Hold On to Your Racket with Josefina Gurevich and Shravya Pant

If you’ve been keeping track of tennis this past week, you’ve been practically all around the world. In this episode we provide a quick recap of last week’s events and some info about the winners including; Iga Swiatek’s first non-Grand Slam title, Goffin’s return to the podium, and first time title-holders Alexei Popyrin in Singapore and most recent GOAT Juanma Cerundolo in Cordoba, Argentina. After the recap of last week’s events, we move ahead into this week’s action including some Doha (WTA) and Rotterdam (ATP) analysis and catching up. Buckle your seat belts because with all this tennis going on, we’ve got to take you around the world in nine days!

We’re counting down to finals weekend in Melbourne (as you could probably tell by the title). There are four people left in the singles draw, but which two can take the title? We talk Brady and her ability to challenge Osaka, and we revisit their thrilling 2020 US Open semifinal match. Osaka’s definitely the one to beat as she’s been taking out top names including Serena Williams in a match that ended emotionally for the 23-time GS Champion. Brady has also been looking in top form, so don't count her out just yet either, as she pulled off an impressive three-set win in her last match. Can Osaka win her fourth or will Brady pull off the upset? Next up on our roster is the men’s final, including the controversial yet nonchalant Daniil Medvedev and AO King classic Novak Djokovic. We know for sure that they're both going to bring it, especially when it comes to a Grand Slam final. Can Djokovic defend his title, or will the firecracker player at the top of his game take him out? We answer all these questions in this episode of Hold on to Your Racket podcast using stats, data, anecdotes, and our classic tennis banter.

The magic of a Grand Slam was on full display in the quarterfinals: Stefanos played the match of his life, Naomi and Serena are set to face off in the semifinals, Aslan continues his Cinderella run, and a new WTA slam finalist will emerge. It’s only fitting that fans will return to Melbourne Park for the stellar semifinal matches that are set to be played today and tomorrow. The two of us highlight the two best matches of the round, one for the WTA and one for the ATP, and then take a deep dive into reviewing the quarterfinals and previewing the semifinals. We discuss Djokovic’s talk about a bubble, Serena’s confidence as she inches closer to 24, Russian success, and Jennifer Brady’s hard court dominance. In Hot Headlines, we make sure to update you on some notable news regarding Dylan Alcott, Andy Murray, Sofia Kenin, and Bianca Andreescu. We’re getting closer to crowning a champion, and we can’t wait to see how it all plays out!

The Australian Open (AO) is nearing its final stages, which means there are some thrilling matches to come. In this episode, not only do we recap the Round of 16 and preview each quarterfinal match (both ATP and WTA), but we are also joined by a very special guest. Petros Georgiou, one of our longtime tennis coaches, joins us to discuss his takes on the AO men’s singles matches and his experience working at the US Open these past 10 years, where he has become good friends with quite a few notable ATP players, namely Stefanos Tsitsipas, Frances Tiafoe, Sebastian Korda, and Nick Kyrgios. The three of us are keeping an eye on some players who could possibly challenge Rafole in this tournament, namely Daniil, Grigor, and Petros’ good friend Stefanos.  We also quiz him on some unexpected trivia questions about the ATP quarterfinalists. Not to fret, we aren’t leaving the WTA ladies in the dust; the two of us highlight the stunning Osaka vs. Muguruza match and discuss Serena’s triumphant win, Simona’s fighting spirit, Muchova’s breakthrough, Barty’s hometown success, Queen Hsieh Su-Wei, and Jennifer and Jess’ upcoming showdown. We talk Daniil and Andrey’s dramatic childhood matches, the success of American women at this AO, Josefina’s attempts at funny(ish) tennis puns, Osaka’s butterfly blessing, and the plague of abdominal injuries to round out this conversation. So what are you waiting for? Tune in!

Meltdowns and lockdowns, the perfect way to sum up Round 3 action at the Aussie Open. We discuss Melbourne’s “snap lockdown” and its impact on the tournament, as well as Andy Murray’s success in Italy in Hot Headlines. In Tennis Talk, we discuss some notable matches from Round 3, including Hsieh vs. Errani, Williams vs. Potapova, Djokovic vs. Fritz, and Kyrgios vs. Thiem. As question marks remain surrounding Djokovic’s injury, we take a look at the draw to see which top seeds and which dark horses (watch out for Milos, Stef, Matteo, and Jennifer!) we think are making it through to the semifinals on both the ATP and WTA side. Don’t miss out on our preview of some of the most exciting Round of 16 matches, including Muguruza vs. Osaka, Sabalenka vs. Williams, Berrettini vs. Tsitsipas, and Thiem vs. Dimitrov. Listen for the tennis, stay for the laughs!

So. Many. Exciting. Matches. We almost can’t handle it (keyword: almost). We’re here to give a fun and informative Round 2 recap and Round 3 preview of the 2021 Australian Open. This episode is the perfect balance of in-depth analysis to give a better perspective of who might be this year’s winners and funny anecdotes sprinkled throughout, the perfect example being the debate on whether Stan the Man was taken out by a match-predicting cat or Marton Fuscovics. Apparently, only the cat knows. Stay tuned while we talk about key upsets like Su-Wei Hsieh and Kaia Kanepi (who’s been on fire recently), as well as exciting Round 3 matches to come, like Ymer vs. Tsitispas, Jabeur vs. Osaka, Fognini vs. De Minaur, and Berrettini vs. Khachanov. 

Round 1 at this year’s Australian Open (2021) has been quite the eventful one and you can catch it all in this episode. We start off covering the more serious topics, like mental health effects on tennis that Gael Monfils recently brought light to in an emotional press conference. We then shift into some actual Round 1 tennis content. Of course, the highlights of these include the Sinner vs. Shapovalov match now known as a sneak peek of the future of men’s tennis. Then comes some much needed WTA discussion including Ashleigh Barty’s complete sweep, Bianca Andreescu’s return, and, of course, Serena William’s one-legged catsuit. Sit tight as we discuss the match-ups and meltdowns of Round 1.

The Grand Slams are back and so are we! As we struggle to figure out a recording schedule for the Australian Open that includes time for us to sleep, we make sure to recap all the action from last week while looking forward to the big matches coming this week. As we start previewing the AO draws, we lay out our predictions for the tournament and start discovering common themes like the success of Italians on the men’s side and veterans proving they’re here to stay on the women’s side. We have high hopes for a certain Swiss and a dominant Japanese star, and we wonder about the potential of a few Canadians and an up-and-coming Italian teen. Stick with us while we take it down under to cover the tennis Down Under.

After some time in winter hibernation, we’re back! In this episode, we’re discussing all the action going on in Melbourne Park this week. We survey ALL SIX tournaments and the latest Hot Headlines, including the pause of play on February 3rd and Dayana Yastremska’s appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. We then transition into Tennis Talk and discuss our thoughts on the WTA and ATP competitors this week. On the WTA side, we talk about Barty's dominance, Naomi’s hiccup and comeback, Venus’ well-fought match, Bianca’s injury, and Begu and Kanepi’s breakthroughs. Heading over to our ATPers, we celebrate Nick’s return to the court, Carlos Alcaraz’s win, and the ATP Cup. Shravya fangirls over Team Italy while Josefina mourns the loss of Team Canada, and we overview the teams that have qualified for the semifinals. Stick with us while we attempt to fit two months worth of tennis into a single podcast episode, in addition to some intellectual discussions surrounding players’ TikToks and the USTA’s failure to educate tennis players on how to serve normally.

Let's face it: there's been a LOT going on lately in the tennis world considering the situation in Australia right now. Let's also face the fact that we're here to give you all the updates! Tune into this gem to catch up on the Australian "Quaran-tea-ne" (tea that brews while in quarantine), including Djokovic's demands, Artem and Azarenka's appreciations (as of yesterday), RBA's leaked video, the AO food drama, and Zverev being dropped from Team8. We also cover some of the more lighthearted developments, including Demin and Opelka's IG Live staring contest, Putintseva's house guests, Bernard Tomic's girlfriend and Stefanos Tsitsipas' vlogs, Rublev's fashion expeditions, and tennis-themed Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris memes. Oh, and not to forget Shravya's 6 AM alarm to make sure she could watch Matteo Berrettini on IG Live this week. There's a lot to unpack, so grab some popcorn and enjoy this episode!