tumaini start this mid-tournament show with a catch up on the fourth round action, which included some crowd combativeness in victory from Novak Djokovic, some complaining and collapsing from Zverev, and some painful injuries on the grass. We look ahead to the quarterfinals with special focus on the surprise runs of Emma Navarro, Lulu Sun, Barbora Krejcikova, and Taylor Fritz, and Tumaini also weighs in on the Raducanu/Murray mixed doubles mess. Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running as of this week to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.

Ben is joined by James Gray of The i newspaper, inews.co.uk, and Tennis Unfiltered to discuss Saturday's big upset and some doubles drama causing buzz around Wimbledon. We discuss #1 Iga Swiatek getting hammered in the second and third sets by Yulia Putintseva as the crowd turned on her in the middle, but we start with the big British news of the day (in a busy time for British news generally), which was Emma Raducanu pulling the plug on Andy Murray's Wimbledon career by withdrawing from their mixed doubles match. What are the reactions to this news which Andy's mother Judy Murray called "astonishing"?  We also discuss James' recent reporting on anger in doubles ranks about the ATP limiting opportunities for doubles specialists to enter tournaments, and what the path forward for doubles might be, both as a source of employment and entertainment. Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running as of this week to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! A

Ben is joined by Ricky Dimon to discuss the first week of Wimbledon so far, which has been mostly pretty straightforward on the men's and women's sides. We discuss the biggest scare a men's favorite has had so far, when Alcaraz needed five sets to beat Tiafoe, as well as Sinner's battle past Berrettini and Djokovic's tricky road ahead. We also discuss the strong form of Emma Navarro, and the wide-open women's bottom half that includes a path for Emma Raducanu. We also discuss the big retirement sendoff Wimbledon gave Andy Murray, a ceremony which was very different from traditional Wimbledon fare. Thanks for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running as of this week, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.

Ben is joined by L'Equipe's Quentin Moynet to discuss one of the most striking players at this year's Wimbledon, Maxime Janvier, who has stood out for his uniquely bleak outlook on tennis, even in victory. We get into Janvier's remarkably open cynicism, his mid-match explanations about money, class divides throughout the tennis rankings, and how his remarks have been received within tennis circles. Ben and Quentin also discuss the player whom Janvier beat in the final round of qualifying, young French rising star Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who scored an upset win over Sebastian Korda today as a lucky loser. Also, our Patreon is back up and running as of this week, so we have lots of backers to thank, and we hope you can also join them in supporting the show! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver, Jean Simeon, and J. O'D.

Ben and Tumaini continue their conversation into the men's draw, where Jannik Sinner is the top seed for the first time at a Slam, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz looms in his half, and grass specialists like Matteo Berrettini loom large. We take several deep dives along the way into scheduling and health issues, first discussing the women and men who decided to skip the Olympics and why they might regret it. Tumaini then regales us with Andy Murray's full saga leading up to what he's confirmed will be his last Slam, and then we close with a look at Novak Djokovic's rapid return from surgery on his torn meniscus.  Thanks for listening to our preview episodes! If you're enjoying our Wimbledon content, please consider backing NCR on our Patreon page, which gets back into gear on the first day of the tournament! 

Ben and Tumaini spent a long time discussing the Wimbledon draws just hours after they came out, and are splitting the preview episode into two parts for your convenience. First up are the women, where top seed Iga Swiatek has question marks on grass, where Parks-Wozniacki is one of the most intriguing first round matches (and listen to the discussed Black Spin Global interview with Parks' coach here), and where lots of other possible pivot points exist in understanding how this all might unfold. Thanks for listening, and thanks for supporting NCR on our renewed Patreon crowdfunding efforts! Our men's show will be to you shortly! 

Ben is joined on this episode by Barbora Strycova, a titan on grass courts over the last decade before her retirement, to talk about the secrets to success on this unique surface which takes up just about a month on the tennis calendar. We discuss what works on grass, her memories of deep runs at Wimbledon, winning with Hsieh Su-wei, beating a Brit on Centre Court, facing Serena, and more. Hope you enjoy! NCR's Patreon is back up and running soon and we'd love to have your support there!

Ben is joined by Jonathan Crane, who covered the recent criminal trial of Alexander Zverev in Berlin for DW, to discuss the proceedings he covered before and during the French Open and the conclusion they reached last Friday. We discuss how the case reached this point, the atmosphere inside the court room, and the ultimate resolution they reached in which Zverev made settlements with both his ex-girlfriend Brenda Patea and the court itself. We also discuss Zverev's misleading claims of proven innocence, how the ATP failed to face this issue, and what justice can mean in cases like this. Thanks for listening! The NCR Patreon is back up and running if you would be up for showing your support for the show that way, we'd appreciate it! 

Ben and Tumaini wrap up their coverage of this French Open with a look at the generation-leading champions who won it, Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz. Swiatek, who won her fifth Slam, has established herself as the best player in many generations, drawing comparisons to stars like Justine Henin with her fourth win in Paris. What can she do to play as well at the other Slams? On the men's side, how did Carlos Alcaraz survive hot and cold streaks to be cool under pressure to finish off his third Slam? Also, how did the 90s-born players get so totally left behind in men's tennis? Housekeeping note: As mentioned at the end of this show, we are resuming the NCR Patreon! If you were an existing patron who hasn't unsubscribed, you will be included when it boots back up. If you aren't and want to support the show at any number of various levels, please do sign up, we really appreciate it!

Ben checks in with Tumaini in Paris to discuss all the happenings of the business end of a sometimes fun, often frustrating French Open. We start with the women, where Iga Swiatek is set to face Jasmine Paolini in the final. Both great stories on their own, as we discuss, but will the final itself be a memorable one? We then tuck into the men, among whom Novak Djokovic bowed out with a torn meniscus, and the Sinner-Alcaraz blockbuster semifinal was fairly lumpy. We also briefly discuss our reactions to the sudden end of Zverev's legal proceedings in Berlin (and how he is trying to frame the resolution). Tumaini ends the show with his strong thoughts on night sessions at Roland Garros, which fit into a wider pattern of greed in tennis lately. Thanks for listening! 

Ben and Lindsay Gibbs of Power Plays are celebrating together in Tennessee and also discussing what they see in tennis, when it comes to how the women's game may be missing out on the cultural wave that other women's sports are riding in 2024. What separates the trajectory of women's tennis from the momentum brought by Caitlin Clark to basketball and similar surges in professional women's soccer and hockey? What should the WTA's priorities be? How much are female players responsible for the success of their sport as a product? We also touch on the Alexander Zverev criminal case, after the first hearing happened earlier today in Berlin