5 SETTER: Alcaraz Cleared, Wimbledon Viewership Ratings, Tennis Weddings & More

Summary

Served with Andy Roddick

Episode: 5 SETTER – Alcaraz Cleared, Wimbledon Viewership Ratings, Tennis Weddings & More
Release Date: July 17, 2026
Host: Techie Sean (with Served team, including Andy Roddick & Jon Wertheim)

Episode Overview

In this “Five Setter” episode, Techie Sean recaps the five most buzzworthy stories in the racket sports world from the past week—in under ten minutes. Highlights include record-breaking Wimbledon viewership, the latest on player entries for the upcoming Cincinnati Open (especially the return of Carlos Alcaraz), a new Novak Djokovic documentary, a flurry of tennis star weddings, and a dramatic upset streak in Major League Pickleball.

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1. Record-Breaking Wimbledon Viewership

[01:02 – 02:30]

• Women’s Final:
  The all-Czech women's final between Linda Noskova and Karolina Muchova drew 1.9 million viewers on ESPN, making it the most-watched women’s Wimbledon final ever on the network.

  • “That is a 48% jump over last year's 57 minute final between Iga Swiatek and Amanda Anisimova.” – Techie Sean [01:28]

• Men’s Final:
  Jannik Sinner triumphed over Alexander Zverev in four sets for his fifth Grand Slam title. The final drew 2.4 million viewers, which was down 16% from last year’s Sinner vs. Alcaraz showdown.

• Overall Tournament:
  ESPN’s average daily viewership hit 853,000—up 18% year-over-year, its second-highest Wimbledon viewership.

• Single Biggest Draw:
  “Serena Williams return to Grand Slam singles gave ESPN its biggest day two audience ever at Wimbledon, 1.8 million viewers on a Tuesday afternoon in the States. Not surprising in the slightest.” – Techie Sean [02:20]

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2. Cincinnati Open Entry Updates: Who's In, Who’s Out

[02:31 – 03:53]

• Notable Absences:

  • Emma Raducanu is missing due to a lower leg stress fracture, spotted in a boot—“doubtful for a return pre US Open.”
  • Jack Draper also out from the direct entry due to injury and low ranking, needing a wildcard.

• Big Returns:

  • Carlos Alcaraz (world #3, seven-time Major champ) appears on the entry list after a wrist injury and “good news delivered this week from a Spanish publication that reported that Alcaraz is cleared to play.” [03:20] – Techie Sean
  • Alcaraz has not yet personally confirmed participation.
  • Holger Rune, out since October with an Achilles rupture, is set to play. He’ll be debuting Wilson’s new racket, the Defyre, as highlighted by Andy Roddick in a recent test video.

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3. Upcoming Novak Djokovic Documentary

[03:54 – 04:51]

• Prime Video released the trailer for Novak Djokovic: The Wolf in Winter.

  • Directed by Jason Hehir (The Last Dance).
  • Premieres August 20, just before the US Open.

• Notable quotes from the trailer:

  • “There’s a word in Serbian called inat, where people doubt you.” – Novak [04:19]
  • “That’s when you use that inat, that force of stubbornness to prove everybody wrong.” – Novak [04:34]
  • “You look at Novak Djokovic, you can see when the fans are giving him that feeling of being the villain even though he’s the champion.” – Commentator [04:41]

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4. Tennis Weddings: A Week of Love

[04:52 – 05:37]

• Katie Boulter & Alex de Minaur:
  Married July 12, the day of the Wimbledon men’s final in a small church near Boulter’s family home in Leicestershire.

• Tommy Paul & Paige Lorenze:
  Married in New York three days later. No released photos yet, but a video features Tommy and groomsmen (Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, and Reilly Opelka) playing tennis roulette.

• Daria Kasatkina & Natalia Zabiiako:
  Married in Greece, attended by WTA stars like Mira Andreeva.

• “Congratulations to all three couples on behalf of everybody here at Served.” – Techie Sean [05:38]

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5. Pickleball Shakeup: End of Waters’ Streak

[05:38 – 06:37]

• “Story from our fans’ favorite topic… Pickleball.” – Techie Sean
• At the Major League Pickleball midseason, the St. Louis Shocks swept the New Jersey Fives.
• Anna Bright & Kate Fahey defeated Anna Leigh Waters (previously unbeaten) and Georgia Johnson in women’s doubles, ending Waters’ perfect 25–0 season.
• “How do you beat the best player on earth? Simple. You don’t let her play… Every single ball went to her partner. Not most of them — all of them. It’s the kind of strategy that sounds insulting until it works, and then it just looks genius.” – Techie Sean [06:24]

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Tiebreak Trivia & Bonus Headlines

[06:38 – 07:18]

• Tiebreak trivia:
  “With tennis continuing to be prominent on the big screen, what is the one tennis movie that has won an Oscar? We will have that answer for you in this week's Five Setter newsletter…”

• Bonus stories teased for the newsletter:

  • WTA Finals are moving stateside
  • Suspension for match-fixing extended after appeal

• “For a full breakdown, head to servepodcast.com or find us on Substack.”

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• “Serena Williams return to Grand Slam singles gave ESPN its biggest day two audience ever at Wimbledon.” [02:20]
• “There’s a word in Serbian called inat, where people doubt you.” – Novak Djokovic [04:19]
• “How do you beat the best player on earth? Simple. You don’t let her play… Every single ball went to her partner… then it just looks genius.” – Techie Sean [06:24]

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Timestamps Reference

• 01:02: Episode content begins / intro to Five Setter
• 01:10–02:30: Wimbledon viewership breakdown
• 02:31–03:53: Cincinnati entry list and injury updates
• 03:54–04:51: Djokovic documentary trailer
• 04:52–05:37: Tennis wedding roundup
• 05:38–06:37: Pickleball upset & streak broken
• 06:38–07:18: Tiebreak trivia and newsletter tease

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Tone & Style

Techie Sean delivers the podcast with a blend of tennis-insider knowledge and playful enthusiasm, keeping the pace brisk, the commentary fresh, and the subject matter diverse—from ratings and injuries to weddings and pickleball strategy.

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For full stories and more racket sports updates, visit servepodcast.com or follow their channels.

Transcript

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[Techie Sean]

What's up chuckers? Techie Sean here, back in the studio after our Wimbledon trip. Excited to bring you the Served five setter, your weekly roundup of all things racket sports. Five stories in ten minutes or less. But before we get into it, please hit subscribe on YouTube and give us a follow on your favorite podcast platform so you can stay up on All Things Served. We really appreciate the love and support. That said, today is July 17, 2026 and here's what we've got for you. Who's in and out at Cincy? The goat gets a DOC Tennis wedding roundup and a win streak has been broken. But first set number one starts with the scoreboard. Behind the scoreboard. Viewership Ratings the women's final was an all Czech affair. Linda Noskova against Karolina Muhova. The final averaged 1.9 million viewers on ESPN, making this the network's most watched women's Wimbledon final ever. That is a 48% jump over last year's 57 minute final between Iga Swiatek and Amanda Anisimova. On the men's side, Jannik Sinner beat Alexander Zverev in four sets for his fifth Grand Slam title. That final drew 2.4 million viewers, down 16% from last year's Sinner Alcaraz showdown. But zooming out. This was ESPN's second most viewed Wimbledon on record, up 18% year over year, averaging 853,000 viewers a day. The single biggest story though, Serena Williams return to Grand Slam singles gave ESPN Its biggest day two audience ever at Wimbledon. 1.8 million viewers on a Tuesday afternoon in the States. Not surprising in the slightest. On to set number two, where the 2026 Cincinnati Open entry list just went public. Here are the notable names on and off the entry list, starting off with the bad news. Emiratucannu and Jack Draper are not on the direct entry list this year. Ratucanu, dealing with a lower leg stress fracture, is doubtful for a return pre US Open after being recently spotted in a boot. Draper, who pulled out of Wimbledon due to bone bruising in his left arm, would need to rely on a wildcard due to his current ranking being 147. Now onto the good news. Carlos Alcaraz, the world number three and seven time major champ, is present on the entry list, giving fans hope that he will play his first event since shutting things down back in April with a wrist injury. Good news was delivered this week from a Spanish publication that reported that Alcaraz is cleared to play. Carlitos has yet to personally confirm his plans, but things are looking better than they did a week ago. Also on the entry list is Holgerune. The former world no.4 has been out since October with a ruptured Achilles. His initial return announcement came earlier this year when he planned to return before the French Open at Hamburg, which didn't end up happening. Now he is planning on playing the American hard court swing after appearing on the Cincinnati entry list and telling fans on social media he is planning to play at the US Open. Not to mention, he will be swinging a new racket after announcing he has joined the Wilson team with the launch of their new racket, the Defyre, the same racket that our very own Andy Roddick took for a test swing. If you haven't seen that video yet, check it out. The link is in the description. Alright, set number three takes us off the court and onto the screen. Prime Video just dropped the trailer for the long awaited Novak documentary. It's called Novak Djokovic the Wolf in Winter, directed by Jason Hayer, the Guy behind the Last dance. It premieres Aug. 20, just in time for the U.S. open. Take a look.

[Novak Djokovic Interviewer]

There's a word in Serbian called inat where people doubt you.

[Techie Sean]

What's it been like to be something

[Novak Djokovic Interviewer]

of a bad guy when everyone is basically against you?

[Techie Sean]

I don't believe people are booing. That is horrendous.

[Novak Djokovic Interviewer]

That's when you use that inat, that force of stubbornness to prove everybody wrong.

[Novak Djokovic Commentator]

You look at Novak Djokovic, you can see when the fans are giving him that feeling of being the villain even though he's the champion.

[Techie Sean]

Set number four is a big one for the romantics out there. Apparently the week after Wimbledon is the best time to get hitched. Here's your tennis wedding roundup. To kick it off, Katie Boulter and Alex Dimanour tied the knot on Sunday, July 12, the same day as the Wimbledon men's final in a quiet little church ceremony near Katie's family home in Leicestershire. Then three days later, on Wednesday, Tommy Paul married Paige Lorenz in an outdoor ceremony in New York. As of this recording, photos from the wedding have not been released, but what we do have is a video of Tommy and his groomsmen featuring Taylor, Fritz Francis Tiafo and Riley Opelka playing tennis roulette.

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[Techie Sean]

And finally, Daria Kazakhina married Natalia Zabioko, a former Olympic silver medalist in figure skating, in a seaside ceremony in Greece. Many WTA players were in attendance, including world number five Mira Andreeva. Congratulations to all three couples on behalf of everybody here at Served. Lastly, for set number five, we wanted to share a story from our fans Favorite topic of all time Pickleball at the Major League Pickleball midseason tournament, the St. Louis shocks swept the New Jersey Fives in the final and in doing so, Anna Bright and Kate Fahey beat Annalee Waters and Georgia Johnson in women's doubles, handing Waters her first MLP Women's doubles loss of the entire season. Going into this tournament, waters was a perfect 25 0. So how do you beat the best player on earth? Simple. You don't let her play. That was the whole game plan. Every single ball went to her partner. Not most of them, all of them. It's the kind of strategy that sounds insulting until it works, and then it just looks genius. Now for our tiebreak trivia. With tennis continuing to be prominent on the big screen, what is the one tennis movie that has won an Oscar? We will have that answer for you in this week's five setter newsletter, along with a few stories that didn't quite make the show. Like the the WTA Finals are moving stateside and a suspension for match fixing got longer after an appeal. For a full breakdown, head to servepodcast.com or find us on substack. Remember to hit subscribe on YouTube or follow us on your favorite podcast platform. We will see you all next week.

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