Episodes

  • Raducanu pulls out of the French Open, Sinner heads to Paris, Djokovic seeks form
    May 22 2024
    Calvin Betton calls in from the ATP 250 in Lyon, James Gray is packing for Paris and George Bellshaw is here too. We discussed... Emma Raducanu reveals she will not be playing the French Open in order "to do a healthy block before the grass and subsequent hard court seasons", and to prioritise fitness over Roland Garros Jannik Sinner has been under an injury cloud but arrived in Paris this week to suggest he is ready to compete for his second grand slam Novak Djokovic is also battling fitness concerns but has flown to Geneva in search of form Andy Murray is there too but has already lost, beaten by Yannick Hanfmann - and will now head to Roland Garros for singles and doubles And more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 14 mins
  • Murray's return, Thiem's retirement, *that* Djokovic water bottle moment, Nadal, Osaka and more!
    May 14 2024
    With George Bellshaw otherwise engaged (football...), freelance journalist Molly McElwee joins James Gray and Calvin Betton to discuss all the latest news in the tennis world. And there was a lot, so sorry we went on so long! Andy Murray is back, playing on the clay in Bordeaux and signing up for Geneva, as well as changing 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem says he will end his career at the end of this season after years spent battling a wrist injury Naomi Osaka is playing regularly and starting to look like a threat on clay - and she's even enjoying press conferences Novak Djokovic was hit on the head by a water bottle and then lost comprehensively to Alejandro Tabilo, seeming to blame concussion symptoms afterwards Tsitsidosa is no more! QUESTIONS FROM THE MAILBAG David asks: "You can pick two former players, one male and one female, that you would like to have seen win Wimbledon. It can be for any reason, a favourite player, unfortunate not to have won etc. The third answer is a wild card, any other player to have won any other grand slam." Elam asks: "What do you guys think needs to be done to address all of the concerns about scheduling in tennis that's been going on recently? With all of the recent chatter from the players and fans about the scheduling issues in tennis, like these 1000 level tournaments being extended to 10 days, all of the recent injuries that have been linked to these lengthened tournaments, and the already busy schedule these players face, how does tennis fix this problem? I've wondered about a shortened calendar, say a 9-month schedule that allows for a longer off season for the players to rest from the game." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 43 mins
  • Madrid Open review, the Swiatek-Sabalenka rivalry and how to promote tennis to the world
    May 7 2024
    Calvin Betton, George Bellshaw and James Gray do their very best to set the tennis world to rights, discussing... Iga Swiatek's continued dominance of the women's game Her Madrid Open victory over Aryna Sabalenka Felix Auger-Aliassime's remarkable run to the final of Madrid and his defeat to Andrey Rublev Jack Draper hires Wayne Ferreira as a coach PLUS your questions answered on... Tennis documentaries French Open night sessions Promoting doubles tennis Shirt-gate follow-ups Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 23 mins
  • Nadal's French Open threat, the 'perfect' tennis body, captain questions 'tired' Raducanu and Cachin-gate
    May 2 2024
    Calvin Betton, James Gray and George Bellshaw are all at home for once and ready to answer your questions on... Momentum shifts in tennis The perfect tennis body The new format of doubles in Madrid They also discuss... Anne Keothavong's criticism of Emma Raducanu Rafael Nadal's run in Madrid Whether Pedro Cachin should have waited to ask for his shirt And so much more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 14 mins
  • Djokovic out of Madrid, Raducanu on a roll, Muguruza retires and Calvin's Bucharest review
    Apr 23 2024
    Calvin Betton and James Gray talk through the last seven days of tennis news while George Bellshaw recovers from food poisoning. (Get well soon, George!) Garbine Muguruza says she didn't miss "the discipline and the difficulty of the life" in her year off tennis and has decided to retire at the age of 30 Novak Djokovic is playing golf, playing with his dogs but not playing tennis after withdrawing from the Madrid Masters for a "non-medical reason" Emma Raducanu picks up two more wins in Stuttgart before a creditable defeat by Iga Swiatek, and now heads to Madrid after picking up a wildcard Rafael Nadal is beaten by Alex De Minaur in Barcelona Casper Ruud gets his own back on Stefanos Tsitsipas in Barcelona Elena Rybakina shows her form on red dirt PLUS We answer your questions from the mailbag Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • Tsitsipas bucks a trend to win Monte Carlo, Raducanu returns in fine form and umpiring woes
    Apr 17 2024
    Calvin Betton calls in from Bucharest to chat with James Gray and George Bellshaw in London about... Calvin's team win another title! Stefanos Tsitsipas has now won Monte Carlo three times, more than Novak Djokovic even (although we all acknowledge he is probably more successful at other tournaments...) ... but perhaps Jannik Sinner should have beaten him, except for a blown line-call overrule by the umpire Sinner was not the only player to suffer from a bad call over the last two weeks: Nuno Borges got an extraordinarily bad call in Estoril against Cristian Garin so we ask... Is it time to bring in video reviews for almost anything that happens on a tennis court? Emma Raducanu is back, winning two ties for Great Britain against France to qualify for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals Good news out of Andy Murray's camp that he is not having surgery on his ankle and is due back hitting this week Great Twitter shithousing from Corentin Moutet, Holger Rune and more Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 36 mins
  • WTA confirm Saudi deal, Nadal out of another tournament, Danielle Collins on the charge + a first ATP title for Calvin!
    Apr 9 2024
    Calvin Betton, George Bellshaw and James Gray are back behind the microphones to look at all the biggest stories of the week - and celebrate Henry Patten and Harri Heliovaara's victory in Marrakesh. The WTA has confirmed that its biggest tournament, the WTA Finals, will be held in Riyadh for the next three years in a deal worth around $50m in prize money Rafael Nadal is out of the Monte Carlo Masters saying his body 'simply won't allow me' Danielle Collins wins her second title in a row, this time in Charleston, and has only lost two sets in the last three weeks. We talk about her incredible numbers on return of second serve It was a good week for the big servers as Ben Shelton, Hubert Hurkacz and Matteo Berrettini all won titles on clay across three different continents But it was a bad start to the clay season for the Brits with Dan Evans and Cam Norrie both bounced out in the first round in Monaco LINKS Calvin's week in crazy Marrakesh: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5ehdtLN5-QeJTvUq00oTY_TOTHje-QD50BMYY0 James ran a half-marathon on Sunday, raising money for his local community cricket club. You can donate here: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/james-runs-london-1 Jeff Sackmann has written this excellent blog on Danielle Collins's second serve return: https://www.tennisabstract.com/blog/2024/04/03/danielle-collins-destroyer-of-second-serves/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 39 mins
  • Djokovic's coach split, Murray's ankle injury, Sinner is still rolling and Danielle Collins is NOT retiring
    Apr 2 2024
    FACTCHECK FROM JAMES: I said I was watching Charleston on red clay. I was of course watching *Houston*, not Charleston. Houston = reddish brown clay, Charleston = still equals mucky grey-green. Apologies... Calvin Betton joins James Gray (inews.co.uk) and George Bellshaw (man of the people) from the ATP 250 in Marrakesh to discuss a very busy few days in tennis... Danielle Collins is the surprise Miami champion after beating Elena Rybakina in the final, losing the first set of the tournament and then not another one after that But Collins also made headlines after clapping back at the suggestion she might reconsider retirement, due at the end of this year, given she is now playing the best tennis of her life Sofia Kenin and Bethanie Mattek-Sands won the women's doubes: an unlikely duo or a force to be reckoned with? Jannik Sinner comfortably beat Grigor Dimitrov in the men's final, having beaten Daniil Medvedev in the semi, their first meeting since the Australian Open final. Andy Murray has chosen not to have surgery on a “full rupture of my ATFL” and a “near full thickness rupture of my CFL” - that is the anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL) and calcaneofibular ligament (CFL) to give them their full names. Novak Djokovic has split with Goran Ivanisevic and does not know if he will replace him. Who would be the perfect coach for Djokovic at this point in his career? Djokovic said: “First of all, Goran is my friend for life, mine and of my family’s. I will always remember that he was there for me as a person, as a human being, first and foremost, and that he brought the right set of values into our relationship. That kind of chemistry was followed by great results. I wish Goran all the best. I still don’t have a clear idea who a new coach would be, or whether there will be one at all. I’ve had coaches since I was a kid, now I am trying to feel by myself what I need, what I feel most comfortable with. You will be informed in case someone joins the team.” PLUS... We answer your questions on Dominic Thiem and whether there really is "a dominant eye". LINKS MENTIONED James's piece on everything we know about Andy Murray's injury: https://inews.co.uk/sport/tennis/andy-murray-wimbledon-injury-hopes-2976945 Novak Djokovic's quotes in full on his coaching situation: www.tennismajors.com/atp/djokovic-trying-to-feel-by-himself-what-he-needs-without-a-coach-for-the-moment-752469.html John McEnroe's penchant for the dramatic: https://twitter.com/Calvbetton/status/1774855117725933985 Hubert Hurkacz loses his mind: https://twitter.com/TennisTV/status/1772784378717823397 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 28 mins