Tennis Unfiltered

Ben Rothenberg subs in once again for George Bellshaw, who returns on Monday. James Gray is here as always and they discussed... - The electronic line-calling farce that marred Sonay Kartal's defeat to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova - How Wimbledon responded to Hawk-Eye Live's failure - The threat of AI in journalism - Laura Siegemund's surprise run to the quarter-finals - Cam Norrie's win over Nico Jarry and his chances of upsetting Carlos Alcaraz And SO much more... As ever, do read Ben Rothenberg's Substack, Bounces: just head to benrothenberg.com and sign up using, well there isn't a promo code but there should be. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

James Gray runs down all the stories from the first half of the third round at Wimbledon. - Naomi Osaka misses out on her best-ever Wimbledon performance - Sonay Kartal is lost for words after an uber-clean win over Diane Parry - Emma Raducanu produces a creditable effort but is eventually out-blasted by Aryna Sabalenka on Centre Court - Cam Norrie is bafflingly asked if he is dating Emma Raducanu - Carlos Alcaraz almost trips over Jan-Lennard Struff Molly's piece on THAT Norrie questions: https://inews.co.uk/sport/tennis/questions-emma-raducanu-boyfriend-are-disgusting-sexist-3789380 James's analysis from Centre Court last night: https://inews.co.uk/sport/tennis/emma-raducanu-top-10-wimbledon-best-matches-3789374 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

George Bellshaw is back, a year older and wiser, to join James Gray on the podcast and look back at a bloodbath for the Brits. Four of the five remaining British men were taken out on the fourth day of play at Wimbledon. Dan Evans won just five games against Novak Djokovic and admitted he "doesn't know" if that was his last ever match at Wimbledon Jack Draper is out after a four-set defeat to an inspired Marin Cilic Zeynep Sonmez is still going! And more from the last embers of the second round at Wimbledon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ben Rothenberg (Bounces and No Challenges Remaining) subs in for George, joining James Gray to discuss all things Day 3 with an American slant. They talked about... - Taylor Fritz making it through two gruelling five-setters to then earn a reward of a cushy draw going forward - Madison Keys being, by default, the "Other Guy" of the women's draw - Oliver Tarvet's struggles to make any money - Emma Raducanu romping past Marketa Vondrousova - Naomi Osaka's best Wimbledon in seven years Please do take a look at Ben's Substack here: https://www.benrothenberg.com/ Or check out his book about Naomi Osaka: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Naomi-Osaka-Journey-Finding-Power/dp/0593472438/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

George Bellshaw has survived his bike ride and James Gray has survived the first round, so they've got their microphones together to discuss it all. Shock Exit for Coco Gauff: The biggest upset of the tournament saw French Open champion and No 2 seed Coco Gauff knocked out in the first round by Dayana Yastremska. Gauff struggled with her serve, recording nine double faults in a straight-sets defeat, making her only the third woman in the Open Era to lose in the first round of Wimbledon after winning Roland Garros. Top Seeds Continue to Tumble in Women's Draw: Beyond Gauff, the women's draw saw two more high-profile exits. No 5 seed Zheng Qinwen lost in the first round for the third consecutive Wimbledon, falling to Katerina Siniakova, while No 3 seed Jessica Pegula was also upset in straight sets by Elisabetta Cocciaretto, marking her earliest Grand Slam exit in five years. Zverev's Unexpected First-Round Loss: On the men's side, third seed Alexander Zverev suffered a surprising five-set defeat to Arthur Rinderknech. Zverev expressed feeling "empty" and "struggling mentally" after the match, which was suspended overnight due to Wimbledon's 11pm curfew. Fritz Survives Marathon including Record Serve: Taylor Fritz emerged victorious in a gruelling five-set match against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, which spanned two days due to the curfew. Notably, Mpetshi Perricard hit the fastest serve in Wimbledon history at 153mph during the match, though Fritz managed to win that point. British Hopes Progress to make it 10 in R2: There was mixed news for British players. Jack Draper advanced to the second round after his opponent retired injured, and young Jack Pinnington Jones secured a maiden Grand Slam win. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Live from SW19, it's James Gray (The i Paper) and George Bellshaw (anyone who asks). They discuss... Emma Raducanu's straight sets victory over fellow Brit Mimi Xu, with whom there appears to be no love lost Daniil Medvedev's defeat to Benjamin Bonzi, who shocked the Russian with his level The retirement of Stefanos Tsitsipas, whose coach Goran Ivanisevic had some choice words to say about his fitness levels Carlos Alcaraz's shaky five-set win over Fabio Fognini And a bit more to boot! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

James Gray and George Bellshaw inspect a rudimentary way of ranking the Wimbledon contenders, before James looks back at media day after Novak Djokovic interrupted Aryna Sabalenka's press conference and Dan Evans got emotional talking about his efforts to get back to the top of the game. MEDIA DAY HIGHLIGHTS Jack Draper: "Andy has done an unbelievable job of that and has been incredibly successful and has become adored by the nation. It's obviously big shoes to fill. I'm aware of that. At the same time I'm confident in myself that hopefully I can inspire people like Andy has done, myself." Emma Raducanu: "Truthfully I don't expect much from myself this year. I know I've just been dealing with certain things. I just want to go out there and embrace the moment. I want to embrace the occasion." Novak Djokovic: "Whether it could be my last dance, I'm not sure, as I'm not sure about Roland Garros or any other slam that I play next. My wish is to play for several more years. I would love to be healthy physically and also mentally motivated to keep on playing at the highest level. That's the goal, but you never know at this stage." Aryna Sabalenka (on her comments about Coco Gauff): "I did what I did. I get what I deserve, I believe. It was tough time for me. I'm glad I had a book at Mykonos so I could just get distracted by reading book. I got back to reading! So the lesson is learned. Definitely not going to happen again." JOIN FANTASY WIMBLEDON NOW: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/14u_zTiSph5KWffJE2iC0SZG24h-fC1fRtEarTPfftls Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Join George Bellshaw and James Gray for an in-depth analysis of the 2025 Wimbledon draw. In this comprehensive 75-minute breakdown, we dissect every section of the men's and women's singles draws, examining why this year looks like a dream scenario for Carlos Alcaraz and a potential nightmare for British hopeful Jack Draper. We also give you our tips for our bespoke Fantasy Wimbledon game, which you can enter here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/14u_zTiSph5KWffJE2iC0SZG24h-fC1fRtEarTPfftls Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

James Gray and Calvin Betton are in Eastbourne while George Bellshaw dials in from an early-morning gym session in London. They discussed... Carlos Alcaraz beats Jiri Lehecka to claim the title at Queen's once again and reinforce his status as favourite for the Wimbledon title Dan Evans got first top 20 win since 2023 and only his second ever on grass at Queen's to upset Frances Tiafoe and gets a wildcard for Wimbledon Jannik Sinner loses to Alexander Bublik, his worst lost by ranking since 2023, first time he has lost to not Alcaraz since August 2024 The US Open have announced the Mixed Doubles Championship, featuring Osaka/Kyrgios, Alcaraz/Raducanu and more Maria Sakkari and Yulia Putintseva are involved in one of tennis's great spats Wimbledon confirm wildcards, including one for Petra Kvitova, who says she will retire after the US Open later this year. Lois Boisson misses out Emma Raducanu is quizzed about equal prize money but says she doesn't want to get involved in the conversation Katie Boulter shares some of the abuse she gets on a regular basis from disgruntled gamblers on social media Tennis in brief Debbie Jevans, chair of the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC), has confirmed plans for a statue of Andy Murray at Wimbledon. Jevans says she and the AELTC are “working closely” with Murray on the plans, which involve the statue being unveiled in 2027, fittingly marking the 150th anniversary of the first Championships. Jannik Sinner has recorded a duet of "Con Te Partirò" with Andrea Bocelli, marking the tennis player's first foray into music. The collaboration was announced this week and was recorded in a studio in Tuscany. The video features footage from the pair's childhoods and more recent clips of the singer and Sinner, clutching a racket and tennis ball, in front of a piano in Bocelli's Tuscan home. After nearly two years in the wilderness, former Wimbledon champion Markéta Vondroušová has won the Berlin Open, defeating Chinese qualifier Wang Xinyu in a hard-fought final. The Czech left-hander came through 7–6, 4–6, 6–2, saving six set points in a dramatic opening set. It’s her first title since Wimbledon 2023, and a timely return to form just ahead of this year’s Championships. It was a statement win that included toppling world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals—her first career victory over a reigning number one. American McCartney Kessler claimed her first grass-court title at the Nottingham Open, defeating Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska 6-4, 7-5 in a rain-interrupted final. The unseeded 23-year-old from Georgia knocked out defending two-time champion Katie Boulter and top seed Beatriz Haddad Maia en route to capturing her third career WTA title. It's been a remarkable 12-month run for Kessler, who has now won all three of her career titles since Cleveland last summer. This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Calvin Betton's latest glamorous venue is the Premier Inn Putney, joining George Bellshaw and James Gray for another week of news from the tennis world. First of all, we wish Luke Johnson all the best after a nasty fall and wrist injury at Queen's on Sunday. Listen on for more details... 00:00 - Reaction to our French Open final debate 03:27 - Concerns over court safety at Queen's Club 10:30 - The return of women's tennis to Queen's 14:06 - Tatiana Maria's historic win 19:37 - The state of British women's tennis 30:16 - The rollercoaster of Emma Raducanu's career 47:45 - The great Wimbledon prize money debate 57:40 - WTA's support for female players 01:00:26 - The mental game in tennis rivalries 01:06:15 - Taylor Fritz vs. Alexander Zverev: PIGEON ALERT! 01:12:17 - Taylor Fritz's grand slam journey 01:15:12 - Emerging contenders for the Wimbledon title 01:17:50 - Head-to-Head (George vs Calvin) This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Calvin Betton, George Bellshaw and James Gray are back together again for a review of the French Open at Roland Garros, culminating in two memorable singles finals for quite different reasons. 01:10 - Alcaraz's Historic Victory: Breaking down Carlos Alcaraz victory over Jannik Sinner in five sets. 04:53 - Debating the Match's Greatness: Where George and Calvin clash on where this final ranks in tennis history 12:15 - Men's final analysis: A deeper dive into tactical approaches and execution under pressure 20:11 - The Impact of Crowd Dynamics: Did the Philippe Chatrier crowd lift Alcaraz to victory or affect Sinner's mindset? 29:47 - Future of Men's Tennis Rivalries: Who can come through, if anyone, to challenge Sinner and Alcaraz? 34:07 - The Women's Final: Coco Gauff beats Aryna Sabalenka in an error-strewn final 46:47 - Sabalenka's press conference was classless or honest?: Analysing Aryna Sabalenka's post-match comments and media reaction 51:34 - Two doubles finals of quality and drama: Calvin breaks down the two doubles finals 55:37 - Hawkeye and Line Calls: The French Open's Technology Debate: Why doesn't Roland Garros use HawkEye? 01:03:26 - TNT Coverage and Commentary Quality: Critiquing broadcast quality and commentary insights after TNT announce they will cover the French Open until 2030. 01:11:25 - Nadal vs. New Generation: Was John McEnroe right that Alcaraz and Sinner would beat prime Nadal, even on clay? The changing of the guard at Roland Garros 01:17:06 - Head-to-Head Challenge: James takes on Calvin in a grass-themed quiz set by George This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Calvin Betton is back! The double French Open quarter-finalist is back in the UK after a two-week jaunt at Roland Garros, gutted but pleased at the same time. He and James Gray (The i Paper) break down the French Open semi-finals in which Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka set up a high-calibre final, before Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner fulfilled their destiny by reaching a grand slam final against each other for the very first time. This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠⁠⁠⁠ Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Down to one court, and the singles at Roland Garros becomes a rarefied atmosphere, to say the least. Just ask Mirra Andreeva, who melted under the pressure of playing a home favourite in Lois Boisson. Same could be said of Alexander Zverev, beaten by Novak Djokovic, while Alexander Bublik or Tommy Paul were never expected to stop Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz's inexorable march to the final. All that and more with James Gray and George Bellshaw This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠⁠⁠ Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

11 of 16 top-eight seeds in the quarter-finals! George Bellshaw and James Gray sit down to discuss a loaded second week of the French Open in the men's and the women's draw, the end of the British bid for Roland Garros glory and the return (or is it?) of Iga Swiatek. (Calvin Betton is also winning matches, but what's new?) This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠⁠ Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠ For the first time since 2003 in Paris all top eight women's seeds have reached the last 16, and in the men's draw seven of the top 10 have done so as well as all the major threats for the title. R4 ones to watch: Swiatek vs Rybakina, Sabalenka vs Anisimova, Paolini vs Svitolina, Andreeva vs Kasatkina, Sinner vs Rublev, Musetti vs Rune, Shelton vs Alcaraz Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered Seeds out: (ATP) Ruud, De Minaur, Mensik, Tsitsipas, Humbert, Davidovich Fokina, Shapovalov, Mpetshi Perricard; (WTA) Shnaider, Krejcikova, Vekic, Frech R3 ones to watch: Draper vs Fonseca, Fearnley vs Norrie, Rublev vs Fils; Ostapenko vs Rybakina, Gauff vs Bouzkova, Andreeva vs Putintseva Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered ATP seeds out: Medvedev, Fritz, Dimitrov, Cerundolo, Machac, Nakashima, Auger-Aliassime, Hurkacz, Michelsen WTA seeds out: Navarro, Muchova, Haddad Maia, Mertens, Kostyuk, Fernandez, Stearns, Noskova, Kalinskaya Round Two match-up picks: Fearnley vs Humbert, Moutet vs Djokovic, Raducanu vs Swiatek⁠⁠⁠, Paolini vs Tomljanovic Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠⁠⁠ Calvin Betton drags himself out of a karaoke bar in Hamburg to join James Gray for a look back at the Italian Open, before Myles David of Tuned Into Tennis dials in from Houston, TX to discuss Jasmine Paolini's victory over Coco Gauff. They talked about the following... Carlos Alcaraz ended Jannik Sinner’s 26-match unbeaten run on Sunday to claim the Italian Open title and deny the Rome crowd a home winner in the men’s event for the first time since the 1970s, triumphing 7-6, 6-1. It was Sinner’s first straight sets defeat since the 2023 ATP Tour Finals against Novak Djokovic. In coaching news, Djokovic and Andy Murray have split after six months working together. Djokovic said: “Thank you, coach Andy, for all the hard work, fun & support over last six months on & off the court, really enjoyed deepening our friendship together.” Murray said: “Thanks to Novak for the unbelievable opportunity to work together and thanks to his team for all their hard work over the past six months. I wish Novak all the best for the rest of the season.” Nick Kyrgios is playing doubles with Jordan Thompson at the French Open Jasmine Paolini is the Rome champion, ending a 40-year wait for a home winner of Italian Open. She was already the first Italian finalist in 11 years but then swatted Coco Gauff aside 6-4, 6-2. Emma Raducanu picks up three valuable wins on the clay Peyton Stearns shrugs off Tom Hill's shock departure to show her class in Rome Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠⁠ Calvin Betton joins live from Rome, where he has been busy celebrating the new pope (not), George Bellshaw is at home in north London and James Gray is hanging on to reality after 1000 miles of driving in one weekend. Nevertheless, they got themselves together to talk about... Jannik Sinner's return to tour tennis, whether he is already the French Open favourite and how beneficial this enforced time off might have been What's going on with Novak Djokovic How Iga Swiatek is supposed to recover from yet another awful defeat PLUS: An epic head-to-head between Calvin and George Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: ⁠http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered⁠ The lads are back together! For the first time in a couple of weeks, James Gray (The i Paper), Calvin Betton (ATP coach) and George Bellshaw (gun for hire) are all in the same (virtual) place at the same time - and it took some time to catch up. They discussed... Jack Draper came within a set of a second Masters 1000 title in four attempts, but was eventually edged out by Casper Ruud in Madrid Aryna Sabalenka stormed to the title once again while Iga Swiatek was knocked out by former pigeon Coco Gauff. What's wrong with the former world No 1? Novak Djokovic has pulled out of Rome but Jannik Sinner certainly hasn't, the Italian making his first appearance this week since serving a three-month ban Carlos Alcaraz says he prefers the one-week Masters events, as does Andy Murray Alexander Bublik says tennis was easy five years ago and now it's hard. Frances Tiafoe and Alexander Zverev think so too. Save more, earn more—up to 4.48% AER (variable). Interest rates are tiered, with the top rate for balances over £1M. Each tiered rate applies to the portion within that range. New Tide members get these rates free for 6 months; after that, your Tide plan’s rates apply. For full offer T&Cs visit ⁠tide.co/savings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices