The Body Serve The Body Serve Tennis Podcast
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Tennis podcast featuring casual, semi-respectable conversations about the ATP & WTA.
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Contaminated With Questions
On March 5, the Court of Arbitration for Sport rendered its decision on the Simona Halep appeal: the doping was not intentional and the suspension was reduced to 9 months, time long since served. It’s the welcome end to a saga that has dragged on and shaken trust in the sport’s anti-doping institutions. But, we’re left with ever more questions: Why were the conclusions of the ITIA and CAS so starkly different? What of the biological passport results? What took so long? Why are tennis players often so successful at CAS? Aside from the Halep news, we talk about the early happenings at Indian Wells, the cancellation of Netflix’s Break Point, the ATP's annual awkward International Women’s Day video, and more.
01:40 CAS accepts Simona’s contamination defense and throws out biological passport charge
07:50 Why are the conclusions of ITIA and CAS so vastly different?
15:00 Comparisons to Sharapova, the question of “innocence”
25:00 So where are the “real” dopers?
35:30 Indian Wells: withdrawals, Sinner’s win streak, Kerber-Woz revival
45:15 Break Point is over: what went wrong?
50:40 Ruby amends his apology, thanks to Sofya Tartakova
51:50 A (very) slight improvement in the ATP’s Women’s Day video! -
You Cannot Be Serious
Rublev’s default from Dubai generated tons of discourse this week, and we devote quite a bit of time to it: the facts, the question of proportionality (of both Rublev’s actions and the umpire’s decision), and why player reactions aren’t the final word. We also recap the end of the lead-up to Indian Wells, with several players showing off the best tennis of their lives. Plus, Murray’s retirement talk; the ATP’s partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund; and the suspension of a low-ranked player for cannabis and how WADA decides to ban a substance.
2:15 Quick results recap: de Minaur, Boulter, Yuan, Humbert, Baez
8:30 The Rublev Default
13:10 The Act of (non)Contrition
25:35 Proportionality, in a few senses
34:45 Andy Murray talks about the end
38:40 #TheNetflixSlam: it was a bit tacky and very American, but overall a huge win for the sport
46:00 ATP partners with PIF
50:55 A 2-year suspension for weed? Also an opportunity for some nerdy anti-doping discussion -
Pills and Potions
February concludes with another first-time winner at the WTA 1000 level, Jordan Thompson winning 3 matches in one night to double in Los Cabos, and a bunch of hatchers and snatchers in Doha and Rio. We're also talking about the Coco-umpire incident in Dubai, Holger Rune rehiring Patrick Mouratoglou but retaining his reckless social media brand, and the quagmire of ethics breaches with the influx of betting companies into tennis institutions.
1:40 Jasmine Paolini wins Dubai + Kalinskaya’s fantastic run
7:40 Thompson wins Los Cabos singles and doubles
12:05 Hatching and snatching in South America
17:50 Andy Murray wins his 500th hard court match
21:15 Coco vs. an obstinate (and wrong) umpire
27:25 Holger is back with Patrick: how to fail up in tennis
37:50 James Blake sanctioned under the sport’s betting sponsorship rules; but why can tournaments and other institutions have betting sponsors? -
RIP OHB
We're catching up with the tennis tours as they wind through Transylvania, South America, the US, and the Middle East. Iga Swiatek threepeats in Doha, Rybakina racks up more wins, Pliskova surges, and Sinner wins his first tournament off becoming a Slam winner. Meanwhile, Ostapenko still hasn't lost a match to anyone but Azarenka. We've got updates on the high profile doping suspensions: Brooksby gets some clemency from the ITIA, and Halep pleads her case to the CAS and sues the supplement company (hey, Scarborough!). Plus: the last one-hander in the top 10 goes out, and major coaching shakeups at a strange time of the season.
3:20 Iga threepeats in Doha
8:00 The state of Naomi’s return from mat leave
16:45 Rybakina wins Abu Dhabi, Kasatkina slams the scheduling
19:30 Penko and the aborted racquet shake
24:30 Sinner keeps winning, other men’s results
31:40 The death of the one-handed backhand
36:30 Doping updates: Brooksby’s suspension reduced, Simona Halep makes her case at CAS and sues the supplement company
41:20 Coaching breakups: Sakkari and Tom Hill; Holger and everybody -
Fuming: February Mailbag
The Body Serve is back with what’s become a February tradition, an off-topic mailbag/pop culture episode. Fair warning to Sw*fties to proceed with caution through a few of the early segments (timestamps below). As we all switch modes from Australian Open to the global February tennis schedule, we offer our highlights and the broader themes raised by the Grammys with a massive dose of deja vu; we answer your questions, both tennis-related and not; we take on the idea of “tarnishing” a legacy by continuing to play past your prime; and chat randomly about the Naomi memoir, We Are the World, and The Traitors (spoilers abound).
1:00 Grammys: the Swift of it all
10:00 The broader problem: the Grammys’ failure to recognize Black women
21:20 Sone actual highlights from the Grammys
30:15 Memoirs
41:25 Will tennis ever change its schedule due to climate change?
43:50 Who will be the next first-time Slam winners?
46:05 Why do they keep protecting that guy? The sunk cost fallacy
48:45 Traitors: spoilers ahead for all versions
55:45 Best-of-5 for women + court speeds
61:00 Ideal tennis dinner guests, the evolution of tennis kits
65:05 Andy Murray and the idea of “tarnishing” one’s legacy -
Dreaming More Than Ever: AusOpen Wrap
The 2024 Australian Open wrapped with Aryna Sabalenka defending her title and Jannik Sinner snapping both Djokovic’s dominance and Medvedev’s almost inexhaustible energy to win his first major title. Amidst increasing coverage of the abuse charges against him, Zverev comes dangerously close to reaching a Djokovic-less final but Daniil says ‘calma.’ In good news, Zheng Qinwen breaks out even earlier than expected, Hsieh Su-Wei wins the third and fourth Slam titles of her return to tennis, and Rohan Bopanna reaches #1 at age 43.
01:25 Sabalenka defends her Australian title without much trouble
13:50 Shakey shake! Coco’s run
19:05 Jannik Sinner’s patience and smarts help him win his first major title
27:00 Daniil Medvedev finds the poetry in losing
30:40 The strangest Djokovic semifinal
35:10 Calma: Medvedev stops the Zverev momentum
42:00 The coverage of the abuse allegations against Zverev reach a peak
49:15 Doubles! Bopanna at #1, Hsieh’s continued doubles dominance
56:20 Et ceteras: record attendance doesn’t always make a pleasant experience; a few more fashion notes
Customer Reviews
The Right Stuff
James & Jonathan are well worth your time. There are so many tennis podcasts out there nowadays, but The Body Serve offers a unique blend of tennis and cultural critique. If you like your tennis with a side of humor, history, and social commentary, then this show is for you.
Best tennis podcast!
Discovered this pod via No Challenges Remaining & am loving the entire archive. These 2 guys are highly intelligent & funny. Articulate, always interesting & have loads of salty opinions. THE BEST in tennis.
Always makes me laugh!
I love this podcast because it always makes me laugh and entertains me. However, it also brings something serious to the table: a nuanced social commentary that goes far beyond what most sports podcast give you. Keep up the good work!