Rybakina’s Rise, Serena’s Comeback & Best-of-Five for Women? | Love All w/ Kim Clijsters

Summary

Podcast Summary: Served with Andy Roddick

Episode: Rybakina’s Rise, Serena’s Comeback & Best-of-Five for Women? | Love All w/ Kim Clijsters

Date: February 4, 2026
Guests: Kim Clijsters, Blair Henley (hosting “Love All” segment)
Additional mentors/references: Jon Wertheim, Andy Roddick

---

Episode Overview

This episode blends insightful analysis and lively discussion on current tennis headlines, fresh off the 2026 Australian Open. Kim Clijsters and Blair Henley dive into Elena Rybakina’s championship run, high-level coaching changes, ongoing tennis debates (like best-of-five for women), evolving etiquette controversies, camera privacy at tournaments, and the possibility of a Serena Williams comeback. The hosts bring in stories from their own careers and insider observations from Melbourne, fostering an enthusiastic, open tennis community conversation.

---

Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. Australian Open: Atmosphere & Behind-the-Scenes

• [00:30–05:14]

  • Blair details the wild Melbourne weather, the festival-like “Happy Slam” environment, and how many attendees enjoy the event as much for the culture as for actual matches.
    • “Packing was absolutely impossible… but I have no complaints. It was the best. The happy slam vibes are real.” — Blair [00:48]
  • The event’s diverse attractions (concerts, public spaces) help bring in new fans.

• [05:14–06:41]

  • 1/3 of attendees don’t even enter a stadium court, instead soaking up the social aspect—food, music, and communal watch parties.

---

2. Elena Rybakina’s Run to the Title

• [05:16–09:43]
  • Rybakina, “solid throughout the tournament,” dropped only one set (in the final) and maintained composure even when trailing.
    • “She doesn’t show a lot of emotions anyway, but I do feel like she’s looked a little bit more confident.” — Kim [05:35]
  • Credit to her coach Stefano Vukov, who was banned for part of 2025 but returned courtside; her preferred team’s stability seems key now.
  • Vukov’s “constant chatter” even in pre-final closed practices is notable—some players thrive on late technical tweaks, others prefer silence.
    • “I wouldn’t have liked the coach who’s talking my ear off… but every player is different.” — Kim [08:15]
  • New initiative: Coaches receive trophies alongside players. Samu López (Alcaraz’s stand-in coach) also awarded on men’s side.

---

3. Aryna Sabalenka’s Disappointment, “Scar Tissue” & Finals Nerves

• [10:34–12:50]
  • Sabalenka’s consistency as world #1, but repeated finals losses may be building doubt.
  • Kim interprets this as Sabalenka’s “personality” rather than irreparable mental scars.
    • “She is so good at showing when she’s confident… But you can also really see when she’s starting to doubt herself.” — Kim [11:01]
  • Importance of positivity and short-term resilience, referencing Novak Djokovic’s candor about setbacks:
    • “It’s BS that you don’t have negative feelings… try to keep those as short as possible.” — Kim, paraphrasing Djokovic [12:37]

---

4. Historical Comparison: Alcaraz and Graf’s Career Slams

• [12:50–15:38]
  • Alcaraz, at 22, youngest man to complete career Grand Slam.
  • Steffi Graf achieved a Golden Slam at 19 (all four majors plus Olympic gold in one year).
    • “You forget sometimes how impressive she was.” — Kim [13:27]
    • Graf on her 1988 streak: “Honestly, I was just young. I wasn’t thinking about anything… going out there because I loved playing tennis.” — Recalled by Blair [14:14]

---

5. Results Highlights: Doubles and Wheelchair Tennis

• [15:38–18:30]
  • Belgian Elise Mertens now has 6 doubles majors, returns to #1.
    • Career earnings guess: “10 million?” — Kim [16:08], “She’s close to 19 million.” — Blair [16:10]
  • Clijsters notes balancing singles/doubles, suggests playing both “takes a little bit away” from singles focus.
  • Wheelchair division: Niels Vink (career Grand Slam), Takeda Oda (all four majors at 19).

---

6. The Osaka vs. Cirstea Etiquette Debate

• [19:14–22:36]
  • Naomi Osaka’s animated self-pumping (verbal encouragement and thigh slaps between serves) provoked Serana Cirstea at the net.
  • Kim: Not personally offended, but “definitely a generational impact.” “You hope it can have a little bit of a mental effect.”
  • Where’s the line between self-motivation and distraction?
    • “You have tennis etiquette where there are certain things you don’t do… you can jump around, slap your thigh, fist pump a little bit… but nothing too big of a drama.” — Kim [22:36]

---

7. Players’ Privacy & Cameras “Everywhere”

• [23:24–28:53]
  • Coco Gauff’s post-match frustration (smashing racket in the hallway) was caught on AO’s all-access cameras and instantly viraled, sparking debate on privacy.
  • Blair explains the AO’s behind-the-scenes live feeds have become major content streams—both a fan favorite and commercial success.
  • Kim, as a former player, is “old school” and values privacy—but agrees it “shows the human side.”
    • “I think any player understands what that feeling is like to lose a match…” — Kim [26:10]
  • Other players (Swiatek, Pegula) have voiced their unease; more explicit signage is being considered.

---

8. Big-Picture Debate: Best-of-Five for Women?

• [29:53–36:48]
  • AO’s Craig Tiley floated no warm-up and best-of-five sets for women from QFs onward.
  • Kim opposed eliminating warm-ups (“very important for players”), but likes five-set format for the challenge:
    • “I think I would have liked it as a player… the physical challenge, mental challenge… I would have loved to see a fourth or a fifth set in the women’s final.” — Kim [31:39]
  • Blair counters with scheduling/logistics concerns (late night matches, longer slams), and that many two-of-three matches are already thrilling.
  • Both agree: If the schedule changed, the WTA would need to allow more rest/shorter seasons.

---

9. Training, Recovery, and the Physical Side of Tennis

• [36:48–38:50]
  • Kim recalls post-match routines in her prime: “I’d come out of the ice bath… and I’d tell him [trainer], ‘Yeah, good, like, I feel like I can go back out there. Like, I’m, like, ready.’” [37:04]
  • Enthusiasm for the advanced recovery techniques top players use, especially Novak Djokovic.

---

10. Emma Raducanu’s Coaching Carousel

• [38:50–42:46]
  • Raducanu parts with Francisco Roig after six months, her 10th coach; concern she doesn’t give coaching relationships time to develop.
    • “Finding that balance between giving it time to trust your coach, giving it time for the effects that a coach can have…” — Kim [40:39]
  • Wonders who’s really making the decisions (“Is she doing it? Is it an agent? Parent?”).

---

11. Serena Williams Comeback Watch

• [42:46–53:10]
  • Serena hints at a return (possibly doubles with Venus), posting practice content.
    • “I think the odds are more towards her having a comeback than they are against her coming back.” — Kim [44:05]
  • Kim details her own comeback motivations—love of the “road to getting to that stage… what people don’t see.” [45:50]
  • The hosts muse on what “significant factor” means for Hall of Fame status if Serena returns in doubles.
    • “If her and Venus would win a slam… that makes them a significant factor, which I do think they can.” — Kim [53:10]

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Rybakina’s evolution:

  • “She looked happy, healthy… it looked like, you know, it’s for a few months now, falling into place for her.” — Blair [06:41]

• On Sabalenka’s finals nerves:

  • “You can see it in her eyes… when doubt or fear starts to creep in.” — Kim [11:01]

• On historic perspective:

  • “Sometimes the media can forget that there’s women who’ve done it before.” — Kim, on Steffi Graf [13:27]

• On etiquette:

  • “Where do you draw the line to say, okay, it’s okay for a player to do it? Because it does have an effect on your opponent.” — Kim [21:44]

• On cameras backstage:

  • “I don’t think I would have enjoyed every moment. I’m old school – I also like your privacy.” — Kim [25:44]

• On best-of-five for women:

  • “I think I would have really enjoyed the challenge… I would have loved to see a fourth or a fifth set in the women’s final.” — Kim [31:39]
  • “If the match is bad, Kim, you get three sets of bad tennis.” — Blair [34:54]

• On comebacks:

  • “Competing… is not just against opponents, but also with yourself.” — Kim [45:50]
  • “Did you ever care what people said along the way?” — Blair [49:29]
  • “You do hear that negative stuff, but you learn to focus on what you have to do.” — Kim [49:47]

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• AO experience & “Happy Slam” vibes: [00:30–05:14]
• Rybakina’s win and coaching insight: [05:14–09:43]
• Sabalenka’s finals: nerves vs. “scar tissue”: [10:34–12:50]
• Alcaraz & Graf Grand Slam context: [12:50–15:38]
• Doubles/wheelchair results; Mertens discussion: [15:38–18:30]
• Osaka/Cirstea etiquette debate: [19:14–22:36]
• Cameras & player privacy debate: [23:24–28:53]
• Craig Tiley’s format proposals: [29:53–36:48]
• Elite recovery methods: [36:48–38:50]
• Emma Raducanu’s coaching saga: [38:50–42:46]
• Serena’s possible comeback and comeback insights: [42:46–53:10]
• Hall of Fame “significant factor” question: [52:30–53:44]

---

Tone & Style

The episode is candid, enthusiastic, and conversational, with Kim and Blair balancing thoughtful insight, playful banter, and a genuine love for the sport and its community.

---

For Listeners Who Missed It

This episode is a must-listen if you want to grasp the latest hot topics in tennis: Rybakina’s place at the summit, how players handle finals pressure, debates about women’s match formats, etiquette evolutions, tennis’ privacy era, and the chance (however speculative) to see Serena Williams in action again. Kim Clijsters’ reflections on high-level competition and comebacks add a unique, personal touch, accompanied by up-to-the-minute reporting from Blair Henley. The podcast provides plenty for both die-hard tennis nerds and casual fans hungry for the sport’s next chapter.

Transcript

[Blair]

Well, the holidays have come and gone once again. But if you've forgotten to get that special someone in your life a gift. Well, Mint Mobile is extending their holiday offer of half off unlimited wireless. So here's the idea. You get it now, you call it an early present for next year.

[Kim]

What do you have to lose?

[Blair]

Give it a [e-mail] Switch limited time, 50% off regular price for new customers.

[Kim]

Upfront payment required $45 for three months.

[Blair]

$90 for six month or $180 for 12 month plan taxes and fees. Extra speeds may slow after 50 gigabytes.

[Kim]

Per month when network is busy.

[Blair]

See terms.

[Kim]

Here we go. Hi everyone. Welcome back to Love All. I've been sitting in the cold for the last two weeks, but, Blair, you were in Australia in the heat. What. What was. Yeah, tell me a little bit more about the event. How did it go?

[Blair]

Oh, my gosh. Well, let me tell you, Kim. Yes. Was it blazing hot for certain days? It sure was. It was also chilly, though. In, in my definition of the word chilly, they do joke that you get all four seasons 100%. That was the case. We had, I think the last day, the high was 68 degrees Fahrenheit and we of course had highs of 114 degrees Fahrenheit. So a little bit of everything packing was absolutely impossible. And I was thrilled, actually, that I was prepared for all of the seasons. Had jackets for every day because it was cold inside with the air conditioning when it was hot outside. Anyway, it was. But I have no complaints. It was the best. The happy slam vibes are real. That that term, you hear it thrown around and maybe it's a little bit cliche. It's totally true. Everyone's fresh, they're coming in feeling, I guess maybe renewed after Again, the offseason isn't long, but it's long enough to feel fresh coming in. And you don't have a year's worth of, I don't know, history built up. And of course, history can be a good thing when you get to the US Open at that point in the season. But it was just the best. I had a fantastic time.

[Kim]

Good to hear. Good to hear. I heard there was an interesting number, I think that John Wertheim threw out on the surf podcast with Andy that he mentioned or he heard that one third of the crowd that came in through the gates didn't even see a rally, that there's so much going on, like off court as well, that, yeah, it just becomes like a place to hang out for Three weeks in Melbourne.

[Blair]

It's like a giant watch party. So, like, out in the food areas, I went out there for a bit. I mean, it's standing room only, and people are just watching action on the screens. They had a concert series happening simultaneously. I actually did a piece on that in my reporter role and was chuckling because I was. I was walking into that area of the grounds. I'm like, you could definitely tell by the way that people were dressed who was going to the concert and who was going to the tennis. But, yeah, they do such a good job of making it one giant festival party, which I think is a great thing for tennis, because who knows how many of those people would never come, you know, within a thousand feet of a tennis court. But they're coming because they get to enjoy something else. And who knows, maybe they're like, ah, this is way cooler than I thought it was. So I think that Tennis Australia does a great job.

[Kim]

Yeah. I think it also is interesting. Like, I remember when I was playing and the night session matches were short, right. And people would complain about, like, oh, you know, we only saw, you know, a couple of hours of tennis. And Which I guess with. With the. With the setup there is. It takes that away from it. There's so much going on that you can still really have a nice evening. And even though you only sometimes maybe didn't see a lot of tennis, so it's. Yeah, maybe I have to make my. My way down there. It's been a few years and I actually got a message from. I. I sent you in a text message from Sisu Barrick during the United Cup. He was like, oh, would you have any interest in being the coach for Belgium next year? Yeah, it's a really hard time for me to get away at home during that time of the year with the family life and all the hobbies, basketball games and all that stuff. But definitely thinking about it a little bit harder than I have been in the past.

[Blair]

I'll see if I can work on you over the course. Of course, of this year. I know there are a lot of factors that go into it. And also shout out to Zizou, he's putting the hard press on Kim because I saw him in the players lounge, immediately sees me from afar and walks over and says, blair, I love that you were doing the podcast with Kim. We're trying to get her to be the United cup captain. And I said, well, we'll see what we can do. But it was just a really great Australian Open overall, from my perspective. As a reporter, and I'm excited to talk more about it with you today, Kim. We're gonna get to Elena Rybakina's run. We're going to talk about some of the history that was made. We are going to talk about Bestify for women. We love Craig Tylee for always keeping people talking. We've got some coaching changes as well, and we are going to be looking ahead today. So a little bit of everything. And should we start with Henley's headlines?

[Kim]

Yes, please. I've missed them.

[Blair]

I'm sure you have, Kim. I'm sure you have. As we mentioned, Elena rybakina winning her second Grand Slam title, a 644-6-6 4 win over the world number one Arena Sabalenka. And gosh, she looked so good. I'm curious what your takeaways were.

[Kim]

Well, she was just very solid throughout the tournament, I think. Didn't lose a set until that second set in the final in the whole tournament. So that automatically gives you a, you know, a, a confidence when you walk out there, you know, on, on Rod Laver arena on the last day and then just she, she doesn't show a lot of emotions anyway, but I do feel like she's been, she, she's looked a little bit more confident. I don't know if the, the win at the end of the year last year, the WT finals and rehab has something to do with it, but it of, you know, your, yeah, your confidence and everything just falls into place and it looked like, you know, it's for a few months now, you know, falling into place for her. And it's just really good to see, even when she's three loved down in that third set and the connection, you know, with her coach and, you know, hear him say, like, you have to bring more energy. You have to bring more energy and, you know, for her, a little bit of extra, you know, on the racket can probably feel like a lot on the other side. And that's how she makes somebody like Sabalenka down on the other side of the net.

[Blair]

Yeah, I got to talk to her a couple of times off court and I have to tell you, it was far and away the most relaxed I have ever seen her. She seemed to be much more comfortable in an interview setting, which, you know, I've interviewed her for years now, and that has not always been the case. I was able to sort of have fun with her and we were able to sing. Yeah, it really. I think there is something to be said for the fact that she currently has the team that she wants in place. We can't ignore the fact that her, her coach, Stefano Vukov was banned by the WTA for breaching their code of conduct for a large part of 2025. Rybakina did not go past the round of 16 at any slam last year. She had health issues as well. She was still working through those at the WTA Finals even though she was able to get through that. But she looked happy, healthy. It's again, outside looking in. I was able to watch some of her practices as well. Vukov doesn't really stop talking. There is so much chatter. It looked to me, and this was her closed practice prior to the final, that he was actually giving her technical advice during that time period, which I always find fascinating. That's something you see sometimes on the Djokovic practice court as well. But making slight technical adjustments two hours before you go on court for one of the biggest matches of your life. It just, I guess every player is different, right? In how they process.

[Kim]

Yeah, every player is different. And I think you can't underestimate the added kind of nerves and stresses that come with that and the thoughts that you have going on of playing a final. So I do, or I've noticed since I stopped playing that being around some of the players that a lot of players like going to that technical side because it kind of takes their thoughts away from what's coming up in the next two hours. Like it gives them something extra to focus on, like, you know, a couple of pointers here and there. I wouldn't have liked the coach who's talking my ear off during, during, you know, a warm up before a Grand Slam final or any, even the first round. But I wouldn't have liked that. But it, like, that's where, you know, like you said, like you have to, the players have to figure out like what works for them and if that's something that really works with them and helps them kind of stay calm or keep the focus on, you know, keep it away from what's happening in a few hours. I do think it's. Yeah, it can really help, but. Which it did for her. But I definitely would not have enjoyed somebody yapping in my ear for, you know, during, during a warmup. And you know, you mentioned it as well, to see her coach who was banned on the WTA Tour then get, you know, the, the reward on court after the finals. Yeah. Interesting how things work out.

[Blair]

Yeah, that was one of the new initiatives this year at the Australian Open, which overall I think is a fantastic Idea that the coach is going to get an award when their player wins the title. We also saw that on the men's side with Samu Lopez, who again has been with Carlos Alcaraz, but has not been the primary coach that we are used to seeing. Juan Carlos Ferrero, not there. Lopez gets the award. So some interesting side narratives on the coaching side of things as well.

[Kim]

It is nice to see them get rewarded because I always felt like when you do your speech, that's basically almost their only moment where you can give them a little bit of recognition and mention them. So I do think it's really nice that they get a platform to be recognized and a memory. Right. They get a trophy to take home as well. So it's something that they share with their player.

[Blair]

All right. Aryna Savalenka, obviously, she's the world number one. You look back on last year, she finished world number one, she had four titles, she got a slam. She also had four, excuse me, last year, five pretty big losses in finals, a couple slam finals, and then starting the year with another tough loss in a slam final. Is there scar tissue that starts to build up at this point?

[Kim]

I don't, I mean, maybe a little bit. But I do think it's also her personality, right? Like, I think she's such a great front runner and she is so good at showing when she's confident. But you can also really see when she's starting to doubt herself and even when she's not grunting or yelling or you can see it in her eyes when you're watching it, that, that, you know, sometimes a little bit of doubt or fear starts to creep in and, and you could really see that in, in the finals. I feel like that, you know, she was super intense. I feel like against Switolina in the semi final already, there was an intensity there that I think, you know, went up a level compared to the, the earlier few rounds. But she was so really involved, like so deeply emotionally into the match. And then all of a sudden you see Rybakina making a few more first serves, a couple of aces, win a return, and then you could feel it kind of tipping. And as a player, you feel that too when your opponent is starting to doubt a little bit or the shots are just not going as deep or not as close to the sidelines, a few more first serve percentages or first serves that they're missing. And as an opponent, you have to feel that and you have to try to take advantage of that. And Rybakina did that and that's when you have to try to stay positive. And it's like Novak is to me, I think, one of the players who's been the most open about sharing. He's like, no, he's like, it's BS that you don't have negative feelings or negative thoughts. Right. Just try to keep those as short as possible. They all have them. And. But I think. I don't think it's a scar t issue. I think it's just also a little bit. It's also her personality.

[Blair]

Yeah, for sure. So moving on, of course, huge win for Rybakina. Also a huge win on the men's side for Carlos Alcaraz, who made some history at 22, became the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam. And you sent me a graphic this morning, Kim, and you said, we gotta just mention for context that Steffi Graf did this when she was 19 years old and it was the Grand Slam, the Grand Golden Slam, and she did it all in one year in 1988. Exactly. And. And it really does put into perspective how bonkers that year was for her.

[Kim]

I know. And, you know, she was her. And. And Monica Sellers were my favorite players growing up. And, you know, I wanted. I pretended I was them on the driveway at. At my house, hitting against the garage door and. And those kind of things. But, yeah, Steffi, you know, what she's done is incredible. And I think you have a lot of the current players and people talk about that, but I think you forget sometimes how impressive she was. So. Yeah, I just love that. I was scrolling on social media and I saw that come up, and I knew that she had made that, but I didn't know the year and I didn't know her exact age. So it's just interesting how sometimes they forget media sometimes can forget that there's women who've done it before.

[Blair]

You got it, girl. On that note, I was fortunate enough to do a corporate event with Steph a couple Novembers ago, and she was asked about that year and how she did it, and she said, honestly, I was just young. I wasn't thinking about anything. I was just going out and playing tennis. And so there was no grand plan. There was no, ooh, this is a thing. I'm gonna set out to do this. She's like, I was just young, and I was going out there because I loved playing tennis. Which I thought also put it in perspective as well.

[Kim]

Yeah. And I think when you're young, listen, it's not like I can. I'm comparing myself to that situation. Right. Of winning the career Grand Slam. But I do think when you're younger, you don't overthink things as much. You just go with it. You try your best at every tournament that you're at, big or small. You give it your all and. And you just want to play tennis. Like, that's the funnest thing that, you know that sometimes gets. Or that you lose a little bit is as you get older, is because there's so many other things that have an impact on how you feel on court. Is the off court stuff that you sometimes kind of need a little break away from it. But Steffi, yeah, she's so humble and so, you know, she's done that, but she doesn't need the recognition for it. Basically. Like, it's. I love that about her. And same with Monica, too. Yeah.

[Blair]

A couple of other results that we wanted to mention. Congrats to your fellow Belgian, elisa Mertens. At 30 years old, she now has six double slam. She's back to world number one after winning with Zheng Shuai, who also has an incredible story. At 37 years old, do you have any idea what Eliza Merton's career earnings are?

[Kim]

I don't. I don't.

[Blair]

What would your guess be? Do you have any guess?

[Kim]

10 million? Not. She's.

[Blair]

She's close to 19 million.

[Kim]

Yeah.

[Blair]

Because the girl has been. She's finished top 20 in six of the last eight years. She has six double slams. I mean, she is so wildly consistent. She was in the fourth round. She lost her vodka actually, in the fourth round of, of singles. What a career.

[Kim]

Incredible. Incredible. And I do feel like from, you know, she trained at my academy in Belgium for a little bit, and she's always been a player that is, you know, she puts, she does the right things, puts in the work, like, focuses a lot on, you know, the, the hours that she puts in. But for a while there, you know, her goal was, you know, made the semis at the Australian Open and she wanted to come back and focus on, you know, on singles and getting back to that top 10. And, and so, you know, a few people around her was like, o, okay, but, you know, maybe you should like Sabalenka did. They played together. I think they won the Aussie Open in 21 together. But we were kind of like, okay, but you're going to have to kind of pick and choose. Right? And she never really listened. She just went with her thing and still kept playing doubles, which is great. But I do think it takes away a little bit of her, her her tennis, her singles skills. Right. Like, I, I think it takes a little bit away of the mental clearness, the physical side. So, you know, yes, if you want to play just for the money, great, and for the titles of the doubles. But if, I think if she does want to focus on singles and giving that one more really good run and, and seeing, you know, to get to that semi final, potentially a final, because I do think she has that in her. But that's up to her to really look at what, you know, what she, what she wants to, you know, get to in her career. Right. But incredible result. I think she's won three Australian Opens with three different partners, so it just shows her consistency as a doubles player for sure.

[Blair]

And then in wheelchair tennis, congrats to Niels Vink. He completed the career Grand Slam in the men's quad division. Takeda Oda in the, the non quad men's wheelchair tennis. The youngest man to hold all four Grand Slam titles at once at just 19 years old. Just players doing unbelievable things everywhere you look.

[Kim]

Yes, inspiring. I think sometimes they don't get mentioned enough in the tennis world, but really, really impressive. I've always loved kind of in the locker rooms talking to the players and their connection to tennis, how they got involved in tennis. Some of them were playing tennis before they either had an accident or had an illness and some of them just loved watching it on TV and decided to play and kind of are living their dreams through, you know, through the sport now. And so their stories are very inspirational and yeah, amazing, amazing results from, you know, also the Dutchman Niels Vink doing so well down under.

[Blair]

All right, next, Henley's headline. Kim, A story that was discussed ad nauseam about 12 days ago. When it happened, however, I did not get a chance to ask your opinion. So rewinding to Naomi Osaka's second round win over Serana Cirstea, words were exchanged at the net. We later found out that Chris Daya was irritated by the pumping up of herself that Naomi Osaka was doing in between first and second serves. Specifically, I will say I saw a more vocal side of Osaka than I've probably ever seen at the Australian Open this year. In general, she was more vocal, but it was really sort of this, what was happening between the first and the second serves, the. Come on, the, the jumping, the, the, you know, sort of the slapping of the thigh, that, that routine that Chris Daya did not like on the other side of the net. She squashed it in press. So, so as far as that concern, it's it's over, you know, water under the bridge. But as a player, Kim, would this have bothered you?

[Kim]

I don't think it would have bothered me because I wouldn't want the effect of it to show that it bothered me. I'm sure I would have been like, wait, what are you doing? But I don't want to get caught up in that and actually have an effect on me. But I do think there was definitely also a generational impact where I don't think anybody ever did that in whatever, how many years I was on tour. Like, I don't remember. I remember Bartley one time in. Marianne Bartali in Stanford, kind of started waving her racket, like, and going left, right, and, like, squeaking her shoes, jumping back and forth. And I kind of just gave her a look, like, really, like. But everywhere else, I think, to me, I just thought it was a little bit. I didn't really catch on to it earlier in the match that she did that. So, you know, she was very open about it and shared Naomi, that she, you know, was trying to pump herself up. I do think, you know, where do you draw the line? You hear the chair umpire sometimes say, you know, when somebody yell, a person in the crowd yells out and says, come on. Or it says, you know, quiet in between first and second serve. So where do you draw the line to say, okay, it's okay for a push or an opponent to do it? So that's the only thing where I'm like, you know, because it does have an effect on your opponent, you know, you hope that it can have a little bit of a mental effect and that they can start doubting their second serve a little bit. I'm sure that's, you know, that's a consequence of whether you just do it to pump yourself up or you do it, you know, for. For that kind of mental side or mental advantage.

[Blair]

To Kirstea's credit, she did ask the chair umpire, can you do something about it? And I believe it was Alison Hughes in the chair kind of said, there's, you know, she's not hindering the actual point. There's really nothing that I can do. So I think Cirstea went about it the correct way. But, yes, lot of opinions. There were players who came out and said, yeah, not cool. Don't do that. So, again, I'll be curious to see if Osaka potentially tones that down in.

[Kim]

The weeks and months to come. You have. Have, like, tennis etiquette where there's certain things that you don't do. And I think you know people who, who. And I'm sure there's fans that is like, who cares? Like it's a come on. Like we hear it all the time. But you know, there's certain things between first and second servers that you don't really, you know, you don't have to be verbal. You can, you can like you said, like slap your thigh or you know, like fist pump a little bit, jump around. Like I've done those things too where you jump around kind of to get your own nerves a little bit out of your body or to kind of, you know, maybe intimidate your opponent and show that you're kind of trying to step in for this second serve that might be coming up. And so but yeah, nothing too, too big of a drama to, to focus on.

[Blair]

All right, next, Henley's headline, Cameras everywhere. I feel like that's the best way to sum this up. And boy, did that become the focus of headlines when Coco g the quarterfinals to Alina Svitolina in a comprehensive win for Svitolina. I feel like that's probably the, the kindest way to say it. Coco not pleased. She walked out of the. And and so I can sort of describe where this was. You walk out of the tunnel from the court and then you have to walk through another hallway to get out to the area where you saw her appear in. In frame. Walked sort of behind a wall and obliterated her racket. It was indeed caught by the cameras and within minutes was all over the Internet and there was a lot of conversation over whether that should be a thing that players are subject to. Should there be cameras in all of the public hallways? Curious your take.

[Kim]

Well, first of all, are these cameras, are they Australian Open cameras? Is it security cameras? Is it broadcasts that puts them up?

[Blair]

I can answer that question for you. So the Australian Open, they were sort of the trailblazers in the cameras everywhere department. This was something that they started in 2019. And again, Craig Tylee always thinking in terms of the big picture. This, he saw it as a content stream and a content stream needs a revenue stream. And to his credit, people love watching those behind the scenes cameras. They love seeing what the players are doing to warm up. They love seeing sort of the bloopers in the hallway. Yeah, absolutely. I mean I, on a personal note, last year I did a show for the Australian Open called Blue Zone and we sort of interrupted that 24 hour day behind the scenes stream to do this three hour show which had highlights. We had some of the behind the scenes. We had interviews, we had all sorts of different things, and people were like, you're interrupting my behind the scenes stream. How could you do that? Because people love watching. Like, there's no sound. It's not like you're hearing what the conversation are. You're just seeing what's happening behind the scenes. And fans do indeed love it, right?

[Kim]

Because they don't get a. You know, they don't. I know what it's like, right? We know what it's like because we walk those hallways. But for a fan who, you know, a tennis player, you can see them when you're on the side of a court, a match court, or in practice now, I think you can, you know, watch a lot of their practices too. But I think it just gives people at home a little bit more of a realistic view of what that atmosphere is like behind the scenes and that we are all walking in the same hallways, we share the same locker room, we eat in the same restaurant. You know, like, it's all. It's not like in a team competition where, you know, you have one, you know, one team in a locker room, you have the other team in the other locker room, and that they don't really see each other until they. Until they walk out on court. Like, for us, it's like you see each other when you walk in in the morning. You're probably practicing next to them on the practice court. So I think it's really nice content for the fans. But then when I put kind of my players head on, you know, I also don't. I don't think I would have enjoyed every moment. I'm old school. Like, I also like your privacy. I, you know, I don't. I remember when Twitter, like, first came on, I was like, wait, what? You have to film me, like, when I go to the supermarket with like, like my husband and Jada. Like, wait, like, why? Like, who cares about that? Like, so, you know, I don't. Yeah, I don't know, it just feels. It feels different now. And especially the negative. You know, there's funny moments, but I think when it's, you know, some negative things, like, you know, with Coco breaking her racket, I'm sure she would have preferred not to have that scene, you know, all over the world, but it also shows the human side. And I think any player understands what that feeling is like to lose a match where you did not play well at all and. And didn't really feel like you were in the match. And it's very frustrating. And we've all gone through it and I've broken a racket and, you know, it's, it's, it's part of it. And sometimes getting that frustration out, like that really helps.

[Blair]

Yeah, absolutely. Well, it's interesting. Oh, girl. Yes, yes. Much to my parents dismay.

[Kim]

It was funny though, to see Serena's comment to Coco, like saying how she, you know, it's all good, but maybe I have to teach you how to like break the racket in one smack or however you want to describe it. So that was a pretty funny comment.

[Blair]

I agree. No, yeah, I do. I have. No, I just think Coco takes her position as a role model very seriously. And I think that, that for her was maybe the tough part about that being, you know, going everywhere was because she just takes that piece of her career so seriously. But I'm curious to see what will happen next year. I know the WTA Players Council, they have, this has been a talking point over the past several years when this started becoming a popular thing to do. And I know at some WTA tournaments they've made the signage to say, hey, essentially you're on candid Camera. You're gonna be filmed.

[Kim]

Remember that show back in the day? Or I don't even know.

[Blair]

Oh, it still exists. It sure does. Yeah, it's still a thing. But it's like reality TV when find out what happens when people stop being polite and start being real. I mean, it's, you forget the cameras are there is sort of the point. And so maybe there does need to be signage to remind players that, yes, this is a space that, that you could be recorded. So I'll be curious to see how things potentially change because there's definitely a lot of conversation. IGA Witek said. Yeah, not a fan. Jess Pugula has spoken out pretty strongly on it. So curious to see how that will shake out. We're going to take a quick break, but we will be right back with more Henley's headlines. Welcome back to Love all. Where there were more headlines coming out of Australia courtesy of the current head of operations there, Craig Tyler. The tournament director may or may not be headed to the usta. We'll find out, I'm sure in due time. But Craig said at the end of the tournament that he was looking into some potential big picture adjustments in the coming years. He was thinking of getting rid of warmup time and lets that's something that's been done in college tennis now for quite a while. He also wanted to consider best of five sets for women from the quarterfinals on. Lots to discuss here.

[Kim]

Kim, let me go back to the first one. I think I have more of an issue with no warmup.

[Blair]

Ooh, okay.

[Kim]

Because most of the time, you know, we can't warm up any. Like, right before, you know, you can do some ball like dribbling and you run on a treadmill and things like that. But a lot of times those five minutes are also really important. I feel for me to adjust, if you're playing a night match, to adjust your eyes a little bit to the light, to get a little feel for what the background is like, because we don't always play on the same chord. You know, sometimes you have people in the back that are moving. Sometimes you're playing with a higher background. So to me, those first, in my time, it was five minutes were, I think, very important to a. Get your nerves a little bit under control, but also to adjust to the weather changes, the light, you know, sunlight, wind. Like, it's, it's, it's.

[Blair]

You're.

[Kim]

You have to get used to the. So I think, I don't know, I don't think those few minutes of the warm up will. I think they're important for players. That's, I think, what I want to say. Okay, then maybe you have a different opinion about this, but the five setter, when I heard him say that, I was like, ooh, I kind of like that idea.

[Blair]

Tell us about that.

[Kim]

I think I would have liked it as a player. I think I would have really enjoyed the challenge, the physical challenge of it as well, and the mental challenge that comes with that. Right. Like, I've always, you know, I remember, like, asking Andy about, like, what is that? Like, like when you play a five setter, like, how do you adjust your, you know, your mindset to, you know, playing smaller tournaments throughout the year? And, you know, you have to win two sets and to win the match. And so how does that change your mind? And it would definitely benefit a few players. The first one I can think of is, I think an IGA Sriatek, I think, who is super fit and has that really high intensity kind of tennis built into her game now. So I think it would be really hard to beat her in three sets or to win three sets against her. So there's a few players, I think a few players have come out against it, Right. That are not really looking forward to that. But I would have loved to seen, as a tennis fan, I would have loved to seen, you know, a fourth or a fifth set in the. In the women's final.

[Blair]

Okay, so here, here are my counterpoints. And I Realize that this topic, this is putting myself in the line of fire here. But here are my counterpoints. Number one, we have spent the last several years lamenting the fact that tennis is being played in the middle of the night and there are matches going past midnight and it's ruining players sleep schedules and they're wrecked for days afterward. And this would only make that type of scheduling harder. Yes, potentially in the second week of a slam, things have thinned out a little bit and it's easier. But I can think of some WTA players who could potentially go at it for easily five. I mean, of course you, you could see a five plus hour match happening easily, I think especially on the women's side where you're maybe not getting as many free points on the serve. So that's number one, we already have enough scheduling issues that are, that are sort of unsolvable currently in tennis. And secondly, Craig Tylee made this point because they have metrics that say that interest in a tennis match goes up as the match continues. And I might argue that that is the case because for a men's 3 out of 5 set match, they are not sitting down at the beginning of the match because they know it doesn't get exciting till you get to four.

[Kim]

Five.

[Blair]

Yes, exactly. And so I, I would say I have seen some incredibly exciting two out of three set matches on the men's side. I, I, I know people love the idea of best of five because we.

[Kim]

Get more of it, you get more.

[Blair]

And we have seen these epic fifth sets and, and there's sort of the physical exhaustion piece of the, the pie sort of comes more into play when you, when you've hit, you know, four plus hours. So yes, there is more of sort of that dual gladiator feel to best of five set tennis. But if the match is bad, Kim, you get three sets of bad tennis. So you, on the flip side, you also just sort of elongate, you know, a potential rough one. I don't know.

[Kim]

I know but like that's the ifs right. You can always go about like what if, like even the scheduling, I feel like the scheduling of a tournament. And like is he talking about like the later stages of the tournament, the whole tournament quarterfinals on. Yeah. So you know, that's when this, that I think in scheduling purposes it, it should fit in, I think. Right, because that's when you have a lot less matches. I think there's, you know, more time. Right. To play longer matches. And I think they calculate that in most of the time anyway that the Matches can take longer at the later stages of the tournament, but you have less. So, listen, I'm normally somebody who loves, like, tradition and. But maybe it's because I don't play anymore that I'm like, yeah, that kind of would be really interesting to see, you know, the mental side of it, the physical side of it kind of come out. But then I think in general, you know, the point is too, where, you know, we've been talking about making the season shorter and for a while, and then I think then they definitely have to make changes to the schedule because you want to protect, you know, obviously, the best players and the players who are winning these Grand Slams. And if you start adding sets to, to their, their Grand Slam weeks, you have to make adjustments to the schedule. So it's a bigger, it's a bigger operation than just saying, okay, yeah, we're going to let the players play five sets from the quarterfinals onwards. I think you do have to then, you know, say, okay, the WTA is, I don't know, giving them some extra weeks where they're not mandatory to play certain tournaments or they don't get fined if they don't play. Or, you know, there's a lot of things that then have to kind of be taken. Taken on. And so maybe, you know, maybe the players will like it if it gives them a little bit of a shorter season and a little bit more time to, you know, to have some breaks between, between the Grand Slams.

[Blair]

Time will tell. I, I love this perspective from you, though. And just as a quick side, Kim and I talked about this offline. Can you just tell the story about how you would get done, jump in an ice bath and be like, let's go. I could run a marathon.

[Kim]

No, I remember, like, telling my trainer Sam in Australia, because it would be really hot at times and, like, my feet more than anything would just get sore. Like, the skin would get, like, kind of. Yeah, just get sensitive. But then I would do my eyes bad. Like, Sam would kind of look at, like, how long my match took, and then I would do my breathing techniques on the treadmill, and I would come out of the ice bath, take a shower, and then, you know, be ready to go to media or something. And, And I would tell him, like, he's like, how do you feel? I'm like, yeah, good. Like, I feel like I can go back out there. Like, I'm, like, ready. And it's amazing how, you know, when you're young, you. Yeah. How quickly you recover and, and, yeah, it's. It's Fun. It's all these things. And that's like, even with Novak, like, I love kind of seeing and, and hearing about the things that he does, the breath work, the. The recovery tools that he uses to, you know, recover as quickly as possible. And, you know, that's where the. What, what I find some of the most interesting things about our sport now is how much of those outside factors are being used to. You know, it's not anymore the massages and the stretches and the, and the recovery jogs. And it's. There's so much more now that players are using. And, and that's, you know, one of the things that I'm super interested in and that I like to experiment with when I was playing, but learn about now too with these. And, you know, so if there's anything I feel like where I would love to see a camera, it's in that side, like the recovery journey of a player like Novak's, like first hour after his game, like, what does that look like for him? Like, that's where I would love the camera like to. To be at that. I would love to see what that's like.

[Blair]

I feel like that's a served media investigates or a Love all investigates side documentary there. I love that idea. All right, moving on to Emma Raducannu firing her coach, Francisco Roig, former coach of Rafa Nadal. After six months for those keeping score at home, she's now looking for a 10th coach. And before I get your comments on this, Kim, I have to tell you that she did her pre Australian Open press and I saw this exchange. I'm going to read it to you. And my initial thought was, oh, Francisco, you endanger girl, because this is not what you want to hear a player say. She was asked about what looked like a slightly larger loopier backswing on her forehand. And this was her response? Yeah, I think so. Yeah. I kind of noticed that more recently myself. It's not something that I really wanted to happen, so I need to kind of look at that and shorten it because I feel like it's good in certain conditions when it's a little bit slower, but on these very quick chords, it doesn't really work. So I need to adjust that. I think it's because I've been working on certain things with Frances. She calls him Francis. And on a particular shot it works well, but we didn't really practice a different type of shot which doesn't work so well. It's probably because we haven't done the latter. It's Just drifted in that way. It's not something I want to continue. And, yeah, I read that, and I thought to myself, yeah, this is not great signs for their coach, player relationship. Yeah, we've talked about this, Kim. It's tough to know, and every player is different, but when do you move on? And is it okay to move on? Should we be paying less attention to the number and more attention to the fact that, okay, maybe she hasn't found a coach that works for her.

[Kim]

Right. But I also think it takes time for a coach to be able to do their job right? And that's. I think, something that's. That. That finding that balance between, you know, giving it time to trust your coach, giving it time for the effects that a coach can have. Because, you know, a bit a big red flag is when you have a coach that comes in and starts changing everything that, you know, that just is trying to put his footprint on a player and hoping that, you know, that will give them recognition. I think those are big red flags. So I like that there's coaches who kind of take their time and want to kind of get to know their player, get to know how they think, and then learn to, you know, Darren Kahle is very much like that. You know, to me, I'm almost like, I'm curious when I. When I hear those kind of, you know, headlines and, you know, who's making those decisions. Is she doing it? Is it an agent? Is it a parent? Right. Like, I. You know, there's a lot of things that. That I'm curious in that situation about is, like, where are the. Like, who's making these decisions for her? And then there's, like, who pushes the panic button so quickly because she's had some really good coaches that she's worked with in the past, and coaches that. That are, like, what I mentioned earlier, who want to take their time, who know that it takes time to build and to make changes to a technique and to a tactical game plan. It takes time to work on that. And to me, it's almost like she's like a soccer club, right? That's like the soccer approach, where when they have a couple of bad games at the start of the season, just hired a new coach and then know a few tournaments in, and they're like, all right, A few games in, they lose, and then, you know, off onto the next one. So I think, you know, it might. It's good that she learns, I think, to kind of push through and find somebody that she really has a good connection with. And Then and then work hard on, I think, building a longer kind of coaching relationship and having the longer, longer approach in her mindset or whoever is making that decision.

[Blair]

Last Henley's headline of the day it was, it started with a Today show interview that Serena Williams did with Savannah Guthrie and shout out to Savannah Guthrie, prayers up for her mom in that situation. But in said interview, Serena was there to talk about the glp, one that she has used with great success. She is an investor in the company and she will have an upcoming super bowl commercial as one does. In that interview, Savannah asked her about reentering the testing pool. She could not deny, she did not deny that her plan was to come back to the tennis court. And do we know that this is happening? No. I will say though, Serena knows how media works and she loves to get people talking. And she posted a video. I mean, she's posted several videos. There has been much proof of Serena Williams on a tennis court. But this, this video on our social media, I think we have it. We're gonna pull it up. Is so cute. So Serena hitting with her two daughters on the two courts next door, hitting on the green clay. Easier on the knees, right, Kim?

[Kim]

Easier on the knees. Very cute. I love seeing, you know, I mean, I just love seeing her strike the ball and how clean she hits the ball. And so, yeah, I just think for, I feel like for a few months now, you know, there's been this rumor and everybody's kind of waiting like, how is she going to announce it? When is she going to announce it that she is coming back? What it is for. Is it for doubles with Venus? Is it to, you know, maybe play the Olympics? I don't know, who knows what it's going to be but I feel like the first time I heard about it was at the US Open that people were talking in the kind of the tennis hallways and locker room and that it started there and I don't know if that's when she maybe put her name into the anti doping WADA whole system. But yeah, I think the odds are more towards her do having a comeback than they are against her coming back. I'm, I can't, you know, if that would be a story that could happen soon. It, you know, brings so much interest again to on top of where the sport of women's tennis is. It would be so fun to watch and to see her, to see her compete and what it takes to get back to that level would be, yeah.

[Blair]

Very interesting at age 44. But as someone, Kim, who has a Little experience with comeback. You had, you know, two big ones in your career. Coming back after you had Jada, you've told me that that was not in the cards initially. It's not like you decided to go have a baby, and then you're like, can't wait to get back on the court. Can you walk us through?

[Kim]

Yes. I was done playing tennis. I felt like, okay, you know, I played tennis. I won an Open. I was number one. Won the US Open in 2005. Met Brian, my husband. Started a family. I lost my dad during that time, too. So it was a very emotional time, but also on both sides. Beautiful, but also sad. And a few weeks after my dad passed away, I got an invitation from Wimbledon to play under the roof, the new roof that they built on center court. And it was against Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi. And I got to play with Tim Henman, which I was super excited about. And I was like, okay, hey, this sounds really fun, and I want to do that. And started training. And then my hunger for competing, and I mean, competing a lot of times sounds like competing against opponents, but it's also competing with yourself and trying to push yourself and setting goals and pushing forward and trying to achieve those goals long and short term. So that's what I love the most about it, was to get to that level where I said, okay, now I feel like I'm ready to. To compete against the best players. And then years later, with the second comeback, it was a similar feeling. It was like, let me see how far I can push this. Let me see, you know, where my level is at. I feel like I learn more about the sport. I learn more about myself, maybe about the opponents, too, by watching it a lot more right from. As a. As a fan and commentators, sometimes you. You learn a lot as well. And so I really enjoyed kind of the road to getting to that stage is what I love the most about. And as I got older, I realized, like, that's been the funnest part of my career is what people don't see. It's like when I'm training with my trainer, Sam, and I'm, you know, at times almost throwing up because, like, we're working so hard, or there's days where I'm, like, really struggling and I'm crying and I need him to, like, pick me up and, like, tell me you're doing fine. Like, it's okay. Like, you know, this can happen, and it's those kind of relationships and. And where you work with people to get you to A certain level, and then you at times doubt that, but then you are able to push through it and get a good result together. And that's something that I really, really enjoyed. And I think I've compared it to girlfriends who are in their 40s and say, like, oh, I want to run a marathon. I want to try that. They never ran before, but they, they want to try that once before they get to a stage where they may never be able to do it. So to me, I always say, that was kind of my try to run a marathon, but it's fun. I think everybody needs to follow their kind of path and it doesn't mean that it's against the stream. Sometimes it's fine and go for it and see, see where it takes you. And some people may call mine a failed attempt. I don't look at it that way, but people will always create a story behind that. But I really enjoyed it and I played some fun matches and would I have loved if Covid didn't happen. I would have played a lot longer, not saying years, but I would have at least given it a couple of years time to, you know, work my way through.

[Blair]

Did you ever care what people said along the way? Because we've certainly seen it with Venus and people are saying, why would you do this? You're this great champion and you're out there and it's, you know, you're not at your peak. You can't possibly be at 45 in the case of Venus. Did you care what people said at times?

[Kim]

I think you do. It's not like when I was younger where, you know, you absorb it in a different way here, you know, like, oh, this is negative energy. Like, I, I, I, I want to just push that aside. So you do hear that negative stuff, but you kind of just learn to focus on, on what you have to do and focus on, you know, trying to be as good as you can be on that day, I think, and, and, and learn not to give it too much thought. But you do kind of, I think, pick it up, you know, here and there. And in the press conferences, you, you do feel, you know, people's questions or, you know, thoughts in some of the questions as well. And, but again, that comes with everything. And there's always, you know, something negative or, you know, a question that some people have. But yeah, it is, it is what it is. I love seeing, you know, even last year with Venus at the, at the US Open, like, seeing her enjoy herself and seeing her healthy and playing. Like, I enjoyed watching that As a fan, like, I enjoyed watching her compete in the doubles. And so that was. Yeah, that was so fun. So I enjoy it. But player. But can we. Can we for a second, like, if. Do you think she would come back as a doubles player or would she try to do singles?

[Blair]

It's a good question. My initial gut was that she wanted to play doubles because I, too, heard that she would have liked to have been at the US Open and then had to go back into the testing pool, which you said you didn't know that you had to do that either, but your team was like, this is the thing you have to do.

[Kim]

Yeah, yeah. When you start asking, like, I, you know, didn't know what the rules were. So I think a few of my team members were like, oh, let's call. Let's call the WTA and see what the. The process is now. And, yeah, so it was, you know, all right, you need. I think. I don't know if it's three months or six months that you have to be. Six months. And then it all starts, right? The. The. The out of. Out of competition, doping, the unannounced stuff comes back, and you're like, oh, my God. Like, you know, this. I forgot about all this part, but it's part of it. But I didn't know that Serena already was interested in maybe playing with Venus. Then I assume.

[Blair]

Or I would have assumed that was the case. Again, I don't have all the facts, but that's where sort of the ball got rolling was pre US Open, and in my personal perfect tennis nerd dream space, she's coming back so that she can play, you know, who knows, a year, maybe more than a year with. With Venus on the Devil's court, and then Venus can retire with Serena there.

[Kim]

Oh, wow. So I'm just trying to, like, this is when I, like, put my hall of Famers hat on. So then she would be inducted into the hall of Fame next year, normally. So that would then probably also not be the case. Or would she?

[Blair]

Well, because there's that little caveat. You have to be a factor. You have to be a significant factor. Correct. On the tour.

[Kim]

So are we going to say that Serena is not going to be a significant factor on the tour? If you.

[Blair]

It depends on your definition of factor. But if she's only playing doubles, I think that would. That would raise a question mark in terms of the significant factor department.

[Kim]

Okay. But if her and Venus would win a slam, that's a. Does that make them a significant factor? Which I do think they Can. Yeah.

[Blair]

All right. Next week I will be at the Dallas Open. I will be able to report on the exhibition we are having this weekend. Andy is participating. John McEnroe will be there. Izard query as well. Kim, you were, you were there last year. I'm going to miss you. You and Martina played an unbelievable. Was it. I went to the third set. It was so good.

[Kim]

What were we thinking?

[Blair]

Like it was, it was such high level tennis. We, I had the best time, the fans had the best time. Martina Hingis for those. I didn't give the, the last name there. So we're gonna have a great time in Dallas. We're gonna have lots more to discuss with you all next week. Any parting words, Kim?

[Kim]

No, just excited that we get to start, start going into our weekly routines again and looking forward to the. Yeah, the next tournaments. I always feel like I'm a little bit like, you know, on, on the Monday I'm like ah, no tennis today. Like I can't wake up early and like watch tennis and see these, you know, great games and. But then you know, you start checking the scores and you say like, oh yeah, well soon we'll have other big tournaments where players will be competing and showing great tennis. So. But yeah, it's been a fun two weeks, three weeks basically with the, the start of the one point slam that started it off on a high and, and with the way that the tournament ended was yeah, really, really exciting and a lot of people talk to me about it when I go to like basketball games for my kids. They're like, oh my God, did you watch like these two, like the two, the two last days of the tournament and so yeah, a lot of good, good news and good kind of energy around the sport attendance.

[Blair]

Well, we cannot wait. We've got so much coming up. We are pumped. So make sure to follow us on all of our social channels. Ollpodcast on YouTube. Go like and subscribe and give us your suggestions. We hope for this to be a tennis community so we'd love to hear from all of you and we will see you next time.