TENNIS.com Podcast

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Love Serving Autism founder Lisa Pugliese on adaptive tennis Aug 06, 2019

Show notes

"One of the students, who is non-verbal, he was very happy to be at tennis, but he didn’t really have any words. So his mom said one day, 'I just wanted to let you know that Marvin brings his tennis racquet at night to his bed.' I kind of was stunned because I knew he enjoyed tennis, but I didn’t realize how much he loved it, and that was his way of expressing himself."

Joining co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi on the TENNIS.com Podcast this week is Love Serving Autism CEO and founder Lisa Pugliese.

Pugliese competed as a junior, collegiate player (at Duke and the University of Florida) and pro on the ITF tour. Once her playing career was over, she discovered a passion for speech and language therapy, specializing in the treatment of adolescents and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders. After working at a middle school and then as the program director for Acing Autism, Pugliese branched off to start her own non-profit, Love Serving Autism, in Florida in 2017.

One in 59 children have autism, and Love Serving Autism's mission is to create an adaptive pathway for the red, orange and green ball levels, expanding life skills (particularly communication) through specialized therapeutic tennis instruction.

Backed by the USTA and generous donations, Love Serving Autism is sending 24 players to the US Open for the Net Generation Kids on Court Demonstration on August 31. The children will get a chance to play on one of the stadium courts, where Pugliese once competed at as a junior.

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CiCi Bellis on enduring four surgeries and planning a comeback Jun 26, 2019

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“Each one I was like, no, I’m not doing the surgery. I’m done with tennis. I’m not going to do this. I’m not going to put my body through this anymore. It’s just not worth it… But I ended up doing it. My gut told me to do it and fix it and try to … Continue reading Inside the Tour with Nina and Irina — CiCi Bellis on enduring four surgeries and planning a comeback →

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Wrapping up Roland Garros 2019 and debating grass Jun 10, 2019

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Roland Garros 2019 ended with Ashleigh Barty and Rafael Nadal raising the trophies. TENNIS.com Podcast co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi reflect on the fortnight, and look ahead to the grass season—which is already underway. Nadal handled Dominic Thiem in four sets in the final, and then handled the press with similar expert finesse. He … Continue reading Inside the Tour with Nina and Irina — Wrapping up Roland Garros 2019 and debating grass →

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Debating Federer’s chances against Nadal at Roland Garros Jun 05, 2019

Show notes

Week 2 of Roland Garros has been highlighted by Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer setting up their 39th career meeting in Friday’s semifinals. TENNIS.com Podcast co-hosts Irina Falconi and Nina Pantic debate Federer’s chances. Federer may have won their last five meetings, but it’s hard to give the Swiss the edge against the King of … Continue reading Inside the Tour with Nina and Irina — Debating Federer’s chances against Nadal at Roland Garros →

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Youth swagger rules Week 1 at Roland Garros Jun 01, 2019

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Week 1 at Roland Garros officially wrapped on Saturday with the fourth round set in both the men’s and women’s draws. TENNIS.com podcast co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi break down and react to some of the most exciting storylines. They kick off with Sofia Kenin’s stunning 6-2, 7-5 upset over Serena Williams, and the rise … Continue reading Inside the Tour with Nina and Irina — Youth swagger rules Week 1 at Roland Garros →

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Gigi Fernandez on transitioning to the real world May 23, 2019

Show notes

“Back then, 33 seemed like I was ancient. I did not know what I was going to do and it was a really difficult transition. I struggled a lot for a lot of years trying to do different things that were not in the tennis world. Finally, I just decided to come back to what I … Continue reading Inside the Tour with Nina and Irina — Gigi Fernandez on transitioning to the real world →

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WTT CEO Carlos Silva on innovating the game May 15, 2019

Show notes

“If you can’t make a little bit of noise, you’re going to be forgotten. I didn’t join WTT to be forgotten, I joined so that I could help take the 40+ years that it’s been around and now grow it into the next era.” World TeamTennis (WTT) CEO Carlos Silva joins the podcast this week … Continue reading Inside the Tour with Nina and Irina — WTT CEO Carlos Silva on innovating the game →

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Steve Weissman on getting into broadcasting Apr 30, 2019

Show notes

"If you can’t lift people up and help them and make others successful, then what are you? At the end of the day you need to pay it forward and try to help as much as possible."

Sportscaster Steve Weissman joins the TENNIS.com Podcast Inside the Tour with Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi. Weissman will be a familiar voice as he's the on-air talent for both Tennis Channel and the NFL Network.

A graduate of Northwestern journalism school, Weissman started his career grinding in Alpena, Mich., population of about 10,000. He then made moves to Comcast SportsNet and ESPN, before becoming a mainstay on set at Tennis Channel and around the globe.

He's interviewed the best players in the game as well as co-hosted alongside the likes of Martina Navratilova, Mary Carillo, Lindsay Davenport, Paul Annacone and many more. Weissman shares his greatest experiences and most starstruck moments, and gives advice for anyone getting into the broadcasting world.

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Beyond the Baseline, with Jon Wertheim — Entrepreneur, philanthropist and tennis advocate Mark Ein Apr 25, 2019

Show notes

On this week’s episode of Beyond the Baseline, host Jon Wertheim talks with Washington Kastles owner, investor, entrepreneur and philanthropist, Mark Ein. As a longtime fan and player of the sport, Ein discusses how he was introduced to tennis as a child and how his experiences as a ballkid growing up have influenced some of … Continue reading Beyond the Baseline, with Jon Wertheim — Entrepreneur, philanthropist and tennis advocate Mark Ein →

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Beyond the Baseline, with Jon Wertheim — World No. 3 Petra Kvitova on the 2019 season Apr 18, 2019

Show notes

On this week's episode of Beyond the Baseline, world No. 3 Petra Kvitova joins the podcast in between practices in Prague to talk about her runner-up finish at the Australian Open, taking a break in mid-April, her 2019 season goals, her thoughts on Tiger Woods and his Masters victory and more. Host Jon Wertheim and Jamie Lisanti also discuss some tennis headlines and the Mailbag question of the week: What are the best tennis accounts to follow on social media?

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