Ben and Tumaini Carayol dust off the NCR machine to bring you a look at the 2023 French Open women's and men's draws, breaking down the contenders and darkhorses while touching on several of the big stories of the past few months while the show has been on hiatus (Relatedly, Ben's forthcoming book on Naomi Osaka is now available for pre-order!)
Can Iga Swiatek reestablish her dominance on the women's side at her favorite tournament? How clear a favorite is Carlos Alcaraz on the men's side?
Before that, we start with a discussion of two notable absences: Rafael Nadal, the 14-time champion who hasn't played in months due to a persistent psoas injury, and Simona Halep, a former champion and #1 who has taken an increasingly vocal and outspoken stance as she tries to rally support against anti-doping authorities following her positive test for a blood doping agent last year.
We also discuss the extended formats of the Madrid and Rome Masters 1000 events, changes which have been poorly received across the board.
Thanks for listening! Bon voyage, bonne chance, bonne nuit!
Episode 265: Knowing When to Call It Off, with Mark Ein
Episode 264: Sports Bubbles Roundtable
Episode 263: Can Tennis Stars Be Trusted to Act Responsibly? (With Reem Abulleil)
Crack the Codenames With Us on Patreon!
Episode 262: A Tennis Star Catches COVID-19...Now What?
Episode 261: Tennis Plans An American Summer Return (with Mark Ein)
Episode 260: Patrick Mouratoglou
Episode 259: Sandra Zaniewska
Episode 258: Voices Emerge (with Tumaini Carayol)
Hey! Big New May Mailbag Episode Over on NCR's Patreon!
Episode 257b: The NCRvision Results Show Spectacular!
Episode 257a: An NCRvision Refresher
Episode 256: We Need to Talk About Novak
Episode 255: Calling Tennis Remotely, with Ravi Ubha
Episode 254: How We Carry on While Stopped, with Mike Cation
Episode 253: The Dudes Wanna Merge Now? (With Reem Abulleil)
Episode 252: How to Begin to Restart, with Mark Ein
Episode 251b: NCR Book Club Author Chat - Jon Wertheim
Episode 251a: NCR Book Club - "Venus Envy" by Jon Wertheim
Episode 250: Courtsiding with Brad Hutchins
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