Tennis with an Accent

Matt Zemek joins Saqib Ali to look back at Stefanos Tsitsipas's maiden masters 1000 win. Has Tsitsipas eclipsed Dominic Thiem as the third best player heading into Paris by winning Monte Carlo? What does the win over Rafa Nadal mean for Andrey Rublev? Does Nadal's loss mean anything for his status as the undisputed favorite for Roland garros? Last but not the least we discuss Roger Federer's limited clay schedule.

Mert Ertunga(@MertovsTdesk, Briana Foust(@4TheTennis) and Nawal(@NawalNadal) join host Saqib Ali to look at the amazing on going career of Rafael Nadal. Mert looks at the career arc of Nadal through the lens of an analyst where as Bri and Nawal provide fan recollections for the same career. A must listen!

Tennis blogger James Peeling(@Moo_Tennis on twitter)returns to the show after a two year gap. His return could not be timed better as we explore the results of Miami open - which was a great tournament for the WTA except the final in terms of quality of tennis.

Peeling who follows the pulse of the WTA closely had a lot to say about Ash Barty, Bianca Andreescu, Maria Sakkari and Elina Svitolina.

The conversation moves further into clay as we have Peeling help us do high level preview of the upcoming clay swing.

You can find Peeling's exclusive WTA coverage on his blog -https://mootennis.com/

TWAA in house analyst Mert Ertunga(@MertovsTDesk) joins the show to talk about off court and on court stuff from the tennis world. Ertunga aims to highlight the struggles of lower ranked players on how the pandemic has cost many of them their livelihoods. All this comes from the lens of international borders and travel regulations for the players competing at ITF level.

On the court stuff includes Ertunga's assessments of Rublev, Karatsev, Fucsovics and Korda. We also discuss the incredible high level of Garbine Muguruza in 2021 and the return of Ash Barty outside of Australian soil.

Andrew Burton joins Matt Zemek to talk about the state of both tours through the lens of Big 7 - the four majors, ATP, WTA and the ITF. The duo also touches upon the return of Roger Federer to tour after more than a year of absence. The conversation shifts to Novak Djokovic's world record for most weeks at number one. Danil Medvedev's ascent to world number two gets a mention as he is the first non big 4 player to rank this high.

Hall of famer Steve Flink returns to the pod to pay homage to American great Tony Trabert. Trabert who passed away at 90 on February 3, 2021 was a hall of famer himself. Flink helps put Trabert's achievements in perspective considering the tour had turned pro back then and the best players were not allowed to play the majors. Trabert had won 5 majors and was a successful Davis cup captain as well. According to Flink he is in top 10 American male tennis players of all time.

Mert Ertunga joins Matt Zemek and Saqib Ali to review the 2021 Australian Open. The conversation heavily focuses on the statistical nuance of Novak Djokovic's masterclass in the final over Danil Medvedev. The group also compares the progress made in this tournament from the lens of Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Have they both eclipsed Dominic Thiem as the best non big three player? What about Aslan Karatsev - can he sustain a place in the top 100?

The WTA side of the conversation features the commentary on Osaka's 4th major title. We try to address the question whether Osaka's dominance can extend to surfaces beyond the hard courts. The tournament also confirmed Jen Brady's status as a premier hard court player. Last but not the least how do we rate Serena Williams tournament in Melbourne. Does Wimbledon serve as her best chance to win another major? Tune in to listen to more analysis on other players like Jessica Pegula, Karolina Muchova and Elina Svitolina.

Matt Zemek and Mert Ertunga look back the at the action from day 11 with Osaka, Brady and Djokovic as winners of their respective matches. They also look forward to Medvedev vs Tsitsipas.

Matt Zemek is joined by Mert Ertunga to look at some of the blockbuster tennis matchups of day 7 in Melbourne.

Matt Zemek and Saqib Ali look forward to some of the anticipated matches of day 5.