The Tennis Abstract Podcast

Ep 66: The Grass is Greener, Even For a Few Dirtballers

June 17, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl wonder about how clay-court breakthrough star Matteo Berrettini transferred his winning ways to grass, with a debut title on that surface in Stuttgart. We also wander through a long list of other topics, including Andy Murray's return to the doubles court, the Herbert-Mahut split, the multi-surface improvisation in Nottingham, and the US Open's new coaching rule.

Ep 65: Rafa! Barty! Krawietz/Mies! Roland Garros in Review

June 10, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl celebrate the breakthrough of Ashleigh Barty by discussing what sets her game apart, what might be working for her on clay, and what her future holds. We mark Rafael Nadal's 12th Roland Garros title with a (futile) search for tennis achievements that compare to Rafa's French Open dominance. Finally, we consider whether the best tennis players are the best at anything in particular, and whether stats on grand slam websites are anything more than a marketing exercise.

Ep 64: French Open Final Fours

June 06, 2019 05:00 - 57 minutes - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl come up with a bonus episode to preview the men's and women's semi-finals at Roland Garros. We discuss the unending parade of upsets that has provided us a women's final four without a single grand slam finalist, as well as the star-studded men's quartet, including the first Federer-Nadal encounter on clay in six years.

Ep 63: The Last 16 at Roland Garros

June 03, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl go through the quarter-final lineups for both men and women at this year's French Open. Nadal remains a favorite, Halep faces another newbie, and we offer uncertain forecasts for the lot. We also discuss the spectator experience at Roland Garros, including what sets the tournament apart from the other grand slams.

Ep 62: A Roman Holiday for Rafael Nadal and Karolina Pliskova

May 20, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl recap the ATP/WTA joint event in Rome, where Rafael Nadal got his mojo back, winning his ninth title with a decisive final-round victory over Novak Djokovic. A less-polished clay-court performer, Karolina Pliskova, took the women's title, and we explain why her game may be more clay-friendly than you think. Also: Nick Kyrgios wants attention, and we give him some.

Ep 61: Reading Rafael Nadal's Tea Leaves

May 13, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl struggle to draw conclusions from Rafael Nadal's latest surprise loss in Madrid, as the King of Clay has no titles in 2019, but his track record still suggests he's the favorite (or close) at Roland Garros. We also cover the continued late blooming of Kiki Bertens, the surprise relevance of Roger Federer, and the abysmal doubles record of Marco Cecchinato.

Ep 60: Goodbye, David Ferrer. Hello, Cristian Garin

May 06, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl delve into the little-known group of dirt-ballers, including Garin, Matteo Berrettini, and Guido Pella, who are piling up the clay-court wins in 2019, while former great David Ferrer is calling time on his outstanding career.

Ep 59: More Surprises on Clay, and L'Affaire Gimelstob

April 29, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl re-evaluate Rafael Nadal's status as clay-court favorite after his semi-final loss to Dominic Thiem in Barcelona. We also consider what Daniil Medvedev is doing right, even if it didn't work against Thiem. Finally, we dive into the muck that is tennis's typically incoherent response to Justin Gimelstob's assault case.

Ep 58: An Unexpected Introduction to the European Clay Season

April 22, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl recap the Monte Carlo Masters and try to make sense of Rafael Nadal's semi-final loss to Fabio Fognini. We discuss how seriously to take the early exits of Nadal and Djokovic, as well as Fognini's future. We also cover the Fed Cup final four and consider whether the women's event should undergo a radical change next year to match the Davis Cup.

Ep 57: Clay Court Specialists, Return Attackers, and Predictable Servers

April 15, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl review a week's worth of ATP and WTA results, starting with Christian Garin and Casper Ruud, the dirtballers who contested the Houston final. They consider the decline of clay-court specialization, and the more aggressive returning style favored by up-and-coming women's stars such as Amanda Anisimova. Finally, they discuss Jeff's recent findings about Caroline Wozniacki's extremely predictable serves.

Ep 56: Gender Differences in Surface Differences

April 08, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl talk about the clay-court success of Charleston winner Madison Keys and consider how aggression seems to be a proven strategy at WTA clay events... though not for everyone. We also do a deep dive on underarm serve strategy, and review some recent research into ATP aging patterns.

Ep 55: Miami Titles for Barty and Federer

April 01, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl discuss the newly-minted Miami champions. We start with Ashleigh Barty, possibly now the best hard-court player in the game, and mull over how her throwback style will translate to other surfaces this season. The second half is for Roger Federer, who breezed through a weaker-than-usual draw, but did so in particularly dominating style.

Ep 54: Miami At the Half-Way Point

March 25, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl catch up on the Miami early rounds, beginning with some rocky starts for Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. We also look at the slew of early upsets and the threats who remain in the draw. We talk about how to evaluate Bianca Andreescu's feats at her age, and the wacky wild cards that always find their way into the Miami main draw.

Ep 53: Indian Wells in Review

March 18, 2019 05:00 - 59 minutes - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl talk about the breakthrough hard-court Masters title for Dominic Thiem, as well as what the result says about the runner-up Roger Federer. We also touch on Nadal's injury battles, particularly lucky lucky losers, and the next generation of WTA stars, led by this week's surprise champion, Bianca Andreescu.

Ep 52: The Unpredictable WTA of Osaka, Stephens, and Sasnovich

March 11, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff is joined by guest co-host Jeff McFarland this week, and the two Jeffs talk about the joys of unpredictable tennis. We consider the various explanations for Sloane Stephens's inconsistency, Naomi Osaka's coaching move, and Aliaksandra Sasnovich's ability to bounce back after losing a 6-0 set.

Ep 51: 100 For Federer, and 50.4% for Kyrgios

March 04, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl start with this week's biggest story in tennis: Roger Federer's 100th title. We consider his chances of breaking Jimmy Connors's record of 109, and the odds that Nadal or Djokovic follow him to triple digits. We also do a deep dive into the enigma that is Nick Kyrgios and talk a bit about what to look forward to in Indian Wells.

Ep 50: Easy Draws, Tough Draws, and the Difficulty of Forecasting

February 25, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl spend much of the 50th episode on a familiar theme: the difficulty of judging a player's future by his current performance. We focus on the surprise finalists in Rio de Janeiro and Delray Beach, as well as Belinda Bencic's giant-slaying run in Dubai.

Ep 49: The New York Open, Surprise Finalists, and Clay Court Tactics

February 18, 2019 05:00 - 57 minutes - 1 Byte

Jeff quizzes Carl about his time at the second edition of the ATP New York Open, featuring breakthrough performances from big-serving American Reilly Opelka and underdog Canadian Brayden Schnur. We also talk doubles, clay-court specialists, and dirt-balling tactics.

Ep 48: Fed Cup and a Survey of Tennis Analytics

February 11, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl recap the weekend's Fed Cup action, considering the favorites now that the Czechs are out of the picture, and questioning whether the event needs the same overhaul that the Davis Cup is getting. The second half is a review of Jeff's recent analytical work at the Heavy Topspin blog.

Ep 47: Davis Cup and Another Week of Tennis Shenanigans

February 04, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl discuss the first-ever week of Davis Cup Qualifying, including the issues raised by Switzerland's early exit. We also look at some other Davis Cup-related business decisions, a WTA tournament on the move, the persistence of the serve clock, and the soaring status of Dayana Yastremska.

Ep 46: Australian Open Recap

January 28, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl discuss Naomi Osaka's second straight major title, and consider what it means for her future, both long-term and in the rest of this year's grand slam schedule. We also review the Djokovic-Nadal final, and wonder how anyone could ever beat Novak on a hard court.

Ep 45: Australian Open Week One

January 20, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl talk over a busy week's worth of results from Melbourne. Federer, Wozniacki, and Anderson suffered early exits; Tiafoe, Tsitsipas, Anismiova, and Pavlyuchenkova have shined; and a fast surface hasn't always had predictable effects.

Ep 44: Andy Murray's Retirement and an Australian Open Preview

January 13, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl consider where Murray ranks among the greatest of all time and wonders where he'll go from here. We also preview the first grand slam of the season, with a close look at an unpredictable women's draw and dose of uncertainty at the top of the men's bracket as well.

Ep 43: Berdych's Comeback, Andreescu's Breakthrough, and Karlovic's Longevity

January 07, 2019 05:00 - 1 hour - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl go through the plethora of results from the first week of the 2019 season, including surprise runs from 18-year-old Bianca Andreescu and 39-year-old Ivo Karlovic, along with strong comebacks from Tomas Berdych and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Ep 42: 2019 Season Preview

January 01, 2019 05:00 - 55 minutes - 1 Byte

Jeff and Carl look ahead to the 2019 season, chatting about the continued dominance of Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams, as well as the players most likely to emerge as stars. We also delve into the possible demise of the Hopman Cup and the complexities of the new ITF Transition Tour.

The Tennis Abstract Podcast

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