Tennis Unfiltered is a weekly podcast where we try to make sense - tactical, ethical, emotional sense - of the tennis world. And we don't hold back.... more
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Tennis Unfiltered episodes:
December 03, 2024Iga Swiatek's secret ban Tennis never takes a week off, does it? And neither (sort of) do James Gray, Calvin Betton and George Bellshaw, who are back to discuss all the latest goings on in a busy week of breaking tennis news.
- Iga Swiatek is serving a one-month ban after testing positive for trimetazidine or TMZ, a banned metabolic modulator
- Simona Halep, Nick Kyrgios and Denis Shapovalov have plenty to say about it, as does everyone else
- Novak Djokovic explains more about his coaching link-up with Andy Murray
- Hubert Hurkacz has replaced long-time coach Craig Boynton with an unusual combo of Nicolas Massu and Ivan Lendl
- And Calvin has dug out a stat about the good old days...
PLUS
Your questions on Jannik Sinner, tennis balls and cats all answered
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...more November 26, 2024Will Andy Murray be a decent coach for Novak Djokovic? James Gray, George Bellshaw and Calvin Betton get round the microphones again and wonder if there is anything to talk about this week...
- Andy Murray has agreed to join Novak Djokovic's coaching team for pre-season the Australian Open at least, just three months after retiring from playing (James wrote this piece for the i paper if you're interested: https://inews.co.uk/sport/tennis/andy-murray-coaching-novak-djokovic-storyline-netflix-3397499)
- Oh, also Rafael Nadal retired this week as Spain crashed out of the Davis Cup to the Netherlands
- Italy retained their title thanks to Jannik Sinner, who ends the year without losing a match in straight sets
- And they also won the Billie Jean King Cup, powered by the extraordinary doubles pair of Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani, the underarm-serving legend
- Britain blew their big chance in the semi-finals, losing having been a set away from a straightforward win over Slovakia
- And finally... the USA made the same mistake all over again in their clash with Australia, dropping their doubles specialists for the deciding clash with Jordan Thompson and Matthew Ebden, only to see Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton beaten in straight sets
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...more November 19, 2024Why 2024 was the year of Jannik Sinner (+ unpicking the Fritz-Zverev H2H, BJK Cup madness and Tiafoe's $120k fine) Uh oh, Calvin is not a happy man... but why?
Listen on to find out as George Bellshaw and James Gray do their best to keep him in hand while discussing...
- Jannik Sinner dominates ATP World Tour Finals, not even dropping a set en route to the title in Turin
- Taylor Fritz moves to a career-high ranking after reaching the final, and continuing his dominance of Alexander Zverev
- Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter lead Britain into the semi-finals of the Billie Jean King Cup
- Frances Tiafoe avoids a ban for his sweary outburst at an umpire in Shanghai earlier in the season, but is fined $120,000
Plus your reviews and questions on a fifth slam and foot faults answered
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...more November 12, 2024A tale of two Tour Finals Calvin Betton calls in from the ATP World Tour Finals in Turin to help James Gray (inews.co.uk) and George Bellshaw (his flat in north London) discuss the latest in tennis
- Coco Gauff wins the WTA Finals in a dramatic - but not necessarily high-quality - final victory over Zheng Qinwen
- John Wertheim is forced to apologise for comments about Barbora Krejcikova's "eight-head"
- Denis Shapovalov wins a first title in five years, but isn't in the mix for ATP Comeback of the Year
- Daniil Medvedev "loses his head"
And finally...
- Roberto Carbaelles Baena throws his hat into the ring for wettest bloke on tour after beef with Cam Norrie
And here is THAT Jannik Sinner stat Calvin was talking about: https://x.com/TennisTV/status/1855594522199150734
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...more November 05, 2024The last dance in Paris, Rybakina hires Goran and WTA's Saudi debut Calvin Betton is in Helsinki but that doesn't stop him dialing in to Tennis Unfiltered; George Bellshaw is in north London but that doesn't stop him struggling with tech; and James Gray is now married and didn't get into a scrape with Elena Rybakina.
We answer your questions on LTA funding and doubles end-of-year tournaments, plus...
- Alexander Zverev wins the Paris Masters title and returns to No 2 in the world
- Giovanni Mpetshi-Pericard's huge serve keeps on entertaining on the French capital's lightning-fast courts
- Richard Gasquet says a tearful goodbye to Paris, but he will be back
- Jack Draper picks up a big win over Taylor Fritz
- The WTA Finals is underway in Saudi Arabia
And more!
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...more October 29, 2024Draper wins in Vienna, Djokovic is done for 2024 and Kyrgios's pyramid conspiracies Calvin Betton, George Bellshaw and James Gray are all in England at the same time, a genuine rarity this year, but are still all sitting in their respective living rooms refusing to actually spend time together.
Instead, they talked about...
- Jack Draper's second career title, beating Karen Khachanov in Vienna to move up to No 15 in the world
- Novak Djokovic pulling out of the Paris Masters and perhaps calling time on his whole season
- Nick Kyrgios raising his head above the parapet on Louis Theroux's podcast, positing all kinds of wild theories on the pyramids, the flat earth and his own tennis abilities
- Dominic Thiem's retirement and legacy
- Maria Sharapova's induction into the Tennis Hall of Fame
- Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard's serve
And so much more...
LINKS
The Louis Theroux Podcast with Nick Kyrgios: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4KpdqmxkTVSO9qy50GZ2SD
Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard has always been a giant: https://x.com/Nigee_Uno/status/1850189321619337633
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...more October 22, 2024Swiatek's new coach, the 'Six Kings' of Saudi Arabia and James's wedding reviewed Calvin Betton calls in from Vienna, James Gray from honeymoon and George Bellshaw... is here also.
We started by answering a listener email from Blair, who asked: “I'm taking a few too many long haul flights in the next couple of months, and am looking for distraction recommendations. Which matches from the past 30 years would you recommend I download to watch? Any documentaries? I particularly enjoyed the Vilas one, so anything like that'd be great.”
Here are some links to the docs mentioned.
- Agassi vs Sampras: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ACFmPyN80g&ab_channel=AustralianOpenTV
- Federer vs Safin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agF1HkdpR6s&ab_channel=AustralianOpenTV
- 1984 Wimbledon final, McEnroe vs Connors: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQS-XriW9p8&ab_channel=JohnMcEnroeChannel
- Girls on Tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnHcaki-PO8&ab_channel=RealStories
In other news...
- Iga Swiatek hires Wim Fissette, saying: "I said many times that my career is a marathon for me, not a sprint and I’m working, operating and making decisions with this approach. I want to say that I’m very excited and looking forward to working with Wim. He seems to have a great attitude, vision and huge experience at the very top level of tennis.”
- Aryna Sabalenka passes Iga Swiatek as world No 1 despite neither playing this week
- Danielle Collins backtracks on retiring, saying: "The Danimal story has not reached its conclusion. I will be back on tour in 2025.” She added: "Dealing with endometriosis and fertility is a massive challenge for many women and something that I am actively traversing, but I am fully confident in the team I am working with. It is just going to take longer than I thought."
- In the “Six Kings Slam” event in Riyadh, Daniil Medvedev earns a $21,739 a minute after getting hammered by Jannik Sinner 6-0, 6-3, while Holger Rune reportedly earned 68 per cent of his annual tournament earnings
- But is Saudi Arabia changing?
- Novak Djokovic beats Rafael Nadal to end their rivalry and both gave gushing tributes as you would expect
- Forgotten man Roberto Bautista Agut beats Jiri Lehecka to win Antwerp, the second-oldest tour-level champion this year at 36
- Grigor Dimitrov opens up about anxiety and panic attacks on court after losing the final in Stockholm
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...more October 16, 2024Rafael Nadal's legacy and why Frances Tiafoe deserves a ban Calvin Betton dials in from Antwerp to join James Gray. George Bellshaw is, unforgivably, on holiday.
- Rafael Nadal announced his retirement this week, causing Calvin to ask whether he is actually the most underrated or perhaps most influential player of all-time
- ...and whether he will sign off on a high by winning the Davis Cup
- The full decision from CAS that reduced Simona Halep's ban for testing positive to just nine months has been published
- Frances Tiafoe, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev have all been mouthing off at umpires
PLUS
Your questions answered
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...more October 08, 2024Sinner vs Alcaraz or Federer vs Nadal? It's the clash of the eras this week as Mats Wilander's comments on Eurosport spark an intense debate about whether Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have already eradicated the legacy of the Big Four.
- Carlos Alcaraz beats Jannik Sinner, who had chances of his own, to win the China Open and wrestle control of their head-to-head in an increasingly storied rivalry
- Arthur Fils wins a title in Tokyo and beats Taylor Fritz, Matteo Berrettini, Ben Shelton, Holger Rune and Ugo Humbert en route - but then crashes out in the first round a week later
- Davis Cup Group stages scrapped in favour of a return to post-US Open home and away ties
- Coco Gauff wins her second WTA 1000 title in China, returning to the top five and improving her final record to 8-1...
- ...but her match-up with Naomi Osaka disappointingly ended in a retirement as a back injury forced the Japanese player to walk off early
- Iga Swiatek has split with coach Tomasz Wiktorowski and is already looking for someone new
LINKS
- FROM JG: "Many thanks to everyone who donated to my Cancer Research fundraiser. It made it all very worthwhile! If you would like to and missed out, here is the link." - https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/jamess-giving-page-139725
- Hugh Clarke's beautifully crafted newsletter is here: https://substack.com/home/post/p-149701313
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...more October 01, 2024Sinner doping case comes back to life, doubles gossip and the "Mount Rushmore" of tennis Calvin Betton is still in China, George Bellshaw is still in London and James Gray is still complaining.
They discuss...
- WADA has announced it is to appeal the decision to absolve Jannik Sinner of blame for his two positive tests for banned substance clostebol earlier this year. The case will be heard before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the World Anti-Doping Agency will seek a ban of between one and two years
- Joe Salisbury and Rajeev Ram have broken up their long-standing, multiple grand slam-winning partnership. Salisbury will play with fellow Brit Neal Skupski in 2025
- Naomi Osaka has won a match from a set down for the first time in 22 attempts, and now faces Coco Gauff in a blockbuster clash in Beijing
- British No 3 Jacob Fearnley has cracked the top 100 for the first time after winning his fourth Challenger title of the year
- Jack Draper is still struggling with the rigours of top-level tennis, injured again in Tokyo this week
- Marin Cilic has become the lowest ranked player ever - No 777 - to win an ATP title in Hangzhou
If you want to donate to James's fundraisers, you can do so here: https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/jamess-giving-page-139725
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...more
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