No Challenges Remaining

The U.S. Open is over, and it was a combination of yeah-that's-about-right and wait-what-really-is that possible?. We discuss the incredibly unexpected Marin Cilic-Kei Nishikori final, and what impact it will have on the men's game, and what it says about the health of the game's future. We then discuss the women's side, which saw Serena do the obvious for a change, and Wozniacki return to relevan...

Live from New York, Ben and Courtney are very ready to kick off the last Grand Slam of the year! What do we make of the women's and men's draws? Who are the hurdles for the top players, and who do we think will be prevailing at the end? We agree, but do you agree with us? Along the way, we discuss soft quarters, the struggles of Andy Murray, Ryan Harrison's legitimately terrible luck, and more! Al...

Ben and Courtney are back on the road driving across this great land, and discussing all the things in the rear view mirror of the past two weeks. Like Canada! What to make of the great runs by Venus and Tsonga? And Cincinnati! How about that Federer guy? And Caroline Wozniacki! And what on earth do we make of the redonk Ivanovic-Sharapova semifinal and all the drama that followed? Also, we discus...

After last week's craziness subsided, Ben and Courtney return to all the things you presumably like about this show, like talking about tennis! What did Courtney make of Serena's emphatic return, and Azarenka's puzzling struggles? And who is this Naomi Osaka character? In DC, how should we feel about John Isner's court discontent? And looking ahead, who has the more significant injury, Rafael Nada...

It's been one of the more intense weeks in recent memory in the world of tennis media, but Ben and Courtney are here to try their best, as always, to shed some light on it all. The majority of this episode is devoted to this week's revelations about the extensive plagiarism by Neil Harman in his work for the Wimbledon yearbook, about which you should  read Ben's report for Slate  if you haven't ye...

Obviously there have been some extremely interesting developments in the 10 days since we recorded this all-questions episode, but your questions are still awesome and we hope our answers are, too! First, we talk about the status of gay issues on the tour. Is "open secret" a sustainable status? Next, Sloane? That's the question. And what's the significance of the WTA coaching moves of Li Na and An...

Without much urgent tennis to attend to, Ben and Courtney decided to dive into your pressing questions! We answered a ton, so this Episode 81 has been split into two parts. Lucky you! On this first part, we discuss who will be the next first time Slam champ on the women's side, what to expect soon from Caroline Wozniacki, Victoria Azarenka, and Agnieszka Radwanska, what Fabio Fognini's deal is, wo...

After nine weeks at sea, Ben and Courtney are very grateful to be back on their home couches, soaking up Home Sweet America. But first, there's the matter of Wimbledon to wrap up! Petra Kvitova and Novak Djokovic won! Genie Bouchard and Roger Federer did not win! What does it all mean? And what on earth can we make of Serena's surreal doubles episode? We're not sure, but we try! As always, you can...

It's the middle Sunday of Wimbledon, and so Ben and Courtney sat down for a brief recap of the first act as they recharged their batteries for the second week. What do we make of Serena flopping at a Slam again? Is Li Na only a hardcourt specialist? And how good was Venus-Kvitova? Also, can Roger Federer actually win this thing? And how do we know when a player has won his or her last Grand Slam? ...

Ben and Courtney are ready to whet your appetite for Wimbledon! But when this episode was recorded, Courtney hadn't eaten much strawberries and cream (or much of anything), and her cravings left her crabby and ready to scoop up some heaping helpings of tough love for the tennis world. So you've been warned--this episode comes with a choking hazard. What is to be made of Serena's odd arrival to Wim...

The grass season is mowing along quite nicely, so Ben and Courtney are here to catch you up on how everyone is looking going into Wimbledon, albeit before the crucial draws are made. So many questions to be answered! What are reasonable expectations for Rafael Nadal given his grass woes? How much do Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams have to lose? How many more Wimbledons does Venus Williams have...

 SPOILER: Our French Open wrap episode is amazing. Ben and Courtney talk about everything that happened over those 15 magical days in Paris, from Maria Sharapova's impressive title run to the underwhelming men's final, from the enlightened semifinalist Andy Murray's views on women to the other semifinalist Ernests Gulbis' view on women. There's also the youth explosion of Simona Halep, Genie Bouch...

Live from Paris, Ben and Courtney are super excited for the French Open! We break down the men's and women's draws, which left Maria Sharapova as a big loser and Roger Federer as the big winner. We ask important questions like "Is this finally the year where Novak Djokovic sneaks past Rafael Nadal?" "Who is more likely to win, Rafa or Serena?" "Does Ben help kill spiders?" Then we play another fun...

In this special Rome final preview episode taped Saturday afternoon, Ben and Courtney look ahead to the upcoming tilt between Serena Williams and Sara Errani, as well as the week that was on the women's side at the Foro Italico. What do we make of Errani's unexpected emergence on home soil? Does she have a shot against Serena after the brutal loss in Paris last year? Also, our thoughts on the incr...

Reunited in Rome on Saturday afternoon, Ben and Courtney hop back into the studio for a special look ahead to the women's final in Madrid, which will pit claylovers Maria Sharapova and Simona Halep against one another for one of the biggest women's titles outside the Slams. What do we make of the form each have shown on clay so far, and how it sets them up for the French Open? Is Sharapova the imm...

Ben and Courtney slide into the clay season with the graceee you'd expect of North Americans, so please forgive their lateness. What sort of clay landscape do they find? A confusing one! What's going on with Rafael Nadal losing on clay to lesser Spaniards? What's up with Novak Djokovic's wrist? That Stan Wawrinka guy is keeping himself awfully relevant, isn't he? Is Wawrinka more likely to pull of...

Ben and Courtney are super, super excited about this episode, you guys. We did an interview for the show with Andrea Petkovic after her second round match in Charleston, and it was predictably awesome. Then Petko kept winning and winning, so we kept seeing her at press the whole rest of the week, which ended with her walking away with the trophy. So we recap the week that was briefly, bring you ou...

Episode 70 is a big, big, big one, and you'll like it quite a bit! Live from Charleston, Ben and Courtney discuss the tournament that was in Miami, and what it means for both Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams to have emerged from Key Biscayne victorious. Also, how do those two tournaments stack up against each other? We then flash forward to Charleston, and (through some studio magic) discuss Ser...

Episode 69 offers you delayed gratification! Live from the NCR West Studios, Ben and Courtney discuss the goings on of Indian Wells. What do we take of Roger's resurgence and Novak's reliability? And how about Flavia Pennetta's surprise triumph? Is that a satisfying result? We then discuss what to expect from Miami. But Miami is almost over, you say? Who asked you? But seriously, you guys, thanks...

Ben and Courtney come to you midway through Indian Wells, where many of the top seeds have already dried up and withered in the thin desert air. What do we make of the players who lost and the players who beat them? What, first of all, of Rafael Nadal, and the inspired play of Alexandr Dolgopolov to knock him out. Is Maria Sharapova's loss to Camila Giorgi cause for concern? And what do we make of...

For Episode 67, Ben and Courtney are live on location in beautiful Indian Wells, recording under the desert stars at a tournament which has exploded by leaps and bounds since we first came here. The growth is impressive, but is it all for the best? We discuss. We also talk briefly about the men's and women's draws, and about the highlights of the WTA All-Access Hour. We announce the arrival of thi...

We have so much to catch up on, you guys! Unable to find recording daylight through the thick iron curtain while Ben spent the last five weeks in Sochi, Ben and Courtney finally reunite to catch you up on all the happenings in tennis! Like Stan Wawrinka winning a Slam! What was that about? Also Li Na did big things, too! What are we still learning about her? We also look at many of the other big p...

In Episode 65, Ben and Courtney return to the airwaves (internetwaves?) live from Melbourne once again, this time to sort through the rubble of another injury-laced exit from Melbourne by Serena Williams, this time at the unlikely hands of Ana Ivanovic. What does the win mean for Ana? And what does the loss mean for Serena? What do we make of the way Serena (and her coach Patrick Mouratoglou) hand...

In Episode 64, Ben and Courtney break down the draws for the 2014 Australian Open. What do we make of the flat, even women's draw? And the men's draw that's more top-heavy than Dolly Parton? Who is on upset alert, and who got lucky? And why did Gilles Simon insist on trying to valiantly play when pulling out would've made our show so much simpler? Plus, we share with you Ben's interview from durin...

Happy 2014, listeners! Ben and Courtney are back together and back on the microphone, this time coming to you live from Melbourne, Australia. We catch up on the first week of the season in somewhat breakneck fashion, discussing the underwhelming Hopman Cup, the significance of wins by Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams, the current state of Shoulderpova, and the threat that Roger Federer and Venus W...