2026 Grass Kick-Off Results: Shelton & Vekic Titles, Raducanu Withdrawal & More

Summary

Served with Andy Roddick | Episode Recap

Episode: “2026 Grass Kick-Off Results: Shelton & Vekic Titles, Raducanu Withdrawal & More”

Date: June 16, 2026
Host(s): Andy Roddick, Jon Wertheim, Producer Mike
Theme:
This episode opens the grass-court swing, recapping early summer tournaments, surprising title runs by Donna Vekic and Ben Shelton, Emma Raducanu’s controversial withdrawal, and Serena Williams’ high-profile doubles return. The crew also previews the much-anticipated Chris Evert & Martina Navratilova Netflix doc and reflects on unique aspects of grass-court tennis in the run-up to Wimbledon.

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1. Grass Season Begins: Roddick & JW Set The Scene (01:28–02:30)

• Key Point: The hosts express excitement at returning to grass, with Roddick noting the relief he always felt switching from clay:
  • "One of my happiest days of the year ... I sucked on clay ... three-hour train ride ... pop up ... the houses look different and all of a sudden I was good at tennis again." – Roddick (01:39)
• They tease later discussions on the Chrissy & Martina doc, Serena's comeback, and dig into grass-court results.

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2. Donna Vekic’s Queens Title as a Lucky Loser (02:30–04:30)

• Result: Vekic wins her first title in over three years, entering as a lucky loser at Queens.

• Analysis:

  • Roddick emphasizes how Vekic’s game “fits the grass very well” and how big, flat hitting is rewarded on the surface.
  • JW highlights Vekic's likability and her reunion with original coach David Felgate, comparing it to “getting back with an old romantic interest.” (03:30)
  • “Very hard not to like Donna Vekic... always sort of fun and she's got these outside of tennis interests.” – JW (03:30)

• Implications for Wimbledon: Both agree no top player wants Vekic early in the draw, especially now she has momentum (04:28).

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3. Emma Raducanu: Strong Results, Scheduling Controversy (04:30–06:51, 28:21–36:42)

• Run: Raducanu makes the Queens final, then withdraws from Nottingham after accepting a wild card, sparking debate.

• Roddick’s praise:

  • “When she is in England and playing well, her game translates to grass. I think grass is her best surface.” (05:13)
  • Compares a key forehand pattern to Roger Federer: “She’s able to take that forehand... off that right foot, cutting the corner, coming in... like Roger did.” (05:13)

• Wildcard Withdrawal (28:21–36:42):

  • Roddick: Defends her choice as “completely rational,” considering evolving tournament circumstances and Wimbledon prep. “Pretending like it’s the same conversation before quarterfinal... as after you’ve made final... is idiotic.” (30:47)
  • JW: “Get it while you can” philosophy; supports players making selfish scheduling decisions for career longevity (31:38).

• Scheduling Critique: Both wish Raducanu would play more consistently, given her talent. JW: “The stops and the starts and erratic scheduling... I don't always think she's made the best scheduling decisions.” (36:06)

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4. Robin Montgomery: Qualifier Triumphs in the Netherlands (05:54–07:36)

• Headline: Ranked No. 484, Montgomery wins as a qualifier (final via walkover from Krejcikova), but must still play Wimbledon qualies.

• JW: Praises “fun lefty” and her resilience after wrist injury; notes she's only 21 – “Round of applause, Robin Montgomery. That's a nice result for a player we haven't heard from in a while.” (06:51)

• Context: Anderson also highlights Krejcikova’s bad luck with injuries and her status as a dangerous floater if unseeded at Wimbledon (07:36–12:07).

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5. Krejcikova’s Withdrawal & ‘Nightmare’ Draws at Wimbledon (07:36–12:56)

• Krejcikova: Forced withdrawal in the final from an upper respiratory infection—not a major injury, which Roddick calls “a relief.” (08:04)

• Analysis:

  • Both laud her as “a hall of fame player” and a “consummate pro” whose low ranking belies her danger on grass—especially for early-round opponents (09:30–10:59).
  • Roddick’s ‘thought exercise’: How rare it is for a player to win both French Open & Wimbledon singles in a career—“That list will amaze and shock you.” (12:36)

• Wimbledon on Grass: Grass season is brief, increasing the odds of upsets by unseeded “floaters,” making draws especially dangerous (12:56).

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6. The Unique Challenges of Grass-Court Tennis (16:15–18:38)

• Roddick Explains (by listener request):
  • “Depth is more rewarded on grass than any other surface.”
  • “First-strike tennis gets rewarded more on grass than any other surface.”
  • Movement is different: “Your best play is running through the shot by half a step or full step.” (16:51)
• JW & Host 2: Note that casual tennis fans rarely experience grass, which has unique technical and tactical demands.

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7. Men’s Results: Majchrzak & Shelton Claim Breakthrough Titles; 30 Is The New 20? (20:13–24:38)

• Poland’s Majchrzak (called “Mikecheck” in-joke): Wins first ATP title at 30, beating three consecutive top-10 players (FAA, Medvedev, de Minaur):

  • “30 years old, wins his first title. Like, this is kind of... the tennis version of a 37-year-old actor who’s like, Clooney did it.” – Roddick (20:50)
  • “That is, that’s, that’s honest.” – JW on the achievement (21:42)

• American Power Surge: Ben Shelton beats Fritz for Stuttgart title:

  • Noted for a “rollercoaster” year but now has three titles in 2026, including his first on grass (23:27).
  • “Ben and Taylor (Fritz) kind of reestablishing their form on grass... Happy times. Sure neither one is disappointed to be off the clay.” – Roddick (24:15)

• Transitioning from Clay to Grass:

  • “It’s a complete reset... You can sort of flush out your clay results. It’s like a whole new lease on life.” – JW (24:48)

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8. Serena Williams Returns: The Doubles Test & The Singles Question (38:49–47:28)

• Serena’s Comeback:

  • “It was just vintage Serena... so timeless, that motion.” – Roddick (39:15)
  • “I think Serena 2026 probably beats Serena 2022. I think she looked terrific.” – JW (39:20)
  • The effect on opponents: “That’s something to bake into the match. You’re on the other side of greatness.” (40:36)

• Doubles vs. Singles:

  • Roddick: “Serena Williams, when she knows where the ball is going, is going to punish that ball. Right? We need to see movement.” – questions remain about side-to-side movement at 43–44 (41:08, 42:19)
  • Both agree her real target may be singles, with doubles a ramp-up: “You left that match going, I want to see the singles.” – Roddick (43:42)

• Training & Preparation:

  • The use of GLP-1s (weight-loss medication) is discussed as an obvious, smart way to extend her comeback. “This is exactly what she should have done... This is the only responsible thing...” – Roddick (46:09)
  • “I think this was all done really wisely.” – JW (45:06)
  • JW: “If in fact Serena takes a singles wildcard into Wimbledon ... she’s already winning. She’s already got a break of serve before she hits her first ball.” (48:56)

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9. Documentary Preview: Chrissy & Martina’s Enduring Rivalry and Sisterhood (50:43–57:57)

• Netflix Documentary “Final Set” (out June 26):

  • JW offers behind-the-scenes insights, praises director Becca Gitlis, and describes the deep friendship and rivalry between Evert and Navratilova.
  • “They sort of said, listen, we got to lean into this. We may be depriving each other a few majors, but ultimately we’re making each other better because we’re pushing each other and innovating.” – JW (51:36)
  • Touching on their shared cancer battles: “You don’t know what life is going to throw at you.” (54:47)

• Roddick: Shares awe at their connection and is excited for the release: “I cannot wait to see this documentary.” (56:14)

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10. Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “There’s no script for sports. You make the best decision at that time and everything might change within three days based on wins or losses.” – Roddick on wildcards (30:47)
• “You want to meet these people and have dinner with them for the rest of time.” – JW on Evert & Navratilova (54:47)
• “Wimbledon has the most of those [dangerous floaters]. Like, ‘watch out for this player, they will fuck you up on this surface.’” – Roddick (12:56)
• “If you see Serena playing singles practice sets in Berlin this week, that’s a big tell.” – Roddick (44:54)
• “You get matches is really important. These stops and these starts… For so many players … match play helps.” – JW (34:51)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:30] – Donna Vekic’s Lucky Loser Title
• [05:13] – Raducanu’s Grass-Court Strengths
• [06:51] – Robin Montgomery’s Breakthrough
• [09:30] – Krejcikova’s Status & Significance
• [12:07] – Dangerous Draws at Wimbledon
• [16:51] – Grass-Court Nuances Explained
• [20:13] – Majchrzak’s Breakthrough at 30
• [23:27] – Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz on Grass
• [28:21, 34:51] – Raducanu Scheduling/Scheduling Debate
• [38:49] – Serena Williams’ Comeback
• [50:43] – Chrissy & Martina Netflix Doc Discussion

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11. Closing & Upcoming Content

• Teaser for Thursday’s special grass-court Q&A.
• Netflix’s “Final Set” drops June 26.
• Social media poll: "Who deserves a Wimbledon wildcard?"

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Summary Verdict

Engaging, insightful, and honest, this episode offers a comprehensive round-up of early grass results, flagging key stories to watch for Wimbledon. The hosts combine technical expertise and playful banter, giving both tennis diehards and newcomers food for thought. Must-listen sections include the analysis of Vekic’s resurgence, Raducanu’s unique career arc, and the emotionally rich preview of the Evert-Navratilova documentary.

Transcript

[Host 1]

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[Host 2]

A lot of shows. Yeah, we did a lot. We loved every second of it.

[Host 1]

I've even been in like we've been doing stump stuff this week and it's still just, it's like I didn't know

[Host 2]

what to do with my hands.

[Host 1]

It's like free and easy. You know. One of the days where we just did one show a week. Welcome to Served. I'm excited for grass court season. I always said like one of my happiest days of the year would be all it took to go from at least for me personally because I sucked on clay. Just a little three hour train ride and you pop under the little channel and you pop up. The houses look different and all of a sudden I was good at tennis again. This was, there was a great, it was a great, great little pop up. I was like, ah, this is good. I can be a good player again. JW Techian Producer Mike in the house. Let's get to the racket Rundown brought to you by Wilson. Let's get to some some results. We're Going to get to a little Serena later in the show. We're going to get talk to. JW has been involved on the production side with the Chrissy Martina doc. So I want to spend some time on that. But let's get to this week's results. First, Donna Vekich, lucky loser. This. This thing. I want to. I want to spend some time on the backside of this. But Vekich wins against Radicanu as a lucky loser in Queens. Our first title in over three years. I thought she looked great. I Wimbledon semifinalist two years ago and we forget that she made the final. Donna Vec can play on the surface because she can control the middle of the court. It's tough to get her sideline to sideline because you don't have time. When the ball is coming hard, flat through the court and skidding, it is tough to create angles. So it's not coincidence that all of a sudden she shows up on grass and her game fits and she gets a couple of matches in and she looks like Donna Vecic from two years ago. Surface dependent. Her game fits the grass very well. Was very happy to see her. Her. Her close that one out. JW new coach too.

[JW]

You know, we are not supposed to root. At least I'm not. But very hard not to like Donna Vecich. Just kind of a good tennis citizen. She's always sort of fun and she's got these outside of tennis interests. It was beeswax candles. But I forget what. She has a new sort of venture on the side. Anyway, it's very nice to see her. She had a rough stretch and now is back in the top 40. That was a nice title. I think you're right. I mean, Donna Vecic on grass with those big, heavy flat strokes. And also remember David Felgate? You remember him? Yeah, just good dude with Tim for a long time, Xavier Malise, and he was sort of Donna Vecic's first coach and now they're back together. So very cool. I think we. I think we see that more in tennis and we, you know, it's like getting back with an old romantic interest. Hey, we had a pretty good thing going, now that we think about it. We've been seeing that more and more. But Donna Vaccine back with David Felgate, very nice result. Watch for her at Wimbledon. She probably will be. I don't know what her ranking. I think she's. She's like 34 now or something.

[Host 2]

She's up in the mid-30s. Yeah.

[Host 1]

I'll tell you this. There's a Lot of people in that draw that want. I don't know if she's playing this week or not, but there's a lot of people that want to see her get seated. She is not. I mean, there's. I don't care who you are. I don't care if you're SA or Coco. You don't. You don't want to see Vage first round on a grass court, especially when she's got matches underneath her belt. That's a warning shot. I want to discuss Emma, but I think there's more to that. I think you had some stuff on it, Mike, so we're going to save that for the end. She had a great run. I love the way she played just purely on tennis and not decision making and not the. The fishbowl that exists around Emma. When she is in England and playing well, her game translates to grass. I think grass is her best service. I know she won the US Open on hardcourt. She switches directions.

[Host 2]

Great.

[Host 1]

She hits behind people really well. She's able to take that forehand and kind of hit that. And let's not get crazy. It doesn't mean she does it as well as this person. It means she's capable of doing it. Similarly, too off that right foot, cutting the corner and coming in off the forehand side like Roger did. Right. Like, she has that play. Obviously, it's not as effective. It's not. He's the best ever at it. But she volleys great when she's serving well. If she's not strictly just getting overpowered. I don't see her losing a lot of matches on. On. On this surface. Right. She's still. People can still go through her. Vetich largely did that for the afternoon, but I thought it was a great result for her. A lot of similar storylines with. With Richardson and her. Her coach coming back, you know, know, five years later. The what if game is. Is a tough one not to play in that scenario. But we'll get to Emma a little bit more on the other side. Robin Montgomery qualifier. Like, think about what we're doing here. Kinska in. In Roland Garros qualifier. Veg lucky loser in Queens, Robin Montgomery qualifier and wins the tournament. Krishikova has to withdraw in the final. So a little bit of a WA situation. But listen, you're 194 in the world and you go in a title as a qualifier. Well done. Robin Montgomery. Fun lefty. It's good to watch her play again. This does not put her in the main draw of Wimbledon. She will win a Title and then have to be in qualifying going into Wimbledon. She, there's, there's going to be no wild card given there. So it's back to. It's weird. You play in a final and then all of a sudden you're back to the drawing board.

[JW]

Jw, I just looked this up. So I'm cheating. She was ranked 484 coming in the dreaded wrist injury. I mean, yeah, I mean we've talked a lot about wrist injury in the last few weeks. Here's another good news. She seems like she's been around a lot. She doesn't turn 22 until the US Open. But yeah, I mean the lefty game. And she's had a lot of nice wins in the juniors and then coming up and was close, clearly sidelined. But yeah, God, this qualifying draw is not half bad either. But what a win for her. And yeah, nice, nice. American lefty winning a title at age 21. Round of applause. Round of applause. Robin Montgomery. That's a nice result for a player we haven't heard, haven't heard from her in a while. So very nice.

[Host 1]

It's also concerning when you see a withdrawal with Krishikova. You kind of are at the point in. And she was who Montgomery got the walkover from in the final. Two time slam champion, won a million doubles titles. You know, was two in the world in singles, one in the world in doubles. A great player in my opinion. She's a hall of fame player. She has had so many injuries. It's like it's, it's, it's the street with a speed bump, right? There's a stop and a start.

[JW]

You get.

[Host 1]

And then you have to slow down. You go. And then you have to stop and then it stops and then, you know, it's just. I was relieved when it was an upper. This is gonna be in. Don't take this like in an insensitive way. Let me get to my point. I was relieved when it was an upper respiratory infection. Now that can be remedied with, with, with medicine. I'm happy it's not like a torn meniscus in your knee or something that is gonna put you out for months. Krachikova was rolling in this tournament before she was sick or while she was sick. She's another circle vic if she's unseated. Circle Krishikova, as someone who nobody wants to play first or second round in this tournament, especially when she, she's one of those players, she wins four matches and you go, oh shit, here it comes. She could win. I mean, the year she won Wimbledon, she barely won matches the entire year. Like, she didn't. I mean, she's the what if game. You can apply to so many players. But like, there's no doubt in my mind that when Korchikova is healthy and firing and in match shape that she's one of the 10 best players in the world. JW, is that, is, is that a nutty thing to say?

[JW]

That's about right, yeah. I mean, this is, I mean, I'm

[Host 1]

just talking about like, she's in form, she's a great.

[JW]

I think you're right. I mean, she's a hall of Famer. If she retired tomorrow.

[Host 1]

Yeah.

[JW]

She's 23 months removed from winning this tournament.

[Host 1]

Yep.

[JW]

She has a wild tennis resume. I mean, it's, it's not quite radicanu level, but, you know, she's won two majors and lord, so many doubles titles and she just, she doesn't get in her own way. She's athletic, she's versatile, but I think a lot of her strength is mental. And you're right. I mean, the issue has been physical injury over the last 24 months. But yeah, I think what is she up to? So she's 39, so in, in theory, she could still be seated at Wimbledon. Talk about another player you don't want to see anywhere near you.

[Host 1]

But it's a lot of withdrawals. You have to figure if she has an upper respiratory issue, that she's not playing this week. Like, it's tough to retire on a, on a. Pull out on a Saturday or Sunday and play on a Monday. Like if, if I'm her camp, I'm going, you got the matches, you got the confidence. You know, let's get better and not turn this into a, you know, 10 day exhaustion ordeal. But the other thing about her, and we often apply this narrative to people who are aggressive with their personality or chippy or edgy off the court. She's none of those things. She's like one of the nicest people that's ever lived, but she's not scared of anyone. I don't think she cares if she's 65 in the world and playing someone two in the world. She's got, she's got all upside. The person two in the world is gonna be a lot more scared to play her than, than, than vice versa. I mean, is that, is that a nutty. I, I feel like I'm just.

[JW]

No, I think that's really well put. There is a level of confidence there, but it is a soft power confidence.

[Host 1]

Yeah.

[JW]

And this is not someone who courts drama. She wins a lot of, remember her match, the Taylor Townsend match at the Open. She actually had match point at Roland Garros against Haley Baptiste. I think she wins that match. She's probably seeded going into Wimbledon. But this is someone who, injury wise there have been a lot of ups and downs. But as far as just a mature, composed, poised player with a lot of options to her game and a lot of levels. And I just. Big picture, you love someone who's won majors and majors and majors and doubles. And he says, you know what, this is all well and good, but I don't think there's any reason why I can't carry that over to my singles game. I'm going to funnel my attention there and wins two majors on two different surfaces in a compressed amount of time. This is just a consummate pro. And I think this time off, I mean she's had a lot of time off the last two years to probably get some of that time on the back end of her career. But yeah, is this A Player Top 10 Wimbledon contenders, if healthy, unquestionably well draw dependent.

[Host 1]

Right. I think she's one of the 10 best players now if she plays Sabalenka second round, then, you know, who knows? Contender wise, like contender. It helps if you're cheated. Honestly. Honestly, it does. But like this is a thought exercise and in, in the comments, go, go click away and this will be a fun little game for the audience. Think of the people on their resumes who have won the French Open and Wimbledon. Sabalenka won neither.

[JW]

Right. Like Osaka. Neither.

[Host 1]

Neither. Coco's won one. Like just go through his. Not, I'm not talking about just current players. I'm saying the people that have won the French Open in Wimbledon in singles are all time greats. Ego, male, female ego. I mean, yeah, you're looking at like the, that's what I'm saying. You're looking like the titans of industry. Venus never won the French Open.

[Host 2]

That's what I'm saying.

[Host 1]

Yeah, you're looking at, Mike, you're looking at, I mean, I'll take it one further. That's a great question. Is it her and Borg, the only people that have done it, that haven't won the career Slam. Like, I don't, I mean, I, I, I don't think that's probably going to end up being the answer, but it's just, just think about the significance of winning the French Open and Wimbledon in singles in your Career. That list will amaze and shock you. Like all the little one slam motherfuckers like me. Like, we're not. It's. It ain't that. Ain't that list. Like this is that. That's some serious company. But keep an eye on her. If healthy. No one wants to see that. Wimbledon, almost more than any event is like the run up. There are so few events to the run up that that nervy first or second round draw. Like, if you're great on clay, you're most likely seated at Roland Garros because you have five months to make hay during the season or four months to make hay. You have a two month lead up into it. So you're most likely seated as far as like dangerous floaters and the draw go. Wimbledon has the most of those. Like, watch out for this player. They will fuck you up on this surface. Like there's more of that in Wimbledon and we're kind of. I love watching these early weeks on grass just because you can start seeing, oh, I don't really want to play that person. Thanks for listening to Served. We will be right back. Chuckers. We're coming up on our big trip to London, and as we all know, the the tour schedule is relentless. Travel isn't always easy for the fans either. All across the globe, tennis fans are watching the tour calendar and draw releases to plan their dream trips. Here at Served, we're still planning our itinerary in London, but at least we locked in the most important part, our home for the tournament, which we found on Airbnb. Fans like me will be looking for a home away from home over the next few months. Whether it's next door to us in London or later this summer in Montreal. You. Your home could be worth something right now to fans around the world. So become part of the story. You can list your space on Airbnb, give those fans exactly what they're looking for, and even make some extra money while you're at it. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how [e-mail] host they say

[JW]

you can tell a lot about a person by the contents of their freezer. So what does a bottle of Jagermeister say? It says you have standards, you don't cut corners. And you like your Jagermeister shots the way they're meant to be enjoyed. Ice cold. As for the frozen taquitos and mystery leftovers, we'll keep that between us. Drink it cold or don't drink it at all. Jagermeister. Damn, that's cold drink responsibly. Jagermeister liqueur, 35% alcohol by volume. Imported by Mast. Jagermeister US White Plains, New York.

[Host 1]

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[JW]

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[Host 1]

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[JW]

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[Host 1]

This is incredible. Wow.

[Host 2]

I am clearing the rest of the day.

[Host 1]

Disney and Pixar's Hoppers now available on Disney. Rated pg. All right, back to the show.

[JW]

You want to take a little detour. This will be a good. This is good prep for your ESPN debut. When you're working with someone who just all of a sudden on Live for you, takes you in a weird way.

[Host 1]

I forgot about that.

[JW]

You like how I'm gassing him up, Mike, this is. We're gonna have a real rollout in a few weeks, but give. I mean, I feel like a lot of casual tennis players, casual fans, right? They get clay, they've slid around. It may not be red clay, but grass is still one of those surfaces where there are entire US States that don't have a single grass court. Just give a little thumbnail. What are people not giving, getting when they watch grass court tennis?

[Host 1]

The biggest thing that gets overlooked is one the lazy narrative is big serve going to go far in grass if you can't return. Like, point out how many guys that can't return win Wimbledon. Not since like the 70s. That's not like a real thing anymore. People don't come in. You have to like, you look at Leighton Hewitt, he was a nightmare on grass. Didn't serve huge, but he got. Did he hold? I don't know what the numbers are.10% more because grass was helping him. And did he break less? Maybe a little. But like that offset of percentages was beneficial to him, right? You can keep the ball down. A deep shot on grass. Depth is more rewarded on grass than any other surface. The movement matters, right? You can see great movers on every other surface that do that. Like edge of the shoe, stop, open stance. And a lot of times in Wimbledon, your best play is running through the shot by half a step or a full step, right? Contact in the impact on the ball matters more on grass than any other surface. If you can chip and take time away. If you can cut the corner and play an approach shot kind of on the move and take it in, all of that stuff matters, right? Ball flight Matters this top spinny get out of trouble with height. Fallinska style from Roland Garros. That shit doesn't translate on, on grass there are so many nuances. Hard return through the middle. That's why Novak has done so well for so long. Like if you're picking a ball up off your shoe tops in the middle, you can't create angle because the ball is shooting through. So you kind of have to play up to someone. And if the ball's up at your shoulders on grass, it doesn't take the spin. Then you can drive it to the corners. First strike tennis gets rewarded more on grass than any other surface.

[Host 2]

Yeah, Novak was at an F1 race this weekend. They were asking him how excited he is for, for Wimbledon and how he feels about it. And he's like, I'm, I'm looking forward to it because I don't have to run as much as you do on clay. I think it's interesting you were just talking about that.

[Host 1]

You can hit yourself out of trouble more than any other surface. And I mean, if I'm Novak, I don't know that we'll find an analyst that doesn't think Wimbledon is his best shot, especially without Carlos. There are question marks about Jannik. I know you've been on, you, you've been on the like, let's see, 25 train for a while there. JW, you were willing it. And Roland Garros. This is a real shot. I don't hate that he didn't make the semis of Roland Garros. This is a. I guarantee you he knows this is a shot. He's taken a picture of the landscape of, of tennis. Obviously Sinner is still going to be center, but he's going, listen, I could be the best grass court player in this tournament now. Am I in my prime? Probably not. Am I good enough? I don't know if I'm in team. Team Novak. I can convince myself of that reality pretty easily. Yeah. It's nuanced though. Switching directions with a chip, you get more out of switching direction and depth and less from standing back and getting height on the ball than, than most surfaces. Techie. Sean.

[JW]

Yes.

[Host 1]

Do you remember how much fun we had when we discovered that players announced their own names on the websites? Of course.

[Host 2]

I love it.

[Host 1]

I feel like we spent three weeks, maybe like a year and a half ago just going, my jock, my chalk, my chalk. Jack, Mike, Jock.

[Host 2]

Finally.

[Host 1]

It's not going to be funny to anyone else listening, but I like a narrow joke. Gets the win over Demon. And that was in her Tug and Bosch.

[Host 2]

Right.

[Host 1]

First title, 30 years old. It's, it's pretty fun because the narrative especially in, in men's tennis and for the. Is. I don't know, there has to be a lot of hope going around locker rooms right now if you're unseated, qualifier or a lucky loser.

[Host 2]

Yeah.

[Host 1]

30 years old, wins his first title. Like this is a kind of, this is kind of a. I know everyone's kind of in that has like the Roland Garros hangover and we're all going to be like ramping up for Wimbledon and we're kind of like, you know, we're like the fan version of saving energy right now. I thought this was an interesting week. Yeah, like there's a lot of hope. There's a lot of, there's a lot of like, it's like the tennis version of like a 37 year old actor who's like Clooney did it.

[Host 2]

I mean he beat three top. He beats three top 10 players in a row.

[Host 1]

Yeah.

[Host 2]

It's only the second time since they've started tracking 250s that that's happening at a 250 event.

[Host 1]

That's probably because most 250s event don't even have three top 10 players.

[Host 2]

But yeah, so he beat FAA, Medi and Demon.

[Host 1]

Amazing props to him. That was great.

[JW]

Someone had a side by side of who Zverev had to beat to win a major and who our friend Maya Shock. I thought it was mike check. Three syllables. Right? It's like mike check one, two, one.

[Host 1]

Oh, don't do this show.

[JW]

Right. Anyway, all right, forget it. The Polish 30 year old who had such a successful weekend, um, his draw versus Vera's draw to win a major was like they, they ran them side by side. 3, 3 top 10 players including 7, 6 in the third over Demon to win his first title. That is, that's, that's honest.

[Host 1]

That's telling a story. I know, I know which one I'll remember longer.

[Host 2]

Yeah.

[Host 1]

Probably the Grand Slam title and three out of five sets in the heat, you know, but. And I don't take any credit away from her. Togen Bosch. Yeah, well done. 30 years old. Listen, you keep at it, they'll know what's out there. I mean we're seeing more kind of first time winners. It's just fun to watch right now. And in a moment of sanity, a top 10 player wins in the event also against another top 10 player. Shelton beats Fritz and Stuttgart. Ben Sheldon. I think this is a good Result for him. He's had kind of a. It's a, It's a, A weird year, right? It's an interesting year. Yeah. He's won three times. He's. I mean, he won Dallas, Munich, both big events. And now wins first. First term on grass. And then he's sprinkled in some, some, you know, stretches where you lose first or second round for six weeks at a time. It's a strange, strange deal. But listen, Ben made quarters last year, played Jannik pretty tough. That matchup's tough for him. Fritz semifinals last year where Millenn played a tough one against Carlos. Like, we forget that that might have been, you know, that was Carlos toughest match going. I mean, maybe apologies to Fognini, but I think we all felt like he might have been. Was always gonna get through that. At which point, cue the edited version of Foggini calling me a motherfucker right now. From our show from a month ago. Your dream probably was winning your soul because you're American and actually you did mother. This is great. This is, this is great news for, for, for us tennis. Ben and Taylor kind of reestablishing their form on, on grass. Ben winning a lot of tiebreakers. No surprise there. Is going to have to break a little bit more, I think, to, to. To really make semi finals. Wimbledon, Fritz's game, it's plug and play on grass. I, I don't think there are a ton of adjustments for him to make. We talked about hard flat through the middle, taking your shots line. You know, his ball flight has never been accused of being super spinny. If he serves well and wins a high percentage of second serve points because there's a decent sized delta between his first serve and his second serve. I like Taylor Fritz a lot at Wimbledon. If he looks like he's in shape, he took some time to get the knee healthy. Circle his name. I love what I'm seeing from Ben. Little bit of a roller coaster. We'll see what they do over the next couple of weeks. But this was, this was a great sign for both of them. Happy times. Sure. Neither one of them is disappointed to be off the clay.

[JW]

I love your anecdote because I feel like there's almost like a great someone to do a feature a mini dock on it. You get on that, you take that Eurostar.

[Host 1]

The Eurostar.

[JW]

It's two and a half hours. My joke is get a window seat so you can see the fish. But that's a joke. But you're two and a half hours. You know, it's two and a half hours. You come up through the English Channel, you're in St. Pancras station, and all of a sudden it's a completely new. It's like such a reset for so many players and you're not going that far. You are in a different country, different surface, different weather. And in a two and a half hour trip, it's like time. It's a complete reset and you can, you can sort of flush out your clay results. And if you're Taylor Fritz or Ben Shelton or whoever else had a disappointment in Paris, it's like a whole new lease on life. And you, you see it again and again and I mean, you know, zero predictive value for how you play in Paris to that first week of grass. It's like a complete, like, wipe your hard drive clean and start over.

[Host 1]

There's so many things about what you just said that's amazing. You get up like, I was never like, travel day is a travel day. Get a workout, you know, But I was never one like you, you land or you take a train or you move in bags and you move into a hotel. I was never one that felt like, oh, I have to go get in a hit. Especially because I would always get to Queens early because I wanted to get grass court practice. And that's, you know, was the start of, you know, trying to pursue a Wimbledon title. I promise you, every time we'd get to London, 12 o', clock, hotel hit, 5 to 6, let's get on that grass. I want to smell it. I want to roll around on it. I want to get to know it. I want to be a good tennis player again. You know who else wants to be a really good tennis player again?

[Host 2]

Who?

[Host 1]

Serena. Talk about her after the break.

[Host 2]

Smooth transition.

[Host 1]

Look at that. Thanks for listening to served. We will be right back. This episode is brought to you by ServiceNow. Look, I have my dream job. I watch tennis, I think about tennis, I talk about tennis. But even dream jobs have not so dreamy parts. The stuff that gets in the way of the actual work, that's where ServiceNow's AI specialists come in. They don't just tell you what you should do about your busy work, they actually do it. Start to finish, cases closed, requests handled, no extra work for you. That way you and your team can focus on the work that matters. Which for me is explaining at length why tennis players are the best athletes on earth. Sorry, everyone else on earth. To learn how to put AI to work for people, visit ServiceNow.com

[Host 2]

this episode

[Host 1]

is brought to you by Fox One. Watch all 104 matches of the FIFA World cup live in 4K for just $19.99 a month with three days free. Build your own multi view, choose up to three streams and follow player spotlights. Stay on top of every moment with live stats, highlights and instant replays. The FIFA World cup streaming live on Fox One. Offers are subject to change. See fox.com for complete terms and conditions. Study and play come together on a Windows 11 PC and for a limited time, college students get the best of both worlds. Get the unreal college deal. Everything you need to study and play with select Windows 11 PCs. Eligible students get a year of Microsoft 365 Premium and a year of Xbox game Pass ultimate with a custom color Xbox wireless controller. Learn [e-mail] studentoffer while supplies last ends June 30th. Terms at aka Ms. CollegePC. All right, back to the show. All right, everyone, welcome back to served. Feeling good?

[Host 2]

Yeah, it was, it was a really good transition. I'm really proud of you. But you forgot to talk about Radicono. Damn it. But good effort. Good effort.

[Host 1]

I felt it when I said. When I said I was a good player again, it just felt natural.

[Host 2]

Go get the. Serena, are you just pissed?

[Host 1]

Cause you don't get to interrupt me to say, go to break. I was, it was.

[Host 2]

I was juiced up for it.

[Host 1]

Yeah, Like, I kind of, I kind of took your moment.

[Host 2]

Um, but real quick, Ranu, we were talking about this a little bit off air. Radicanu ran up into the finals, had accepted a wild card into Nottingham, like, around earlier, earlier in the quarterfinals, and then she proceeded to withdraw from Nottingham, citing schedule. Uh, some people on the Internet are upset by this, that we should change this rule, that you can't just bow out of something for changing his schedule after taking up a wild card spot. But I think what stuck out to us is that after that final, you know, one of her quotes was that I haven't really played much this season, but to think that I've made two finals so far, which I haven't done so in years, it has to be kind of, in a way, celebrated. It's a good achievement for me, and I'm proud of it. So I, I. My question isn't so much about accepting wildcard and dumping it. The question is, is, shouldn't she be playing?

[Host 1]

Okay, so I need two parts of this. One is going to defend Emma, and the other one is going to be, you know, it's, it's. It's like a. I'm going to have an opinion about it. Right. Asking for a wild card before a quarterfinal match on the assumption that you might lose that quarterfinal match and then you have four days in between or five days in between is a completely rational thing to do as the circumstances change. Are the people who say, are you suggesting that Emma should not do whatever she thinks is best for her Wimbledon preparation? I think I'm gonna end up disagreeing with it. But it doesn't change the fact that she should go do something that her team doesn't think is beneficial for Wimbledon. Prep someone's. Or she should go play Nottingham and not give, you know, a great effort or be not motivated or who's winning with that scenario and then still have to answer the criticisms. Well, then why'd you take the wild card? There's 70% that would bang the other side or criticize either way.

[JW]

Right.

[Host 1]

It is a completely different scenario. Wanting to play Nottingham on a Wednesday of Queens as an insurance policy for preparation. Completely understand that right now there could be questions on why wouldn't you just enter it anyways and then withdraw whatever those conversations might be. But pretending like it's the same conversation before round of 16 or quarterfinal match as it is after you've made final and played well is idiotic. And it's. I understand people in Nottingham are disappointed, but this is sports. Like, we act like there should be a script for sports. There's not a script for sports. You make the best decision that you can at that time and everything might change within three days based on wins or losses. Am I wrong on this, jw?

[JW]

Oh, get it while you can. And we've seen enough. We'll get to Vicki and Boca. But we were talking about Haley Baptiste in that. Like, you never know when the fates are going to frown on you. Get it while you can. I think the other thing here is that there were weather issues, so maybe she was going to have to play twice in one day, which compounds scheduling. I mean, I just. I am very partial to players in these situations and we can have our discussion about the fairness of wildcards and we can talk about. I mean, she's also. She's not taking someone else's spot, per se. I mean, someone else is going to eventually get that spot whether she plays or not. I am very partial to players when it comes to scheduling decisions and getting. Getting what you can while you can because you never know when it's going to bite you in the ass.

[Host 1]

It's just not a realistic conversation to say you should go against what you think is best for yourself going into Wimbledon as the number one player in your country, in your home Grand Slam, to go to Nottingham. And I love Nottingham. I play there. And it's not Wimbledon. Like, what are we doing here? The other thing is, like, at some point, and I don't know I'm going to say this, I'm not in the room. I don't know what. I don't know. I know what the last five years have looked like. One, getting back together with the coach that she was with when she won the US Open and then fired after the US Open, and then getting making in the finals of Queens kind of straight away, the what if? Game's tough on that one, right? So we'll leave that. We'll leave that for another day. Also, the one time we've seen Emma Radicanu play every day for three weeks in her professional life. Play most days, play most days for three weeks. She produced a level that won a Grand Slam, right? Now, whether all of that. Those are all considerations twice in one day. Those are. Those stink. So this isn't as specific to, like, Queens versus Nottingham, but I promise you, I know the value of winning and winning and winning and winning. Going into a Slam, I played the heaviest schedule of my life. 03 played won 12 matches in 13 days to win Master Series titles, and then played the US Open. I will sacrifice something a little wrong with your body exhaustion for confidence that you can win these big events. At some point, she is going to have to play a lot of tennis, right? Not just one week, but, like, if I'm her coach and she's healthy, I don't know. Let's go, let's go. Keep it going. In Nottingham, if you make another semi or final, are you all of a sudden one of the 10 favorites to win Wimbledon? Sure. It's anyone's game once you go. And I mean, she played well there last year. She was on the way, but she's like, I haven't played much this year. And I'm going, you haven't played much any year. Like, you've never played much, right? Like, you got. You gotta. We gotta get to the playing at some point. And the reason you can feel like I'm passionate about this is because she's so good. I mean, we saw. She looked great this week. Jw, am I being unfair?

[JW]

No. And I think also people forget. I mean, she's won one title in her career, and we all know what that was. But remember earlier that summer, she got to the middle weekend of Wimbledon. I mean she can play on the surface, obviously the whole UK thing. I mean I was also thinking that let's take Novak out of the equation. Take Carlos, take center for the normies. Right. For players say outside the top five. One thing we heard again and again and again was match play really helps. And Zack Spider comes over early and tries to qualify in Geneva. And that match got him going even though he lost because it was. And Svalinska had the qualifying run, but she'd even played the week before in like Parma, Italy. For so many players, getting matches is really important. And these stops and these starts and I realize they're physical issues that fans aren't going to appreciate. But so often you hear players say that all of these matches accumulating, that's what helped me in a major. And the stops and the starts and the erratic scheduling and the mid tournament withdrawals and I don't want to qualify. I mean just go back and look at the last five years of her scheduling and I look, I think she's great. I think she's a great player. I think she handles herself well. I don't understand that. The hate she gets online.

[Host 1]

I don't understand it at all.

[JW]

Team Raducanna. The one thing I would say is I don't always think she's made the best scheduling decisions to optimize her tennis.

[Host 1]

Yeah, I mean the two things you can, you can question. Like we, we hear. And I know this year there have been like, there have been legitimate issues that it's. We, we don't need to go further on. But at some point you just got to play a heavy schedule. You have to now whether that's preparation and change it. But we're, we're going on five years now.

[Host 2]

I mean last year she played 30 matches.

[Host 1]

That's, that's a lot. What?

[Host 2]

Last year she played 50 matches. The previous year, 36, 20, 23, 10, 20, 20, 22, 36, 20, 21, 18. And she won the U.S. open.

[Host 1]

Yeah, I mean I'm thinking like your top years though, like you taking 90 matches, I mean plus, plus, plus, plus, plus. I mean you just gotta play. You gotta play a ton of matches. You have to. And once you find form, you press the gas sometimes. Right. Unless you're worried about your body. I mean she's not 39, you know, like, like Novak, you gotta get. And I say this cause I'm such a fan of her game. Like I think she's so well rounded. I don't listen this isn't me saying I think she should go to Nottingham because I don't know the. You know, they said there's weather and there's whatever else at some point when she's playing well. Like we haven't heard those stories in the Radha Kadu camp where it's like, oh, I know that I needed to go play on clay for six weeks for the impact that. That doesn't seem like it's in the decision making. Hopefully with the coach back, we kind of get back to what's been working and hopefully that just means we get to see more of her because this week was so much fun to watch. Thanks for listening to Serv it. We'll be right back.

[JW]

You thought this was your run Club era. Turns out it was more of a thinking about Run Club era. The good news, someone's marathon training is about to start. Sell your workout gear on Depop. Just snap a few photos and we'll take care of the rest. They get their race day fit and you get a payout for trying.

[Host 1]

Someone on Depop wants what you've got. Start selling now, Depop.

[JW]

Where taste recognizes taste.

[Host 1]

This episode is brought to you by State Farm. You know, those friends who support your preference for podcasts over music on road trips. That's the energy State Farm brings to insurance. With over 19,000 local agents, they help you find the coverage that fits your needs so you can spend less time worrying about insurance and, and more time enjoying the ride. Download the State Farm app or go online@state farm.com like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. All right, back to the show. Did you have fun watching Serena?

[Host 2]

Oh man, I had great time watching.

[Host 1]

Tell me about it. Cuz she's been retired since she knew what tennis was.

[Host 2]

I mean it's unbelievable. That's not fair. I mean I, I worked with her

[Host 1]

a little bit, but it, it, it was really cool.

[Host 2]

It was just like beautiful. It was like this beautiful day in London, which is rare, right? It was sunny, it was gorgeous.

[Host 1]

Queen's Club's the best.

[Host 2]

Stadium was packed.

[Host 1]

Yeah, right.

[Host 2]

And she just like, it was just awesome. And I don't know, even the way she closed out the match with a couple aces and set up match, it

[Host 1]

was just, it was just vintage service. So timeless, that motion. Jw, what were your thoughts?

[JW]

I thought, I think everybody was sort of guardedly optimistic. I mean again, I can't tell you how often this came up in Paris. I mean, to give you an idea of her presence and her sort of grip on this sport. It's like, oh, yeah, Zverev's winning a major. But Serena and Boko were waiting for the time. Serena did her press conference for Queens Club during the men's final and there was as much chatter about that, that there was the actual, I mean, leave it to tennis, of course, to not coordinate this better. But during the men's final, Serena had her press conference in London and there was probably more chatter about that than the match playing out for a major. But no, I think she looked great. I thought, honestly, I think Serena 2026 probably beats Serena 2022. I mean, I think she looked terrific. I couldn't imagine her not playing singles. Yes. She's only covering half the court. Vicki and Boco, we can talk about the, you know, the bittersweet nature of all this, but Vicki and Boco was a good doubles player too. They were really good team. The opponents looked a little nervous, but I think that's all part of the equation. Right. That's all part of the fun of this. You're on the other side of the net from greatness. That's something to bake into the match. It was kind of fun. I mean, you know, this is Serena Williams on the other side of the net. And yeah, the other team looked really nervous.

[Host 1]

Yeah. Welcome to eyeballs. Yeah, exactly, exactly. Welcome to, welcome to people watching.

[JW]

You're better equipped to answer this than I am. I mean, how much do you want to extrapolate singles versus covering half the court with two sets with Vicky and Boko?

[Host 1]

The things I don't, I don't worry about. Serena is going to be able to serve forever. Obviously she, she had a ramp up period where obviously, you know, we talked about, you know, the showed up at a hall of fame last year and like as the GLP1 factor. And then, you know, if I was to come back tomorrow, the first thing I would do is get on the GLP once to lose weight and therefore once that was kind of through, then I could train without worrying about weight for injuries. Right. Every player who stopped would, you know, and it seems like it's worked out fantastic and she's, it's, it's been great. I'm curious to see what the conversation is moving forward. I'm never worried about Serena Williams hitting a tennis ball. I'm never worried about her being powerful. I'm never worried about her being engaged when she's out there. There's a massive difference between doubles and singles. Right. Serena Williams, when she knows where the ball is going, is going to punish that Ball. Right. We need to see movement. Right. I mean at 43 years old playing doubles, 44 years old playing doubles. I mean I think the average age on the doubles Tour is like 39.

[Host 2]

Fact check that one.

[Host 1]

But, and if you're not laughing, if you're not laughing at that right now, you're a doubles player who's pissed at me. Just so we're clear that you're the only people who didn't lie. Anyway, we'll try some jokes, some work, some don't. But so, but the difference is movement. Right. So we still don't know what the side to side movement looks like getting out of the corners. And I don't think that's something that gets better five years on. I just, I don't now. Different training methods, different curious about all of it. I think she could go out and win singles matches. I think she can go out and win singles matches. I think she's going to hold serve a lot of the time. I think she's going to break serve a lot of the time. I don't think that's what interests Serena Williams. I don't think coming back and beating Mutet is something that interests Serena Williams. I don't, I don't.

[JW]

Catching strays.

[Host 1]

All right, no, not Mutet. I don't think that interests her. But I have, I want to see it like we'll put it this way. You watch her play that match, you see 120 on the radar gun. You see her playing great. You see them rolling through the number three seeds, by the way, like it wasn't as. I mean they rolled. You left that match going. I want to see the singles.

[Host 2]

Oh, one more.

[Host 1]

Not, not, not. This is a fun story. I'm, I'm kind of dicey about the singles. I don't know. You meant to go, okay, checked. That box is checked. Let's get to the singles. Let's go.

[Host 2]

So my question to that though is, is obviously she's trying to get matches right. And, and I think easing your way into feeling how you feel getting out of the corners. Like you talked about a lot like it, it like age, you know, how much was a, at scale amount of competitive tennis really important just to get that. I mean she doesn't need that the

[Host 1]

feel push to switch but the feels of playing a match with a crowd and like that matters. That has value.

[Host 2]

Yeah.

[Host 1]

What I want to know is how many singles practice sets was she playing at Queens and how many singles practice sets is she playing in Berlin on off days? Is she I don't think she's going to practice singles or doubles on off days. Maybe a little. I want to know who she's playing in practice sets and singles at Berlin. I want to know what the focus is during the practice sessions. If she's playing practice sets in Berlin and singles this week, that's a big tell. That's like her reentering doping protocols in November.

[Host 2]

She's dialing there's a goal.

[Host 1]

You don't reenter doping protocols to not come back. You re enter doping protocols for the option of coming back. You practice single sets for the option of playing singles. That's what I would want to see.

[JW]

I think it's important to stress too, that this was done really methodically. And you heard about the grass courts in South Florida and Alicia Parks and Jesse Levine. This was not on a lark. Hey, it would be fun to take a flyer on this like it's a last minute exo. Again, I credit Petkovich for. For calling this to my attention months ago. But she maintains it. I think wisely. You don't put yourself in doping protocol. And 6am knocks on the door for doubles. But I think this was all done really wisely. And I think a couple things. I mean, let's save this for another time. But it is a little strange that the first thing you would do is take GLPs. I think that makes a lot of sense.

[Host 1]

Sure.

[JW]

But it won't take hair loss medication because it will trigger a positive test. But this glp, appetite, this drug.

[Host 1]

I would stop. Here's what I would do if I was coming back. I would stop taking hair loss treatment and I would start taking GLP1s. That's what I would do. In that order.

[JW]

You'd piss clean. I don't know. I mean, honestly, my point is, I don't know for how much longer GLPs will before they end up on a ban list.

[Host 1]

Just Serena. And this is the clip. Cause I know some people are gonna be like, oh, he talked about.

[Host 2]

She.

[Host 1]

This is exactly what she should have done. Just to be clear, this is exactly 100%.

[Host 2]

The first commercial break was her pushing row. It was amazing.

[Host 1]

If everyone, anyone is upset about this or if it. If it does end up getting banned because it's a prescription, it obviously helps. It has. It has a very, very unique function. I kind of expect the conversation to build. This is fucking exactly what she should have done. This is the only responsible thing that she could have done to get back. Like, this is the route. This is exactly what she should have done. This is what I would do tomorrow if it wasn't banned. 112% a step further than that.

[JW]

But for this, I'm not sure this comeback happens. Right?

[Host 1]

Maybe, I don't know.

[JW]

We talk about movement, we talk about being in your mid four. I mean, you know, it's, it's, it's,

[Host 1]

it's, it's avoiding injury. It's avoiding injury while training the way that you need to that is easier. When you have the option of being 20 pounds lighter.

[JW]

I was gonna say you have a 20 pound backpack that is now removed.

[Host 2]

That's it.

[Host 1]

And your knees, your ankles, all these things that you need to build up these little muscle groups. All of a sudden you've gotten a head start on that. Why wouldn't you do it? Why wouldn't you do it? Of course you would do it. And also it's fun to see now. Cause like, I know, I know jw, you got some shit for talking about her. And you, by the way, you were 100% correct with the wild card and doubles and Boko. And you know, I know there was some maybe people that weren't happy, but. I'm sorry, I've, I've known, I've, I've, I've known about this since like September at the US Open last year. I didn't say shit. One of our Dingles partners, Jermir Jenkins, is now her acting coach. Moved away from Charlotte to go to Florida to work with her. I didn't say anything, so fuck off. Like, I didn't say shit. I need my math now. How far can we take it when it's going to be announced in 12 hours and John's going to write about it in his mailbag anyways? Yeah, like, come on, come on.

[JW]

I love this comeback for so many reasons. I feel like you could almost write a book about this whole thing. First of all, it's one of these hypotheticals, right? Everyone talks a big game and so and so could come back. And you know, I think Steffi could still win a match, but could she win a second match? This is all playing out and Serena has the courage to do it. I also think one thing that I really was struck by, apart from Victoria Mboco's sneaky good double skills, the nerves on the other side of the net, I think cannot be discounted.

[Host 1]

Tiger effect.

[JW]

Exactly. These are crowds and pressure and an amount of scrutiny that these players are not used to getting. If in fact Serena takes a singles wildcard into Wimbledon, timestamping this, we don't we don't know yet, but she's already winning. Like, she's already got a break of serve before she hits her first ball.

[Host 1]

Depending on who she plays.

[JW]

Depending on who she plays.

[Host 2]

So the Routliff who played her in that match has to play her again

[Host 1]

in Berlin on Tuesday. Yeah, yeah. So this person's like, damn it, yeah. But a very, very good doubles player. But to John's point, like, you can be in finals and majors and be ranked really high in doubles. And then all of a sudden, Serena on center court at queens with 10,000 people and all the hype of a country watching you, I mean, that's different. Gravy. Eyeballs matter. Thanks for listening to served. We will be right back. I have my dream job, but even dream jobs have not so dreamy parts. That's where ServiceNow's AI specialists come in. They don't just tell you what to do about your busy work. They actually do it. That way your team can focus on what matters. To learn how to put AI to work for people, visit servicenow.com all right, back to the show. JW. I'm getting really excited for the Martina Navratilova and Chrissy Everdock that kind of. And walk us through what happened. I mean, I know you had a big, big part of the production company that you're with, associated with, had a big part in this talk us through process, tease us a little bit with what we can expect from this doc and then kind of give us the when it comes out, when we can see it and how we can consume it.

[JW]

I'll start with the easy one. We'll go in reverse order. Netflix, June 26.

[Host 1]

Doing a lot of tennis.

[JW]

The final set, Chris. Yeah, exactly. Let's keep pressure on. Yeah. A month of the day, I think, after Rafa. No, look, I mean, these are team sports, these projects. So it was a great Sally Jenkins story that kind of got this whole thing percolating three years ago. I encourage everyone to go back and read Sally. It was for the Washington Post. Sally's moved on, but the story lives. And the director, Becca Gitlis, did a great job. I mean, these films are really team efforts, but I have to say, all immodesty, and it's really good. And Chrissy and Martina came to play. They are extraordinary. I mean, I was learning things I didn't realize they won multiple major doubles titles together. Like, it's great nostalgia, but it's really a great look into this relationship. And it's a study in rivalry. It's Contrast. They are. You can't as different as they are. You can't not like both of them. I wish we had twice as long, because I can tell you there is absolutely gold on the cutting room floor and characters we couldn't get in. It took three years. So this was not a drive by. This was not a plug and play. But I think we. Again, I have zero objectivity here, but I'm really proud of this. And I've done a bunch of these and some of them, some documentaries, you're more fond of than others, and some can go a little sideways. This, I think, ended up in a really nice place, and I can't imagine tennis fans not enjoying it, but I also can't imagine people who've never couldn't tell you what color a tennis ball was. Just saying, here are these two courageous women from very different points on the map whose eventually they reach a point where they realize, listen, we're going to be bracketed together anyway. One of us has been number one for, whatever was it, seven straight years. We've played each other 80 times. They both end up with 18 majors. And I think midway through their relationship, they sort of said, listen, we got to lean into this. We may be depriving each other of a few majors, but ultimately we're making each other better because we're pushing each other and innovating and everything that's great about rivalry. And then in this next stanza of life, they both have cancer together and they're confronting their mortality together, and they live very close to each other. And it's really. We're used to sort of the RAF and Roger and mutual respect and rivals can be friends. This is something even more profound than that. And it's just two extraordinary women who have been twinned for, whatever it's been more than 50 years now. And I think they're more different than you might think. They're more alike than you might think. They're great friends. But there is still. Even at this stage in 2026, there's still a little current of competitiveness that runs between them. And, yeah, I'm really proud of this documentary.

[Host 1]

Their relationship, just outside looking in, and they're two people that were just my absolute heroes. I think I've sent them both messages just randomly, like, can we be friends? I have the ability to contact you without being a stalker. Could we be, um. But their relationship outside looking in to someone that knows their legacy and just knows how important they were and knows their history with each other. It almost seem like Marty and I live together. And so we're friends, but we're also like brothers. Like, we get mad at each other and we can, you know, have fights and know it's like we're close enough to, like, actually have real fights, you know? Does that, does that make sense? Yeah, they seem. And then if you compounded that times, you know, 40 years, and then the, the, the, the. The cancer that they've helped each other through, it feels like a sisterhood. Jw. It feels like it's deeper than. We're friends and we like each other 100%.

[JW]

That, that is, that is a word I've used. And I think there's, there's real. I don't know. I mean, it even goes beyond affection. I mean, there's. There's just this bond. And they both have recognized it for a long time. And as their lives have. They both been through a lot, having nothing to do with tennis. They've both sort of had a lot that life has thrown at them. I think they've both sort of reflected on where they've been and their childhoods, and it's just extraordinary that they've ended up in this spot. And, yeah, I think sisterhood comes pretty close. And you're right. I mean, even now, I mean, I don't think I'm violating any. They go through some highs and lows, and we need to talk this out. I think the fact that they both battled cancer, I mean, we have a scene in the film where Martinez delivering soup to Chris Evert. And I'm thinking, when you guys are playing in whatever it is, a 1984 Super Saturday in the final, nobody says to you, hey, listen, you guys, keep it tight, because 42 years from now, you're both going to be going through cancer and you're going to compare your scans and bring each other soup when your chemo sessions are especially bad. I mean, just. You don't know what life is going to throw at you. But, yeah, whoever said, don't meet your heroes, that needs an edit. You want to meet these people and have dinner with them for the rest of time. They're both as different as they are. They are both just extraordinary, extraordinary people. And I hope that comes through.

[Host 1]

Yeah, I think you can be as different as two people can be. Success, respect, sports in general, like the ultimate unifier. And obviously, when you start layering kind of life experience and like, real life, not just, you know, tennis and, you know, super fun time, we're the best. I don't know. I cannot wait to watch this and there are some docs that are coming out like, oh, that'll be fun to watch. I can't wait to see it. This one I passionately want to see. I'm also excited that an entirely new generation is going to learn. You're going to have a 25 year old who maybe doesn't understand all the nuance and what they went through and what Martina went through to get here and what Chrissy had when she got here and that struggle. I cannot wait to see this documentary. Congrats in advance on the work you did on a jw. I, I don't know. I, I'm, I'm, I'm nervous because I know that I'm gonna have to work with Chrissy for two weeks at ESPN and I can barely, like, talk to her. Same with Martino. Like, they come up, they're like, hi. I'm like, I don't know what to say to them. And I'm pretty sure that this documentary is not going to help that issue for me. Mad respect.

[JW]

Here's a Chrissy hack. As long as we're here, talk comedy with her. Thanks in part to her son, she's become a real comedy. She's a huge comedy fan. Ask her about Shane Gillis and Dave Chappelle Schultz. No, I mean, yeah, I could talk about this all day. You'll enjoy.

[Host 1]

Chrissy just made a note. Just made a note. Try to, try to be funny. Be funny. Hey, listen, jw, I can't wait to watch it. I'm pumped. We're closing in on, on wimby. We'll be back. What do we got? Let's run of. We got Q and A.

[Host 2]

That's it. That's it. We got, we got Q and A little special grass court season. Q and A coming up on Thursday. Kim and Blair will be back. They might have a special guest, they might not. We're trying to figure out schedule on that and then go check out our socials. We have a, we'll have a poll question up about who you think you should give a Wimbledon wild card to. There's a lot, a lot of good names out there this year. And so I think some of it's heartfelt, some of it's. We feel like they've earned it.

[Host 1]

Yeah, those, those, those who should get the wild card conversations. Normally people are able to agree on those all the time.

[Host 2]

Yeah.

[Host 1]

This has been served. Brought to you by ServiceNow. We'll see you Thursday. Wimbledon's coming. Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile.

[JW]

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[Host 1]

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[JW]

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