The Player's Box | Episode 8: Staying Motivated & Speaking Gen Z

Hosts: Madison Keys, Jessica Pegula, Jennifer Brady
Date: October 14, 2025

Episode Overview

This lively episode explores the realities of staying motivated over a long tennis season, the mental and physical challenges of life on the tour, and how the hosts are grappling with the latest Gen Z slang. Expect stories from life on and off the court, candid confessions about mishaps and scheduling, humorous takes on travel, testing protocols, pop culture, fan Q&A, and plenty of generational banter.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Unforced Errors of the Week (00:10–07:16)

• Desirae’s Absence & Jenny’s Headphone Mishap:
  Jenny recounts frantically searching for missing AirPods minutes before recording, only to realize they were left at the gym days earlier. She pivots to cheap Walgreens wired headphones thanks to Maddie’s advice.
  "I just went to Walgreens and still made it on time at 9pm. Shout out to Maddie for the idea of going to Walgreens and getting this pair of wired headphones. They were only $8.99, so that was my unfortunate error." — Jennifer (00:55)

• Maddie’s Shoe Scare:
  Madison almost starts a workout without shoes after throwing out her worn pair and nearly forgetting to bring new ones.
  "I was like, please tell me they didn't take the trash yet. And I found my shoes in like a donation bin in the corner." — Madison (02:24)

• Jess’s Scheduling Chaos:
  Jessica details the chaos of multi-time-zone podcast planning and narrowly avoids missing the recording due to a miswritten time.
  "I wrote 5am for West coast people. It was actually 5pm. But just a small little planning, just a little off." — Jessica (05:45)

2. Tournament Updates & Motivation (06:43–08:51)

• Both Maddie and Jess celebrate qualifying for year-end finals and discuss the grind of back-to-back three-set matches.
• Candid commentary on how relentless the tennis schedule can be and the importance of rest.

3. Practice Stories & On-Court Banter (08:52–11:46)

• Recap of a high-energy practice with praise and playful criticism from “hype man” Ben.
• Loving the supportive atmosphere between the women and male players during training.
• Self-motivation:
  "You gotta have fun out there. Like if you're not having fun, then, like, who wants to do it?" — Jenny (11:13)

4. Drug Testing Woes (12:07–21:16)

• Jessica shares a confusing experience with pre-match drug testing at Billie Jean King Cup, highlighting how anti-doping rules differ by event and country.
• Maddie explains how procedures and regulations change between ITF and national bodies, and how unpredictable testing can be.
• The stress and paranoia that can come with filing "whereabouts" for testers and getting notification emails.
• Jenny on logistics:
  "If they show up at 6 and you haven't peed yet, they're probably leaving at like 6:30, ish. Like 6:35. Like if it's like super smooth." (18:37)

5. Tour Schedule Fatigue & Athlete Wellbeing (21:29–27:45)

• Discussion of Daria Kasatkina and Elina Svitolina ending their season early, sparking a broader conversation about burnout.

• The exhausting effects of lengthened tournaments, travel, and time away from home.

• Insightful reflections on needing to protect mental health, even at the cost of ranking points.

  "It's like really hard sometimes to actually just stop and say, I think I'm gonna go home and, like, see my family that I haven't seen." — Madison (27:01)

6. Gen Z Slang Challenge & Generational Banter (27:45–38:13)

• The group tackles a list of Gen Z slang, with playful banter over who’s qualified to use it and which terms are confusing.
  • Riz ("Charisma"), Delulu ("Delusional"), Mid ("Average"), Touch grass ("Get a clue"), Phantom tax (someone takes a bite of your food), Six, seven (meaningless, to confuse), Ratioed (more comments than likes; usually bad), Gyat ("Big butt"), Unk ("Older person"), No cap ("No lie"), Sigma ("Independent, nonconforming dude"), Aura farming ("Performing for the aesthetic"), Chopped ("Poorly dressed/messy"), NPC ("Non-playable character; awkward/robotic"), Beige flag ("Mildly odd trait").
• "You look chopped in that outfit." — Jennifer (36:11)
• "Jenny is main character energy." — Madison (44:40)

7. Fan Q&A: Gen Z Lingo Edition (38:18–47:24)

• Fans ask about match prep, pre-match meals (“mid”—just chicken and rice), why tennis balls don’t fall out of skirts (“You just kind of open up the spandex, throw the ball up there and then the spandex are tight enough…” —Jennifer, 42:24), and off-season plans.
• Hosts are challenged to incorporate Gen Z terms into their answers, with mixed/funny results.
• Jenny’s off-season excitement:
  "I'm so excited to eat some wings. I've already planned out too many restaurants for the amount of days that I'm there." (45:23)
• Jess’s charity event and staycation, joking about being allergic to vacation after a full year of travel.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On burnout:
  "It's a long year, especially if you play all the weeks... It just still feels more draining." — Madison (22:22)
• On drug testing paranoia:
  "It's so stressful. And then they, you don't know, like, if you're. They don't send you, like, oh, you're clean. It's just you would only get notified, I'm assuming, if you failed." — Jessica (19:57)
• On travel fatigue:
  "We travel all year. Nothing sounds worse than getting on a plane..." — Jessica (47:51)
• Gen Z banter:
  "Gyat. She got a dump truck. Gyat. It means, like, big butt." — Jennifer (33:11) "You look chopped in that outfit." — Jennifer (36:11)

Useful Timestamps

• 00:10–07:16: Unforced Errors & Team Logistics Fails
• 07:16–08:51: Year-End Finals, Practice Sessions
• 12:07–21:16: Drug Testing & Administrative Stress
• 21:29–27:45: Athlete Burnout & Tour Grievances
• 27:45–38:13: Gen Z Slang Game
• 38:18–47:24: Fan Q&A (with Gen Z Language)
• 47:24–End: Off-Season Plans, Closing Banter

Episode Tone & Vibe

Candid and comedic, the episode mixes vulnerability with quick wit. The athletes riff off each other's stories, poke fun at travel struggles and tennis bureaucracy, and bond over both the grind and joys of the tour. The Gen Z segment heightens the fun, revealing generational quirks and self-deprecating humor, while sincere discussions on athlete wellbeing and burnout give the episode its heart.