TENNIS.com Podcast

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Nick McCarvel on covering the sport in new ways Oct 16, 2019

Show notes

"It's just that sort of natural approach that I've always had and, yeah, it's taken some fine-tuning. For the most part, it's just breaking down that fourth wall and letting the viewer feel like they're there with you."

This week's TENNIS.com Podcast features reporter Nick McCarvel. He's got a lot of stories from the road to share with podcast co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi.

While studying journalism, McCarvel got his start in tennis by walking into the Tennis Magazine offices in Manhattan asking for a summer internship, and soon after, he began writing for the New York Times and USA Today. He made the leap to on-camera hosting at Indian Wells a few years ago, and has never looked back. Beyond tennis, he also covers figure skating, taking on the role of NBC Olympics digital reporter last year in Pyeongchang.

McCarvel has carved out his place as a content creator, commentator and host, often taking over social media with his feature videos and interviews. He has become a smiling staple at seemingly every stop on tour and has worked with every big name in tennis—even chatting with Roger Federer and Serena Williams in the Twitter Blue Room after they won their Australian Open titles in 2017.

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Jim Courier on making tennis better for everyone Oct 09, 2019

Show notes

"The business side has been something that I’ve been really educated in. I didn’t go to college, so for me it’s been a real learning curve and a real wonderful one to understand how the world of tennis actually operates. It's made me a better person in general."

This week's TENNIS.com Podcast guest is former No. 1 Jim Courier. The four-time Grand Slam champion may be better known these days for commentating as he's now 20 years into a full-fledged broadcasting career.

With his company InsideOut Sports & Entertainment, Courier has helped bring tennis to more people, first with the Powershares Champion Series (now the Invesco Series QQQ) and now by partnering with the Oracle Pro Series.

The 49-year-old American shares how he knew it was time to retire, the ins and outs of commentating and his most memorable on-court interviews, including with Petra Kvitova and Rafael Nadal in Melbourne.

He gets into some of the more complex debates of the sport like the delegation of prize money at Slams, which ranking groups should be making a better living and why the American minor league needs a more level playing field with Europe.

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Anne Worcester on becoming UTR's president Oct 02, 2019

Show notes

"The chance to use use 35 years on all sides of pro tennis—the player side, the tournament side, the sponsor side, my Virginia Slims days and then the governing body side—to make a difference and grow the sport, using technology, was just sort of the chance of a lifetime."

With over three decades of experience in pro tennis, Anne Worcester joins the TENNIS.com Podcast this week with co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi. In the world of tennis, Worcester has done it all and shares her impressive path from recreational player to one of he most well-connected leaders in the game.

Worcester became the first woman to be named the CEO of the WTA in 1994, making her the first female CEO of any major sports organization at the time. She then became the tournament director of the WTA Premier in New Haven in 1998, and remained the lead of the much-loved August event until it was sold to China earlier this year.

Left to enjoy her first summer off in over 20 years, the highly-in-demand businesswoman was quickly named the president of UTR (Universal Tennis Rating). She tells all about her experiences running a prominent tournament on the WTA calendar, how she got made the transition to what she calls "APW 3.0" and what UTR is doing for the sport.

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Craig Kardon on the coaching carousel Sep 25, 2019

Show notes

“That’s one of the things I learned right away is you have to be willing to go on the court every single day and get fired, and stick up for what you believe in."

This week's TENNIS.com Podcast guest is WTA and ATP coach Craig Kardon. With 30 years of experience on tour, Kardon has a lot of stories to share with podcast co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi.

A former Top 300-ranked pro, Kardon got his pro coaching career started in the late 1980s helping none other than Martina Navratilova to her final Wimbledon title in 1990. He has since worked with Mary Pierce, Lindsay Davenport, Jennifer Capriati, Ana Ivanovic, Xavier Malisse, Alex Bogomolov, CoCo Vandeweghe and more. He has been a fixture in World TeamTennis for nearly 20 years, spending the last decade guiding the Billie Jean King-owned Philadelphia Freedoms.

Kardon shares how he got his first gig, and why coaches struggle to hold onto any sort of steady work on tour with the coaching carousel spitting out changes seemingly daily. He explains what has kept him in the game, how he manages life on tour and what he looks for when he's seeking out a new player to work with.

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Mary Carillo on acing the broadcasting world Sep 18, 2019

Show notes

"Say yes! If you can’t do it they’ll tap you on the shoulder and get you gone, but just say yes. Experience it and work hard and be curious and do your thing, say yes."

This week's TENNIS.com Podcast features award-winning broadcaster Mary Carillo. After a playing career that saw her reach No. 31 in the world, Carillo fell into commentating by happenstance, and then jumped into the new career headfirst in 1980.

She has appeared on Tennis Channel, Amazon Prime, ESPN, NBC, CBS and many more, covering primarily tennis, but also Olympic events like figure skating, luge, skiing, marathon swimming and practically everything else. Not stopping at two-legged athletes, Carillo loves covering animal shows, too, including the upcoming AKC National Championship Dog Show on Animal Planet.

Carillo covers a lot of ground this episode including how she got her start in the business, her advice to aspiring broadcasters, who made her the most starstruck, why she's not on social media and a lot, lot more.

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Sascha Bajin on working with Grand Slam champions Sep 11, 2019

Show notes

"Getting paid playing with Serena Williams on a daily basis, I don't care if it's in Palm Beach Gardens or a stadium, it doesn't get much than that."

Sascha Bajin joined the TENNIS.com Podcast with Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi while he was in New York for the US Open. The 34-year-old has a decorated resume, having worked with Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Caroline Wozniacki, Sloane Stephens, Naomi Osaka and now, Kristina Mladenovic.

The German reflects on how he got his start as a 21-year-old hitting partner for one of the greatest athletes of all time. He would be part of Serena's team for 13 of her 23 Grand Slam wins. He explains how he made the shift to coaching, as he was in Osaka's player box as her coach for her 2018 US Open and 2019 Australian Open victories.

Coaching was a natural fit for him thanks to a selfless demeanor that makes him eager to help his player with everything and anything she needs, from picking up laundry to figuring out how to win a match during a changeover. The 2018 WTA Coach of the Year has come a long way, and he's driven to do even more in the months, and years, ahead.

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Melanie Oudin on the 10-year anniversary of her US Open quarterfinal run Sep 04, 2019

Show notes

"This is the hand I was dealt. How many people can say they have made the quarterfinals of the US Open? And to have that kind of run, and people cheering for me, and the whole believe thing, and inspiring a lot of people: I couldn't have asked for anything more than that."

Ten years after her 2009 US Open dream run, Melanie Oudin joins the TENNIS.com Podcast with Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi. The 27-year-old retired two years ago after numerous health setbacks, including a heart condition that required two surgeries.

As a 17-year-old, Oudin beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Elena Dementieva, Maria Sharapova and Nadia Petrova to reach the US Open quarterfinals. She would peak at No. 31 in the world, win the 2011 US Open mixed doubles title (with Jack Sock) and capture a WTA title in Birmingham in 2012.

She explains how she finally figured out what was wrong with her heart, why she left the game at the age of 25, and how she jumped into broadcasting as her first post-playing career path. The Georgia native has since found a passion for coaching, working at the Windward Lake Club in Alpharetta. She also hosts Melanie Oudin Believe Camps for juniors aged 10-14.

While she's got incredible memories of her 2009 experience in New York, and has found her place back on court as a coach, Oudin is firmly looking to the future where she hopes to coach at the professional level.

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Caroline Dolehide on finding her way on tour Aug 28, 2019

Show notes

"Right now I'm just really thankful, not that I'm winning, but that I feel good because it was really rough six months at the beginning of the year. It's something that we all have to go through."

Caroline Dolehide joins the TENNIS.com Podcast this week with Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi. The world No. 214-ranked American reflects on a memorable August in which she won two medals at the Pan American Games, captured an ITF W60 in Concord, Mass., and qualified for the US Open, where she's also in the doubles main draw (with Vania King).

The 20-year-old opens up about her confident choice of the pro tour over UCLA and reflects on her struggles at the start of 2019 with refreshing honesty. She compares Grand Slam life to the ITF circuit, shares the benefits of playing so much doubles and explains why she chose to travel to Peru for a clay tournament in the middle of the U.S. hard-court season.

When discussing her family support system, Dolehide casually lets us know that she has a friendship with Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi after spending time in Vegas with Gil Reyes.

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Former No. 1 Liezel Huber on reaching new heights in the Bronx Aug 22, 2019

Show notes

"For me it wasn't about reaching No. 1, but really that platform that I had to stand on to make a difference."

This week's TENNIS.com Podcast guest is former world No. 1 doubles champion Liezel Huber. Huber now serves as the director of tennis at the Cary Leeds Center for Tennis and Learning in New York, and is helping run the new NYTJL Bronx Open this week.

Huber is a seven-time Grand Slam doubles champion and finished as the season-end No. 1 three times. She reflects on her stellar career as well as the path since that has brought her to the Bronx, where she helps teach children the game that's given her so much. The South African-turned-American shares her greatest memory from her career—which won't be what you expect—and gives an inside take on what went into getting ready to host a WTA International tournament at the new facility.

The 43-year-old mother of two has confidently found her place in the world after retiring from competition in 2017, and she has a three-word secret to success to share with the world. She is most excited to show her new home to the pros visiting the Bronx, and to introduce professional tennis back into the community.

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Tournament director Joe Ceriello on the NYJTL Bronx Open Aug 14, 2019

Show notes

“We are the largest youth tennis and education nonprofit in the nation. That’s our daily work. Now the NYJTL Bronx Open is the ultimate aspirational event for our kids.” This week’s TENNIS.com Podcast episode features NYJTL Bronx Open tournament director Joe Ceriello, alongside podcast co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi. Across a 20-year career in tennis, Ceriello … Continue reading Inside the Tour with Nina and Irina — Tournament director Joe Ceriello on the NYJTL Bronx Open →

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