Unlike the men, where Rafa Nadal stands as the clear favorite, there are two women that will come into the French Open as clear favorites. Those two women are 2019 French Open Champion Ash Barty and 2020 French Open Champion Iga Swiatek. It’s only fitting that the...
The 2021 French Open is right around the corner! As we get closer to the best clay-court tournament the world has to offer, I can’t help but think about the legendary players who made their mark at this prestigious tournament. Steffi Graf is one of these legendary...
Rafael Nadal is now the clear favorite. Much like he has done in the previous 15 years, he has pretty much owned the clay-court swing before the French Open. He took both the Barcelona and Rome titles in typical Nadal fashion, showing his usual grit and intensity....
We’re a few weeks into the clay-court season and we’re starting to see who’s playing well and who’s not. For example, as expected, Naomi Osaka has not been making much of an impact on the clay. On the other hand, Ash Barty has established herself as the player to beat...
It was a great week of tennis in Madrid. Zverev captured the title, beating Nadal, Thiem, and Berrettini along the way. Can we establish him as the favorite at Roland Garros? Not so fast. Although it was a great win for him, there are other intangibles that need to be...
Unlike the top clay-court players of all time on the men’s side, the women’s side of great clay-court players of all time has Americans. American women just seem to win on the stuff! It’s interesting that historically, there has been no such thing as a clay-court...
Spring is here, which means it's red clay all day and every day. The red clay has historically been a very physical surface to play on. The clay slows down the game and it’s nearly impossible to hit through a tough opponent. Rallies are long and cerebral. If one wants...
After being canceled in 2020, the 2021 Madrid Open will go on as planned. As expected, the entry list consists of all the top players. One notable exception is Roger Federer, who seems to be extra careful as he plans his comeback from knee surgery. Fans can most...
Like the men, the top WTA women will be descending in Madrid this week as they prepare for the 2021 Madrid Open. As usual with the women, this big title is pretty much up for grabs. Other than Ash Barty, there doesn’t seem to be a clear favorite, especially on the red...
In a recent interview with the ATP, Pete Sampras spoke about how difficult it was to play Boris Becker at the ATP Finals throughout the 90s. Obviously, it was difficult because Becker was such a great player. However, it was additionally difficult because the finals...
There are three men that dominated the majority of the 1980s on the ATP Tour. Those three men are McEnroe, Lendl and Wilander. They won more Grand Slams during the 80s than players like Edberg, Becker, Borg, and Connors. All three had healthy rivalries with each...
After a long lull of mediocre U.S. men’s tennis, it finally looks like we may have some good representation at the top. Upon the retirement of Andre Agassi and then Andy Roddick and James Blake, the U.S. men’s tennis torch has been carried by John Isner. It’s been...
