Covid be damned, tennis has been around the world in February and March. We saw youngsters Clara Tauson and Juan Manuel Cerúndolo make unlikely title runs, Petra win her 28th, and Andrey Rublev snatch every ATP500 in sight. Come for the tennis, stay for our thoughts on rankings math, wild cards, the Kodak kit, and spitting during a pandemic. 
 
1:45 Petra wins 28th(!) title, beating Garbiñe at Doha
7:55 Rotterdam: Ruby d. Fucsovics to win 4th consecutive 500 title; Kei (Sir Penguin) on the come-up; Meddy oh so close to #2 ranking
14:00 Andy Murray on retirement chatter: “Why would I stop?”
16:00 18-year-old Dane Clara Tauson announces herself at Lyon
21:20 Los hermanos Cerúndolo; Benoit Paire leaves his droplets and tanks
30:55 Odds and ends - starting with Djokovic’s rankings record
33:40 James tries to explain the AP Calculus-level rankings changes (ok, not really that complicated); what effects do these rankings adjustments have on players?
42:05 Wading into the wild card debate again
47:00 Kokkinakis opens up on mental health; Bernardes & Federer are back, Willis is out; Sorana Cirstea says remember the Alamo and forget your mask

Can't Stop Won't Stop Don't Spit

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We've just returned from an amazing experience at the Credit One Charleston Open, a tournament that's been hugely important to women's tennis and continues to be a favorite among players and fans. We do our best to place Charleston in the context of its host city's complex history and explore the tournament’s role in helping to develop women's tennis. Danielle Collins was unquestionably the main attraction of the tournament -- winning her second straight title with the loss of one set. We also chat about watching TBS faves Dasha Kasatkina and Taylor Townsend, Vika Azarenka, Jessie Pegula, and Sloane Stephens on the unique Har-Tru green clay. Plus, some tips on attending and our review of the signature cocktail. 
 
00:52 We <3 the Charleston Open (and this is not spon con!)
06:09 A little history of the Family Circle Cup, a hugely important women’s tournament 
11:44 Reckoning with the history of Charleston, South Carolina
19:06 Our impressions of green clay and other tournament etcs
28:28 Players and moments that stood out for us 
42:34 Just like Miami, Danielle was the standard
49:46 James is never beating the stalker allegations
52:15 First Serve vs Honey Deuce 
57:18 What does tennis IQ mean and who has it?
62:03 Other results while we were in the Lowcountry

Charleston Renaiissance

Danielle Collins, you will always be famous. The 30-year-old charisma machine – she of 2 NCAA titles and an unorthodox journey through tennis – wins her biggest title in the final year of her career. On the men’s side, everybody’s fave Grigor Dimitrov beat three top 10 players but fell against the final one, the near-unbeatable Jannik Sinner. Plus, we have more tales from our time at the Miami Open, including one particularly impassioned rant and the key to why Casper Ruud is not beating the Karen allegations.
 
03:30 Danielle Collins, the woman you are
09:48 She’s still retiring, so stop asking
15:24 Jannik Sinner is the best (*right now)
18:25 Brother Grigor
24:53 Watching Andy Murray + his devastating injury
29:30 Not an impromptu quiz!
31:17 A nightmare on site … 
42:40 What’s the tournament director there for if not to field complaints?
47:43 Extras: Thiem injury, Leylah, Novak-Goran split
53:21 The USTA sexual abuse case will go to jury trial + the failed attempt to bar Pam Shriver from testifying

Miami Requiiem

For the first time, we’re coming to you from Miami Gardens, Florida! Before recapping Indian Wells, we share our first impressions of the Miami Open site and some of the tennis we got to see early on: Halep’s first match back from her suspension, Azarenka-Stearns (with an appearance by early Berry Gordy’s son RedFoo), Ostapenko lighting up Court 1, and more. Alcaraz defends his Indian Wells title -- snapping a title-less stretch going back to Wimbledon -- and Iga regains her title while losing a mere handful of games. Later on, we talk about the competing proposals that aim to overhaul mostly everything about tennis (Premier vs. PIF).
0:35 Miami Open: Penko-Siegemund, Vika-Peyton (and why RedFoo is here)
9:35 Simona’s return and Woz’s take heard round the world: “It wasn’t a clearance”
18:48 Minding Our Own Business 
22:20 Belatedly wrapping Indian Wells
27:07  Non-problematic beef
29:41 Unnecessary beef
32:28 Miss Beswick strikes again
35:28:Tennis headed for fundamental change: Premier Tour vs. Saudi PIF bid

The Bees Are Back In Town

On March 5, the Court of Arbitration for Sport rendered its decision on the Simona Halep appeal: the doping was not intentional and the suspension was reduced to 9 months, time long since served. It’s the welcome end to a saga that has dragged on and shaken trust in the sport’s anti-doping institutions. But, we’re left with ever more questions: Why were the conclusions of the ITIA and CAS so starkly different? What of the biological passport results? What took so long? Why are tennis players often so successful at CAS? Aside from the Halep news, we talk about the early happenings at Indian Wells, the cancellation of Netflix’s Break Point, the ATP's annual awkward International Women’s Day video, and more. 
01:40 CAS accepts Simona’s contamination defense and throws out biological passport charge 
07:50 Why are the conclusions of ITIA and CAS so vastly different?
15:00 Comparisons to Sharapova, the question of “innocence” 
25:00 So where are the “real” dopers?
35:30 Indian Wells: withdrawals, Sinner’s win streak, Kerber-Woz revival
45:15 Break Point is over: what went wrong?
50:40 Ruby amends his apology, thanks to Sofya Tartakova
51:50 A (very) slight improvement in the ATP’s Women’s Day video!

Contaminated With Questions

Rublev’s default from Dubai generated tons of discourse this week, and we devote quite a bit of time to it: the facts, the question of proportionality (of both Rublev’s actions and the umpire’s decision), and why player reactions aren’t the final word. We also recap the end of the lead-up to Indian Wells, with several players showing off the best tennis of their lives. Plus, Murray’s retirement talk; the ATP’s partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund; and the suspension of a low-ranked player for cannabis and how WADA decides to ban a substance.
2:15 Quick results recap: de Minaur, Boulter, Yuan, Humbert, Baez 
8:30 The Rublev Default
13:10 The Act of (non)Contrition
25:35 Proportionality, in a few senses
34:45 Andy Murray talks about the end
38:40 #TheNetflixSlam: it was a bit tacky and very American, but overall a huge win for the sport
46:00 ATP partners with PIF
50:55 A 2-year suspension for weed? Also an opportunity for some nerdy anti-doping discussion

Can't Stop Won't Stop Don't Spit

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