2026 WIMBLEDON DAY 2 RECAP: Serena's Emotional Comeback, Shelton's Shock Exit & More

Summary

Served with Andy Roddick: 2026 Wimbledon Day 2 Recap

Episode Theme/Overview
This episode of Served, hosted by tennis journalist John Wertheim and Malika Andrews (standing in with witty banter and rich insight), focuses on Day 2 of the 2026 Wimbledon Championships. The main themes are Serena Williams’ highly anticipated, emotional singles comeback, Ben Shelton’s shock exit at the hands of a qualifier, and other notable results and storylines from a jam-packed opening to tennis’ most prestigious tournament. The hosts dive deep into match analyses, emotional narratives, and tennis culture—mixing humor, candor, and genuine admiration for the game's stars.

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Main Discussion Points & Insights

The Chaos and Emotion of Early Rounds

• Tournament Intensity:
  • The first two days are described as “sheer chaos," with both hosts discussing the challenge of keeping up with all courts and stories.
  • "I mean, these first two days is just sheer chaos, right? ...You just, you can't be everywhere at once." — Malika Andrews (01:57)

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Iga Swiatek's Hard-Fought Win and Emotional Reaction

• Match Recap: Swiatek defeats Taylor Townsend in three sets, a seemingly straightforward result but with surprising emotional undertones from Iga.
• Contextual Factors:
  • Iga’s father and sister watched from the royal box, adding pressure.
  • Swiatek's season has not met her usual standards; the emotions reflect internal struggles.
  • “You know what you'll never ever, ever be able to say about IGA Wiatek is that she doesn't care.” — John Wertheim (03:31)
• Swiatek as a Competitor:
  • The hosts praise Swiatek’s ongoing intensity and inability to "mail it in," a rare quality for a multi-Slam winner.
  • “She cares that she won six Grand Slams... and yet she gets through and it still kind of has that depth of emotion.” — Wertheim (03:47)

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Early Upsets and Bracket Busters

• Notable Results:
  • Svitolina is upset; the hosts lament broken brackets.
  • Kostyuk and Zverev both survive four-setters; Zverev’s vulnerability on grass is discussed.
  • “Are we ignoring him [Zverev] too much considering his pedigree?” — Wertheim (05:13)
• Zverev’s Grass Struggles:
  • Zverev’s honesty about poor movement on grass is noted.
  • Despite winning the previous major and being the #2 seed, Zverev has never been past round four at Wimbledon.
  • “He's never beaten a seed here. Never beat a top 40 player if I'm right here.” — Malika Andrews (05:40)
• Wimbledon Center Court Diversions:
  • As Wertheim recounts, attention can quickly shift—from Zverev’s tight match to breaking news like LeBron James leaving the Lakers.
  • “...It turned into, like, Shams Charney coming in. I mean, it was just like... a whole deal.” — Wertheim (06:41)

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Taylor Fritz: Dark Horse with Grass Court Pedigree

• Fritz’s Form and Mindset:
  • Fritz dispatched his opponent efficiently and appears a strong pick for a deep run, especially after facing (and overcoming) tough draws.
  • “He's really good on grass. Everything he does, ball, flight, attack... Serve gets a little bit better. He's in with a real shot on this bottom half, I think.” — Wertheim (08:13)
• Fritz’s Style Off-Court:
  • Humorous discussion regarding Fritz’s Hugo Boss attire: “You can't go out there for a fashion show and lose your first-round match.” — Fritz via Andrews (09:04)
• Man Purses and Fashion:
  • The growing pre-match fashion culture in tennis, likened (tongue-in-cheek) to Naomi Osaka and Federer, is debated.
  • “If that's you, it's a little flavor... I would just as soon go out there in cargo shorts and start playing tennis.” — Malika Andrews (09:51)

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Berrettini, Wawrinka, and the Value of Longevity

• Berrettini’s Grass Court Aptitude:
  • “Baratini knows how to play on this surface, won Queens twice, as final here... Winning a bunch of matches, I think, did him a lot of favors for this tournament.” — Wertheim (10:20)
• Wawrinka’s Continued Relevance and Emotional Farewell:
  • Wawrinka loses a competitive four-setter but earns praise for his career and "not a tragic retirement tour."
  • “He can still win matches. Four tough sets against Baratini. He'll be missed. ... His upside was as good or better than the big three.” — Wertheim (11:33)
  • Notable Quote: “I appreciate how much gratitude he seems to have for his experience in this game.” — Wertheim (12:13)

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Grigor Dimitrov: A Wildcard’s Redemption

• Wildcard Life:
  • Wimbledon is credited for giving a wildcard to Dimitrov after last year’s heartbreak; emotional response after a tough year.
  • “This is a major semifinalist, this top-flight player. He had to qualify. ...When Grigor won today... The emotions came out. This is a great tennis citizen and I don’t know how you can’t be happy seeing him win.” — Andrews (15:32)
• Wild Card Decisions:
  • “A very rational, smart, respectable decision by Wimbledon, I think, to give him the wildcard, considering what happened to him last year very famously against [Jannik] Sinner.” — Wertheim (15:32)

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Arthur Fery’s Earplug Antics

• Most Entertaining Moment:
  • British wildcard Arthur Fery puts in earplugs during a match to tune out his opponent’s complaints.
  • “Who carries that in their bag for all the things you put in your racket bag? I’m not sure earplugs would ever make my list.” — Andrews (16:10)
  • “That’s actually really cool... That’s a baller move.” — Wertheim (16:38)

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Ben Shelton’s Shock Loss to Otto Virtanen

• Match Analysis:
  • Shelton, seeded #4 and recent grass-court champion, falls to Finnish qualifier Otto Virtanen in a 5-set super tiebreak (20:07).
  • Critical Analysis:
    • Shelton’s formulaic play and inability to make in-match adjustments are called out.
    • “There was the same patterns and the disruption was very forced... At some point, there has to be an awareness to, like, we have to put that [drop shot] away.” — Wertheim (16:53)
    • “He did in fact say this is probably the worst defeat I’ve ever had.” — Andrews (17:58)
  • Virtanen’s Journey Highlighted:
    • “Qualifier... played a week of tennis just to have the opportunity to get a credential... and then to play a match and then to beat Ben Shelton...” — Wertheim (18:06)
    • Virtanen holds his nerve at 8-all in the super tiebreak, closes out the match for the win of his life.
  • Pattern Recognition for Shelton:
    • “Pattern recognition. Not just how you want to enforce yourself on someone. ...What patterns am I playing into that aren’t working?” — Wertheim (20:07)
    • Despite his rise, Shelton is deemed a work in progress at the highest level, with more upside to unlock.

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Serena Williams: The Emotional Comeback

• Debate: What Does This Performance Mean?
  • Serena (age 44, limited preparation) falls in three sets to Maya Joint, a 20-year-old.
  • The discussion balances between respect (for her competitiveness at her age after a long break), and questioning whether she can build from here:
    • “I'm not sure we got. I mean, I think you could spin this either way... It was not her plan to play singles here.” — Andrews (22:25, Wertheim 24:06)
    • “If I know Serena at all, she's pissed and she's going, I think I could still beat these people. I think we'll see her at the US Open in singles.” — Wertheim (25:33)
  • Serena’s ability to still serve at 120+ mph, flashes of brilliance (“two points in a row, then an error”), but ultimately physical limitations show after two hours.
  • Notable Quote:
    • “Any analysis of Serena is against her own shadow, right? …I would look like a moron [if I tried to play a 20-year-old at Wimbledon after four years off].” — Wertheim (24:06)
    • “It wasn't dazzling... and yet she was better than she was four years ago... You went three sets with a full time player half your age. It's not crazy to think you can build on that.” — Andrews (22:25)
  • Atmosphere in Center Court:
    • Subdued response to Serena’s return, more polite applause than Beatlemania.
    • “I thought, oddly subdued given the circumstances.” — Andrews (26:25)
    • “I kind of love that she cares enough to be salty about press.” — Wertheim (26:52)
  • Looking Ahead:
    • Both hosts predict Serena will play singles again, most likely at the US Open, driven more by inner fire than farewell tour sentiment.
    • “I think she's going to evolve off of this result. ...I can't think she feels worse about her game and herself and her ability to compete after this match than before it.” — Wertheim (28:01)
    • “This will burn her in a way that's good for the rest of us as fans.” — Wertheim (29:09)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Swiatek’s Intensity:

  • “You know what you'll never ever, ever be able to say about IGA Wiatek is that she doesn't care.” — Wertheim (03:31)

• On Wawrinka’s Farewell:

  • “I appreciate how much gratitude he seems to have for his experience in this game.” — Wertheim (12:13)

• On Arthur Fery’s Earplugs:

  • “Who carries that in their bag for all the things you put in your racket bag? I’m not sure earplugs would ever make my list.” — Andrews (16:10)
  • “That’s a baller move.” — Wertheim (16:40)

• On Serena’s Motivation:

  • “If I know Serena at all, she's pissed and she's going, I think I could still beat these people. I think we'll see her at the US Open in singles.” — Wertheim (25:33)

• On Ben Shelton’s Loss:

  • “He did in fact say this is probably the worst defeat I’ve ever had.” — Andrews (17:58)
  • “Pattern recognition. Not just how you want to enforce yourself... What patterns am I playing into that aren’t working?” — Wertheim (20:07)

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• Opening Wimbledon Chaos, Swiatek’s Emotional Win: 01:57–04:18
• Svitolina Out, Zverev Survives, Grass Court Struggles: 04:34–07:09
• Taylor Fritz as Contender and Style Icon: 07:27–09:36
• Fashion & Pre-Match Rituals Debate: 09:36–10:16
• Berrettini, Wawrinka, Value of Longevity: 10:20–12:48
• Grigor Dimitrov Wildcard & Story: 13:13–16:00
• Arthur Fery’s Earplug Antics: 16:00–16:41
• Ben Shelton’s Upset Loss (Full Analysis): 16:43–21:20
• Serena Williams’ Comeback, Emotional & Strategic Assessment: 21:56–29:14

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Summary

With humor, nuance, and respect for the game and its players, this Served episode captures the whirlwind of emotions and surprises from Wimbledon’s opening days in 2026. The focus is squarely on Serena’s iconic return, Ben Shelton's learning moment, and the subtle stories—fashion, longevity, and unexpected wildcards—that make Wimbledon uniquely dramatic. The hosts’ tennis IQ and empathy shine, making this a must-listen for any tennis fan, especially those seeking color, context, and candor, all in the original spirit of the show.

Transcript

[John Wertheim]

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[Malika Andrews]

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[John Wertheim]

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[Malika Andrews]

Hey, everyone.

[John Wertheim]

Welcome to serve. Brought to you by ServiceNow. John Wertheim in the studio at the home that I found on Airbnb.

[Malika Andrews]

Nice house.

[John Wertheim]

How's it going?

[Malika Andrews]

Good. I like what you did with the place. Thank you. Good to be here.

[John Wertheim]

I will say techie Sean and producer Mike are moonlighting as set designers.

[Malika Andrews]

I like this week. So it's gonna come with buttons for your pants, but looks like you're. Looks like you're taken care of.

[John Wertheim]

I sometimes forget that anyone listens to this.

[Malika Andrews]

Yeah.

[John Wertheim]

So like, walking through, I was like, oh, you got any buttons? I'm like, got a zipper? That was the deal of the day. But what's been going on the first couple days?

[Malika Andrews]

Good first few days. But I was gonna ask you. I mean, the metabolism of these events, they slow down eventually. I mean, these first two days is just sheer chaos, right? And you're on a match, you're watching and then you're. I didn't even know they were playing. You just. You can't be everywhere at once.

[John Wertheim]

It is intense. Like you throw like a goat. Comeback and not knowing what goes on. And we'll touch Obviously Serena's story of the day. Ben Shelton maybe one a second story of the of the day. But there's some good stuff around the round, around the ground, so maybe I'll just kind of touch on it real quick. Esvotek wins against Taylor Townsend. I don't think that's like a big story on its own, but there was, there was some emotion after this match. IGA broke down afterwards. Taylor walked off and she, I mean it was, there was emotions were running high.

[Malika Andrews]

There was more emotion than there was when IGA played her last match here, which happened to be her title. There's a lot going on there and I think some of it she talked about it a bit and she said, you know, she got pushed to a third set and she hasn't had a great record this year and it all sort of came tumbling. I also thought, I don't know if you saw this. The club put her father and sister in the royal box.

[John Wertheim]

I think that was a lot to do with.

[Malika Andrews]

I think there's a real sense of occasion and you're coming out to defend your title and it hasn't been a great year and you win this three set match. Um, yeah, there was a lot going on for again seems like a pretty standard ego wins in round one over a player who competed gamely. Taylor Townsend. Very fun to watch on grass in particular, but not a shocking result. But yeah, IGA's reaction afterwards was that was quite something.

[John Wertheim]

You know what you'll never ever, ever be able to say about IGA Wiatek is that she doesn't care.

[Malika Andrews]

Good point.

[John Wertheim]

Like she's, she's. Have you ever watched her and been like, you can say she's ah, mailed it in again. Like if anything it's like she's cares too much.

[Malika Andrews]

Right.

[John Wertheim]

You need to be able to like kind of level set every once in a while. But like it's a pretty great thing this far in where she cares that she won six Grand Slams. She won this last year going away. She went zero in the final and yet she gets through and it still kind of has that depth of, of emotion. It was shocking because she's accomplished so much, she's seen so much. We view it as like, oh, you got another win. She views it as, as kind of like the most important thing ever. Almost every time she goes, goes out on the court.

[Malika Andrews]

When you are that process oriented, when process breaks down, it really impacts you. But no, I don't. Should we. I, you know, I'm still trying to sort through my Thought, I mean, have you reached any great overarching conclusions about Serena today? Because I feel like you could argue this either way.

[John Wertheim]

Yeah, I, I, I, I have a lot I'm going to. Let me just run through. Rock wins in three over Bosson Anisa three and two. Spitalina upset. That was, that was, that was big. I had her through to the semis, so.

[Malika Andrews]

Oh, our brackets are just another one.

[John Wertheim]

God. Kostiak rolls Zverev through and four. I thought he looked pretty good against blocks. I mean he's, you saw him hit the deck and he said it, he's like, zverev, listen, think what you think. He tells the truth. And he's normally right these days. Right. He's developed into somebody. He's like, I don't move that well on grass.

[Malika Andrews]

Right.

[John Wertheim]

I don't like the movement on grass. That's the thing that bothers me. And then you see him kind of hit the deck and it's right. The, the, the serve plays anywhere. The back end plays anywhere. The return position. He likes being back. He likes having time. The movement and the forehand get a little bit more exposed here. But are we, are we ignoring him too much considering his pedigree?

[Malika Andrews]

Oh, you mean that he won the previous major, he's the second seed and

[John Wertheim]

no, he's not even getting a sniff of people saying he's going to make a final.

[Malika Andrews]

He has never been beyond round four here. Yeah, he's never beaten a seed here.

[John Wertheim]

Never beat a top 40 player if I'm right here.

[Malika Andrews]

Is that right? Yep. Yeah. So I don't know. I mean, I think at this, his, his, we got a lot of data points here, but I thought he looked pretty good today. I think you're right. He sort of, he knows what he is, he knows what he isn't. And this, this could have been a lot trickier match. Blocks is good. And I, I, Zverev got, you know, there were a couple double faults on a tie break that Zverev was got to escape. Um, you know that Matt, this is one of these matches that sort of fell through the cracks, right. The winner of the previous major just won a four setter and well, okay,

[John Wertheim]

I'll give you, I'll give you, I'll give you kind of my experience at ESPN today. Zvera's playing tight match. Just won the last Grand Slam center court Wimbledon. All of a sudden I'm doing a segment. Obviously we're, we're pumping Serena because you know, it's like, it's like Jordan wearing 45.

[Malika Andrews]

Right.

[John Wertheim]

Like, it's. It's. It's. It's that big of a deal. It's bigger than tennis, even.

[Malika Andrews]

And.

[John Wertheim]

And then I'm doing a segment with Malika Andrews, and I'm not clued in. She goes, we have breaking news. We have breaking news. I'm like, okay, did someone pull out? And she goes, lebron James leaving the Los Angeles Lakers. And I'm going, how about the draws? I was like. I was like. Instantly. I was like, we're not talking about Zverev anymore. It turned into, like, Shams Charney coming in. I mean, it was just like. It was. It was. It was a whole deal. But, yeah, I mean, I don't know. Like, he might just fly under the radar here.

[Malika Andrews]

But you're talking about Zverevon LeBron now, right?

[John Wertheim]

LeBron will not fly under the radar here. Yeah. I don't know. I thought. I thought he looked good today. I thought it was a tough, tough first round draw. You know who is very good on grass, and when he steps on a grass court, everything in his game becomes more effective.

[Malika Andrews]

Yep.

[John Wertheim]

Taylor Fritz.

[Malika Andrews]

Let's.

[John Wertheim]

Let's kind of rewind to 48 hours ago.

[Malika Andrews]

Right.

[John Wertheim]

You ready? I played Jack Draper first round.

[Malika Andrews]

Yeah.

[John Wertheim]

Staring down the barrel of Ben Shelton, who just beat me a couple of weeks ago. If I advance far enough in the draw, everything changes. Like, I. I think he's. I picked him to get to the final anyways. I think you might have. Or did you pick Ben?

[Malika Andrews]

I think I may have been. I'll tell you a funny story.

[John Wertheim]

They'll get this and we'll edit your other. You picked Taylor, right?

[Malika Andrews]

Yeah.

[John Wertheim]

Yeah. There you go. Perfect. He's. He's really good on grass. Everything he does, ball, flight, attack. He doesn't. He can stay away from sideline to sideline defense. Serve gets a little bit better. He's in with a real shot on this bottom half, I think.

[Malika Andrews]

I talked to him today. He had a couple funny stories. One of them is he said he wanted Draper. He loved that match. I'll get my teeth in the tournament. I'll get a real test. He goes out practices with Ben Shelton, Right. We have a lefty practice partner. And then all of a sudden he's like, maybe I ought to get a light hit in with righty. And suddenly he's got a lucky loser. Got through very handily. He also came out with that Hugo Boss.

[John Wertheim]

He looked like. He looked like Don Johnson.

[Malika Andrews]

He had a great lineup.

[John Wertheim]

He said, you know, and if you're Googling that you're under 40 years old.

[Malika Andrews]

Sean.

[John Wertheim]

I think Sean is like, who's Don Johnson?

[Malika Andrews]

Crockett and Tubs.

[John Wertheim]

Yeah. Sean was like, that was my account. My dad's accountant in Arizona.

[Malika Andrews]

He's thinking, yeah, Don Johnson, former North Carolina doubles player.

[John Wertheim]

No, not that Don Johnson. I'm Miami Vice now.

[Malika Andrews]

We're really. But back to Taylor Fritz. Yeah.

[John Wertheim]

All the best jokes have to be explained.

[Malika Andrews]

Exactly. Taylor Fritz, though, is. He looked good today. Straight shooter. You're right. His game really accelerates and accentuates on the surface. He also had a very funny line. He said, you cannot. He wasn't quite the Naomi Osaka full effect, but he had a little Hugo Boss thing going. It was sort of like a. You say Don Johnson. It's like Don Draper, too, but no Don Johnson. That's a good one. That's a good one. But he said, basically, you can't go out there for a fashion show and lose your first round match. So he put a little extra pressure. Pressure on himself with the. The menswear and the man purse, but got through in straight sets.

[John Wertheim]

Merse Merce, these walk on things.

[Malika Andrews]

What do you think?

[John Wertheim]

I think they used to be like, Fed used to do it. Fed's a different deal. Naomi does it. If everyone does it. Is it boorish? Are you still into it?

[Malika Andrews]

Kind of into it. I mean, it's not my thing, but, you know, whatever. That's. If that's you, it's a little flavor. I would just as soon go out there in cargo shorts and start playing tennis. But it's kind of added pressure. Right when you want to. Naomi Osaka walks out there like that, you don't want to get broken in the first. You know, you sort of putting additional pressure.

[John Wertheim]

Saka's committed so hard that I don't think anyone even. She's done it so many times that I don't think we associate the outcome of a tennis match with what she does.

[Malika Andrews]

Yeah, exactly. Like.

[John Wertheim]

I think it's. I think it's by design. Someone who's in this. On the.

[Malika Andrews]

On the.

[John Wertheim]

In the bottom half. Baratini knows how to play on this surface one Queens twice as final. Here was probably outside of the Avengers and the Superheroes was probably the next favorite one of the years, and they had to pull out because of COVID after he had won. He knows how to play on the surface. Roland Garros getting a bunch of match time, winning a bunch of matches, I think did him a lot of favors for this tournament. I thought Walrinka played well against him. Tonight, and I was touched. We, we went over it on espn. Stan has really shown a different side of himself this year in Australia. Going away, you can tell that he really appreciates the appreciation that he's, he's getting, and it's well deserved. So much of the narrative, and I hear it as much as anyone, is you couldn't break through against the Big Three. Not a lot of people won a bunch of Slams that won three Slams, and he went right through the meat of it.

[Malika Andrews]

You know who he beat in the finals of those three majors?

[John Wertheim]

Yes, I do. Nadal and Djokovic. Yes.

[Malika Andrews]

Not bad.

[John Wertheim]

I know, exactly. So I'm happy he's getting his due. He's still playing well. This doesn't feel like a, like a tragic retirement tour.

[Malika Andrews]

Right.

[John Wertheim]

He can still win matches. Four tough, four tough sets against, against Baratini. He'll be missed. I think he's added a lot of value to the tour. I think he's one of the few who on a given day, his upside was as good or better than the big three. Now, it wasn't the consistency of McMurray, but like the guy, I mean, he just could create shots and the appreciation that kind of falls out of his face in the form of moisture when he's talking about how much he'll miss this game. And I said, you know, do you want to. He goes, I don't want to retire, but I know I have to. I appreciate how much gratitude he seems to have for his experience in this game.

[Malika Andrews]

I would. I also think, you know, and this, this will dovetail and segue into, into our next topic, I'm sure, but there's something to be said for longevity. Right? This is a 20 years ago, 41 years old. 41 years old, and he's playing, you know, 1816 tiebreakers against Baratini and still playing at a competitive level. Remember, he didn't need a wild card at Roland Garros. His ranking is still sufficiently good north of age 40. And he's enjoying the appreciation, he's enjoying the competition. I mean, he's ducking down on playing lower level events. Yeah, unfortunately, no. No career major that, that was thwarted tonight.

[John Wertheim]

This is the only.

[Malika Andrews]

No, he wasn't gonna win.

[John Wertheim]

I think, I think your point about this isn't someone who's just on a vanity tour. So he loses in the French Open, he goes and plays challengers and for those who, you know, minor league events. So this is a three time major winner, first ballot hall of Famer is, won three out of the Four majors and is going down and playing in Toulouse and, you know, a bunch of other places. He hasn't turned himself into a part time tennis player for show. I respect everything about the way he's gone about his process. I'm happy he's having these, these ovations. I'm happy that we're seeing this side of him. I'm happy that, you know, he was so stone faced for a lot of years. I don't know that he gave you much on court or even in interviews afterwards. I love that he's kind of melting into this experience and I think we're all better for it. Nothing but respect for Stan Walrinka. Demon gets through foe and big foe and Caboli suspended, both winning their matches. Men sheik gets through 76 in the fifth against a British wild card. Someone who is playing right. So our studio ESPN is right on court 18. Someone who's playing right behind us today. And I saw him at breakfast the other day randomly in Wimbledon village and he could not have been more courteous, nicer, hugged both of our kids like Grigor Dimitrov is a gem after what happened last year to him with sinner getting up and then having that injury roll today. I mean, have you spent much time with him? He just comes off as such a generous, nice, decent person.

[Malika Andrews]

I saw him about a month ago in my neighborhood in Paris. Just randomly walked into him on the street. We had a very nice conversation. He was going to meet his parents and I didn't realize that he had tried to qualify that day. Lost seven six in the third in qualifying. Yeah, this is a major semifinalist, this top flight player. He had to qualify. He lost 76 in the third. That's the kind of loss that sends you to the bottom of a bottle of Maker's Mark. And he's smiling on the streets of Paris, having chit chat with me, not even mentioning the match result. I didn't realize it till I got back. I'm so happy he got the wild card. You talked about IGA having this reaction when she won her match today. Different set of circumstances. But when Grigor won today, I don't know if you caught that. He, you know, it was a year ago, he had a two steps to love lead over the guy who ended up winning the tournament. Barely has played and barely has won since to come here, get a wild card, win that first match. The emotions came out. This is a great tennis citizen and I don't know how you can't be happy seeing him win.

[John Wertheim]

Let's also give props to Wimbledon for decision making because wild cards are normally they're either a home tournament entitlement for the country it's played in past number ones, past Grand Slam champions. Grigor's had an amazing career, but he's none of those things. So a very rational, smart, respectable decision by Wimbledon, I think, to give him the wildcard, considering what happened to him last year very famously against center.

[Malika Andrews]

Totally. Dan Evans might like a word with you. Wait, quick word about wild cards. I think he's a wild card. Arthur Ferry was a wild card. This was my favorite moment of the day. Did you catch this?

[John Wertheim]

No. Tell me.

[Malika Andrews]

He's playing Demir Zhumer, who is complaining persistently about this, that, and the other. And what does our friend Arthur Ferry do? He goes to the changeover and puts in earplugs to drown out his opponent. You ever seen that? That's a great move, right? Who carries that in their bag for all the things you put in your racket bag? I'm not sure earplugs would ever make my list.

[John Wertheim]

Does he always have them or. That's what I'm wondering specifically for this match. It was.

[Malika Andrews]

It was absolutely brilliant. He did win the match, by the way.

[John Wertheim]

That's. That's actually really cool.

[Malika Andrews]

That's a baller move.

[John Wertheim]

All right, so how much of the.

[Malika Andrews]

Of.

[John Wertheim]

Of the Ben Shelton match did you catch today?

[Malika Andrews]

Bits and pieces, but I caught that. I caught the fifth set. Entire fifth set. That was an interesting match.

[John Wertheim]

Ben. I love Ben. I love Brian. When I watch him, I feel like sometimes the play is scripted before the point starts. Right. There's a flow. Like this guy's forehand cross was great today. He was sticking back in, but it felt like there was the same patterns and the disruption was very forced. Right. It wasn't as if we're shifting patterns. It was shifting. I'm gonna serve and volley or I'm in. All of a sudden, he hit a million drop shots that didn't work today. And I was like, we got. At some point there has to be an awareness to, like, we. We have to put that away. Like, we have to take things that aren't working and make adjustments. Not full on, full out changes. And I know that's a nuanced thing with Ben wins a title coming in, this is going to be a loss that I think stings for a long time. Like, if you're going to be that guy who's top three, top four in the world, I don't know that this is a result that you can have. And I don't think I'm saying anything controversial by this. I'm sure Ben would tell you the same thing.

[Malika Andrews]

He did in fact say this is probably the worst defeat I've ever had.

[John Wertheim]

I think that's true.

[Malika Andrews]

Let's acknowledge Otto Vertinen, the finished played, fantastic player.

[John Wertheim]

We're talking and I do it before we get to your take on Ben. I'm glad you brought him up because Vertinen played a great match level headed. And I want to explain when we say qualifier, people kind of are flipping about qualifiers. This guy played a week of tennis just to have the opportunity to get a credential, to walk on the grounds and then to play a match and then to beat Ben Shelton and then to probably make. He won a challenger like in the last month probably won 10,000 dol. I mean a multiple of 15. I mean it's absurd what this means to play a week of tennis to get the opportunity and then deliver. Against Ben Shelton there was, I think

[Malika Andrews]

it was eight all in the breaker. Crazy. But there's a super tie break. Matches on the line, crazy point. And Vernon guesses right and sort of swats at a ball. I don't know if you did you catch this point? Missed it by maybe a clean look.

[John Wertheim]

Clean look.

[Malika Andrews]

Which gives Ben Shelton suddenly match point. So you played for four hours, you're at, you know, the super tie break and you say I missed the ball by a foot and now my opponents have got match point. And what does this guy do? He goes back up to the line, holds twice and ends up closing out this match. Biggest win of his career. Yeah, I thought some of the bend, decision making sort of when to pull the trigger and when to hold back was a little perplexing. Remember he lost Roland Garros to Rafael Colignon.

[John Wertheim]

Colignon after, after center went out the draw opened up there too.

[Malika Andrews]

Gaping draw and he lost to a Belgian rank in the 60s and then comes back at the very next major after, as you say, after winning a grass tournament.

[John Wertheim]

In between beating Taylor Fritz.

[Malika Andrews]

Beating Taylor Fritz and then going out. This, this one stings. And I don't, you know, you hate to sort of jump to conclusions and everything needs retooling and everything needs reassessment. But it's been a disappointing year for. We've talked about this. You know, he's won three titles but in between have come a lot of mystifying losses. And yeah, this one, this one will sting.

[John Wertheim]

Yeah, if I had one thing, it's like pattern recognition. Not just how you want to enforce yourself on. On someone.

[Malika Andrews]

Right.

[John Wertheim]

Because he's. He's really good at that. Pattern recognition. What patterns am I playing into that aren't working, you know, most of the time? How do I adjust those patterns? How do. What chip do I hit? You know, not just line all the time, but what one do I hit? Cross? Can I hit a short chip instead of a drop shot? All of these little things and recognizing tendencies and patterns is something that I can see as a. As a. As a point of improvement where all of a sudden he starts rolling and winning that match in four sets instead of losing in five sets. You know, the good news is I think there's. I think there's a lot of room for movement, you know, to be. To be a better volume returner. You know, when to pull the trigger, when not to the guy seated four. And there's still a lot of upside.

[Malika Andrews]

That's a good way to look at it.

[John Wertheim]

If I'm in that corner, I'm going, listen, I know this hurts. There's so much we can work on. There's so much improvement to be made. And you're one of the top five players on earth.

[Malika Andrews]

Right? Right.

[John Wertheim]

So if we're going to spin that positively, I think that's how I'd go about it. But there's.

[Malika Andrews]

There.

[John Wertheim]

There has to be no doubt that this is just devastating. And hopefully it doesn't have a hangover, but I don't see how it doesn't. Even if you have a great summer, the last two Slams have been rough. I always say. I think expectation is the hardest thing in sports. I think we expect a lot of Ben now because of what he's shown us. So this is definitely going to be something. Something to work, to work through. We'll get to Serena, but this I'm gonna servicenow. Stat of the day before we get to Serena is.

[Malika Andrews]

What do you got?

[John Wertheim]

Is the number seven. It's the number of Grand Slams that Serena Williams won before Maya Joint was born.

[Malika Andrews]

That's a McEnroe. That's a McEnroe career.

[John Wertheim]

John McEnroe won seven grand slams, so it's a full McEnroe before Maya joint was born. Give me your take on Serena before I give you mine.

[Malika Andrews]

I feel like for all the questions, I'm not sure we got. I mean, I think you could spin this either way. I kept writing in my notes respectable. It wasn't dazzling. It was not. No one got mistaken that this was Serena Williams at The peak of her powers. And yet she was better than she was four years ago. It's so impressive that she's still serving in the 120s. And there were some very nice constructed points here and there. Part of you says, you lost to my joint in three sets. Kids got to see you play. It was a great effort. It was inspiring. You're 44 years old. Congratulations. I think you could also say you came in here with zero match play and you went three sets with a full time player half your age. It's not crazy to think you can build on that. I'm not sure. I mean, I feel like you could spin this either way. And it wasn't embarrassing. It was a thoroughly enjoyable match. I thought she was better than she was four years ago when she lost a harmony tan. To me, it had some echoes of when she was trying to win that 24th major. And it just kind of the consistency was what went. And sometimes you said, that's awesome. She's serving an ace up the tee at 122 miles an hour. And then the next point she would look a step slow and the ball would hit the bottom of the net. I just, it was kind of unsatisfying in the sense that if we all wanted the triumphant return and we all start talking about, could she possibly do it? We didn't get that. We also didn't get the, oh my God, this is embarrassing. Avert your eyes. It was just, it was kind of in this liminal. I don't know enough. What do you think?

[John Wertheim]

You know what I kept thinking? I kept thinking how fucking stupid I would look if I hadn't played in four years and tried to go out on center quarter Wimbledon, my first match

[Malika Andrews]

and play a 20 year old, a moron.

[John Wertheim]

I would look like a idiot, right? So let's level set because we're like any analysis of Serena is against her own shadow, right? All that I'm hearing, it was not her plan to play singles here. I thought it could have been. Well, as of, from what I'm hearing from, from Wozniaki texting last week, what do you think? Like, I don't know that this was dialed for. I don't know that she was sure two weeks ago. Um, here's, here's what I think. I think we'll see her again on a singles court for sure. I think Serena leaving this match is going. I mean, I almost won a match and there's a lot I can improve on. I think at the two hour mark, I think her Legs gave out. I think the serve started missing by five feet. You can't create the spin mechanism to bring it down. But there were flashes, you know, there, there, there, there were flashes, you know, instead of three points in a row, it was two points in a row. And then, then an air credit to my joint. I thought she played really well. Considering the circumstance and considering someone carrying a massive losing streak at tour level into the event, I thought she did well. If, if I know Serena at all, she's pissed and she's going, I think I could still beat these people. I think we'll see her at the US Open in singles.

[Malika Andrews]

You think we'll see her before then?

[John Wertheim]

I mean, yeah, What a luxury it would be to play matches before Grand Slam.

[Malika Andrews]

I was gonna say, like, God forbid she'd play some matches. No, I mean, again, it's very easy to spin this as, you know what I was right in there. She was, you know, she won that second set. I think she finished with seven aces. She's playing a player half her age. And it's very easy to spin this as, you know what? We get a little more fit, we work on a few things. We get some more match play in there and yeah, go to New York. The crowd will be even louder.

[John Wertheim]

I'm just telling you, New York in that exact same situation would have been falling apart. This was weirdly falling apart.

[Malika Andrews]

It almost was, though. There was sort of this guilt of, boy, there's this nice Australian and I don't want to insult her. It was. Given the circumstances, you thought the roof was going to go off the plate. It wasn't that way inside. I don't know if you. Did you watch inside center court.

[John Wertheim]

I let the studio, I mean, it

[Malika Andrews]

was, you know, when Serena won the second set, the fans got into it. This was not what you. This was not Beatlemania. This was not. It was. It was almost as though, you know, I'm going to politely applaud the seven time champion, but I don't want to insult the opponent. It was sort of, I thought, oddly subdued given the circumstances. But no, Serena didn't do press. Read into that what you will. I think she's pissed and I think she said, you know what, Like I was right in that manner.

[John Wertheim]

I kind of love that she cares enough to be salty about press. I kind of love that. I gotta go. Don't you.

[Malika Andrews]

At age, at age 44, even, I don't know, we're all sort of looking for these pruder clues.

[John Wertheim]

Just blame it on prize money, boycott you'll be fine.

[Malika Andrews]

Yeah, exactly. That was then rescinded. But no, I, I got the feeling just sort of body language wise, this wasn't like, oh my God, happy to be here. So happy my daughters could see me going off to retirement.

[John Wertheim]

That's not the way her mind works. She can't help herself.

[Malika Andrews]

So you think, you think I, I tend to agree with you. I don't think this was a one off.

[John Wertheim]

No, I don't, I don't think so. I think all of the things that you mentioned with it has been a softer side of Serena, at least the front facing part of it this week in interviews and everything else. And you know, there was, you know, forever in a day. You ask her what she's doing, she's like, I'm here to win. I don't think she went that far this week. And you could see that like gear kind of wanting to turn a little bit like and we have to remember we tried to pin her on. Are you retiring? She's like, I'm evolving. She all the door was never fully closed.

[Malika Andrews]

Right. You never use the word, you know.

[John Wertheim]

No, evolve.

[Malika Andrews]

Evolve, yeah.

[John Wertheim]

So I think she's going to evolve off of this result. I can't think she feels worse about her game and herself and her ability to compete after this match than before it.

[Malika Andrews]

No, I think, look, this, this had a huge range of outcome. Right. I think this kind of ended up where it probably should have. Right. I mean it wouldn't have been, I mean, let's be honest, it wouldn't have been a great look. Even the great Serena Williams if at age 44 with no match play she came and she would have won 6 2, 62 in 58 minutes and then moved on to the second round for who? She got pushed around. The rest of earth looks great. She showed flashes, as you say. No other player at that age was going to put on a show like this. She also, I think we need to make a fair point of that. This wasn't a whimsical decision. This was method. We've talked about this. This was methodical. She's practiced on different surfaces with different practice partners. I think she handled this really professionally and there's still work to be done. But it's very easy to see her say, you know what, I was right in there with a 20 year old who was in the top 30 not that long ago. Like I didn't win tonight, but I'm not done.

[John Wertheim]

I think this will burn her in a way that's good for the rest of us as fans.

[Malika Andrews]

Don't you wish.

[John Wertheim]

Wish I were wired like that Same. Anyways, while I go cry myself to sleep that I'm not. Thanks for watching Surf brought to you by ServiceNow. JW. The good news is, is that your home is not far from our home.

[Malika Andrews]

That we're neighbors.

[John Wertheim]

I found an Airbnb. So true story.

[Malika Andrews]

We were.

[John Wertheim]

We were on the surf text chain. It's like, oh, where are you staying? And you type in the address. I'm like, oh, our fences connect. Good fortune. Thanks for coming over, Producer Mike. Techie. Sean. You guys all good?

[Malika Andrews]

Great.

[John Wertheim]

You guys still living that village life?

[Malika Andrews]

Townies?

[John Wertheim]

Would you call yourself village people? Anyways, thanks for watching. Served. We'll see you tomorrow. 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. 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.