The Body Serve

Wimbledon ends with maybe not the champions we chose but the ones we were given. Iga Swiatek honed her grass game and unleashed an almighty tempest to beat Amanda Anisimova with the loss of zero games. Jannik Sinner snapped his 5-match skid against chief rival Carlos Alcaraz by pounding his way to the title. We cover the very human and predictable limitations of electronic line calling, Sally Jenkins’ (warranted) hit piece on John McEnroe, and our lasting impressions of London. You can also expect us to discuss the embarrassing display of billionaire worship that occurred when “activist investor” Bill Ackman got an undeserved wild card to the Hall of Fame Open.

2:10 Dorothea Lambert Chambers thought her record was safe; Iga thought otherwise

16:10 Amanda’s journey to the Wimbledon final 

21:05 Dimitrov and Djokovic injuries ease Sinner’s path

26:15 What happened, Carlitos?

35:15 Jonathan’s addendum on Swiatek’s season so far

38:50 Electronic line calling is fallible after all!

45:15 Ackman at the Newport Casino as we enter a new and dark Gilded Age 

52:20 Sally Jenkins says what fans have been saying for years: fire McEnroe 

58:20 Last notes from London

We’re back from our first ever trip to Wimbledon with lots of stories from the grounds and our impressions of the whole British Empire of it all (it's intoxicating at the same time). We were there for the hottest opening day in Wimbledon’s history, and the heat seemed to wreak havoc on the draw, with 36 seeds out by the end of round two. We’ll take you through the draws and some notable matches we saw -- Fritz-Mpetshi Perricard, Krejcikova-Eala, Sabelanka-Branstine, plus Mboko, Baptiste, and ‘Cos’ Giron. Plus, if you’re curious about the various ways to get Wimbledon tickets, we’ve got you (even though it’s still not easy).   

2:00 What it was like being at Wimbledon: Let’s start with the food

10:05 Around the grounds: ivy, flowers, Henman Hill, Hailey the Baptist 

30:30 How does one get tickets to Wimbledon?

39:30 It was really hot and a bunch of seeds fell

47:00 Women’s draw: #2-6 are out but Andreeva and Swiatek remain in the bottom half …

57:30 Men’s draw: Fritz hanging on, Alcaraz playing entirely too many sets

Theme music courtesy of Oleg Fedak from Pixabay

Presenting the first part of our interview with Courtney Nguyen, tennis blogger, podcaster, and journalist, and until recently the Senior Writer at WTA Insider. First, we chat about Courtney's exit from the WTA and what's next. You'll hear about the first time we met back in 2015 at the dearly missed Mason Applebee's. We also asked Courtney for her thoughts on the state of AI and tech in tennis, some misconceptions about the WTA, and our mutual love of mess -- not just drama, which is fun, but the deeply human imperfection of this sport, how it's played, and how it's governed. 

The Body Serve lands in London for the very first time! For our Wimbledon preview, we'll take you through some news from qualifying, discuss the players who rallied in the last week before Wimbledon, and outline the top stories of the draw. How long will the Alcaraz-Sinner duopoly last? Is Aryna the favorite or will a grass court demon snatch the title? Will Marketa send the draws crashing down? Will Fritz beat that guy for the 6th consecutive time? 

2:55 Qualifying news: Canadian Branstine stuck playing #1s everywhere she goes

5:55 Major stories: the Sinner-Alcaraz chokehold and at least a dozen contenders for the women’s title

10:30 This week’s results: Peggy, Iga, Eala, Fritz and more

14:45 Men’s draw offers Djokovic a chance, throws Draper a curve ball

25:50 Women’s draw preview: Sabalenka’s rough go 

The tours have begun their brief stop on grass, and here’s what we know: Marketa has risen, Bublik is dangerous, Carlos won’t stop winning, and the WTA hasn’t yet figured out Tatjana Maria’s spins. Outside of the results, we cover the end of Kyrgios’ stint with the BBC and its possible causes. Plus: Sinner and Bocelli’s camp collaboration and the US Open’s mixed doubles pairings, which appear to have been drafted by agents and some very online fans.

03:50 Grass results: Tatjana Maria stuns the big hitters at Queen’s

11:05 Marketa has awoken, Bublik wins second Halle title 

18:50 Kyrgios won’t be broadcasting this year (now why is Chris Eubanks in it?)

26:30 Too late to Kei-pologize?

29:15 Sinner & Bocelli Grammy when?

32:10 A Slam title for fan-fic?!

38:00 A listener question

42:35 Et ceteras: coaching changes, Petra’s imminent retirement, Mariah’s new single 

Roland Garros closes with Coco Gauff’s second major title and a true classic of a men’s final, with Carlos Alcaraz defending his title after weathering three championship points and over five hours of punishing tennis from Jannik Sinner. Of course you’ll get our thoughts on Aryna Sabalenka’s less than pleasant commentary after the match, plus notes on Iga, Novak, and Musetti’s ill-conceived kick. Stay tuned for our fashion segment (Lululemon FTW this time), our impression of TNT’s coverage, and the scheduling nightmare that got even worse. 

3:30 Coco Gauff is a two-time major champ!

12:10 Aryna talks shit, gets whacked by fans and locals alike

20:15 Other notes about the women’s draw

29:30 Men’s final: a true classique

39:00 Semi and quarter notes: Musetti’s kick and That Guy’s futility 

48:50 Reviewing the kits: Nike, go home; Wilson and Lulu, you can stay

58:00 TNT’s coverage created some real energy

All Round of 16 matches are set at the 2025 Roland Garros, after a number of top men crashed out early (though none of the true favorites) and most of the women’s contenders remain on a crash course toward some fiery week two matchups. We look at what’s to come and discuss our week one highlights – including Svitolina-Pera, Keys-Kenin, Draper-Monfils, and Mboko’s run. The episode’s title comes from the tournament’s refusal to schedule women during its flawed night session concept and the ensuing controversy, with a fight led by Ons Jabeur and much of the tennis press. Plus, a review of the Rafa Nadal tribute (a job well done!).  

1:25 RG does the Rafa tribute right

8:05 Upsets galore on the men’s side

13:45 The men’s draw as it stands

24:25 Our women’s draw highlights

38:45 RG night session scheduling is a fight worth fighting 

52:50 Et ceteras: Jasmine “Solomon” Paolini, Ivanisevic joins Team Tsitsipas

Theme music courtesy of Oleg Fedak from Pixabay

Roland Garros is here, and it’s the first edition since Rafael Nadal’s retirement. We start with a few recollections of our favorite Nadal RG moments, then head straight into draw previews. Is Aryna the favorite? What to make of Iga’s tough draw? Will Novak take advantage and make one more stand in Paris? Is Carlos King? After talking through the draws, we recap some investigative reporting into Muller’s OnlyFans, plus we update you on some imminent retirements, the latest very typical happenings in Camila Giorgi’s life, and That Guy’s 37 trips to -- well, you can just listen.

0:45 Our favorite Rafa Roland Garros moments

3:25 Women’s draw preview 

17:45 Mboko makes it in, Bianca doesn’t qualify, Errani retires from singles 

24:45 Men’s draw preview

39:00  Prayers up for that guy’s esophagus

40:15 Assorted mess: An OnlyFans scammer, Giorgi does reality TV

At the Italian Open, Jasmine Paolini wins in singles and doubles while Carlos Alcaraz puts on his thinking cap to stop Jannik Sinner at the finish line. We take a beat to compare Sinner’s triumphal return from a doping suspension to that of Sharapova in 2017 (for one thing, she didn’t get to meet the pope). Plus, Djokovic breaks with Murray, Barbie is back, the US Open announces a construction project, and the surprising fallibility of something called Gorillalpha Yeti Juice.  

01:45 Welcoming Jannik back from a unexplained absence

12:30 When a delusional era lasts forever

15:45 A note about Lorenzo

20:00 Paolini brings the title back to Italy

31:15 Barbie K is back

33:30 Kicking off Roland Garros qualifying

35:50 Contamination cases have a Gorilla grip on tennis

39:50 US Open announces updates to its site – whether it’s an upgrade remains to be seen

Madrid ends with Aryna Sabalenka further extending her lead as number one, Casper Ruud grabbing his first Masters, and a lot of discourse around Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff, and Naomi Osaka. We’ve got updates on: Jannik Sinner’s hero's welcome in Rome, Bianca Andreescu, Anastasija Sevastova, Tyra Grant, and more. We do a quick review of the strange but sometimes interesting Alcaraz Netflix documentary before wrapping the episode with a dive into the Max Purcell doping suspension, which is way more fascinating than he first let on. 

Theme music courtesy of Oleg Fedak from Pixabay

01:45 Penko being Penko

5:05 Madrid: the Iga discourse 

9:45 Sabalenka d. Gauff to win Madrid, joins the 11,000 points club 

13:40 Casper wins his first Masters 1000

20:20 Osaka drops a level and wins! 

23:15 Jannik, the ironic vir triumphalis, returns to Rome

26:15 Updates on Andreescu, Sevastova

30:20 The perplexing Alcaraz Netflix doc

40:00 Is Venus quiet quitting (or did she already)?

43:05 The Max Purcell doping case gets a lot more interesting