Tennis with an Accent

Carlos Alcaraz has won the US Open for the second time and in the process has regained the number one ranking. It also means for the second straight year the dynamic duo of Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have cleaned up the four majors between them. We break down the final and speculate if this duopoly is good for the sport or do we need an intervention from a third player in 2026. To do the honors host Matt Zemek is joined by TWAA consultant Skip Schwarzman and Hall of Famer Mark Woodforde. It is a great deep dive of the US Open Men's edition. Brew a cuppa and get ready!

Aryna Sabalenka has successfully defended her US open title and in the process has salvaged her season which had her endure few heartbreaks in various big matches. Coach Mert Ertunga joins host Matt Zemek to review the WTA edition of the US open 2025. It was a tournament which lived up to the hype of the pre tourney draw and delivered many noteworthy matches and plot lines. One of those big stories was how Ananda Anisimova performed in New York after suffering a humiliating loss in the Wimbledon final. Return of one Naomi Osaka to the big stages of grand slam tennis also made this fortnight special. Tune in for more details and nuances as coach Mert holds court!

In the latest episode of the podcast we preview the WTA and ATP draws for the US Open. The panel includes podcast regulars Andrew Burton, Mert Ertunga and host Matt Zemek. We tee off with the ATP side of the house as it's the more predictable event compared to the more deeply balanced WTA. The menu consists of tricky pockets, seeds who are a lock to go deep and party spoilers. Its all here - please dive right in!

In this week’s episode host Saqib Ali is joined by hall of famer Steve Flink and coach Skip Schwarzman to discuss the best ATP player who fell short at the US Open. In Skip’s words the book of “If” is a never ending book and fittingly the conversation covered a lot of ground from Tony Roche to Marat Safin. It is a free flowing discussion where Bjorn Borg was the unanimous choice as the best player to not have won the US Open men’s singles. To find out about other names please tune in.

In a special episode former major champions Pat Cash and Andres Gomez join TWAA podcast host Saqib Ali to relive the 1980’s ATP - especially the hard court tennis leading up to the Open. It’s a conversation super rich in anecdotal value and information on some of the big names of that generation. It is a great episode for fans of all generations given the guests are great story tellers and recall a fair bit of detailed experiences from the tennis circuit of the 80’s.

Former Wimbledon finalist Kevin Curren joins the podcast this week to look back at his tennis career. The conversation covers a lot of ground from his early days in his native country of South Africa to his move to play collegiate tennis in Austin, TX and all the way to his famous centre court date with Boris Becker in the 1985 final of Wimbledon. Curren is very forthcoming about all the facets of this incredible journey. He provides great anecdotal value along the way as the conversation touches upon some of his famous rivals like John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl. It is a detailed account of a great tennis career - brew a cup of coffee and dive right in!

Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner are your new Wimbledon champions! While doing that they respectively became first player from their respective nations to win their respective titles at Wimbledon. Host Matt Zemek is joined by resident guests Andrew Burton and Skip Schwarman to review The Championships. Sinner reversed the heartbreak of that result from Paris and defeated arch rival Carlos Alcaraz for his maiden title while Swiatek ended her year long title drought at the tour level in spectacular fashion by defeating first time major finalist Amanda Anisimova. The trio takes a deep dive into the fortnight and dissects all the major players who met with triumph and disaster during Wimbledon.

Coach Mert Ertunga joins host Matt Zemek to preview The Championships. Aryna Sabalenka comes in as a title favorite and she may have to deal with Australian Open champ Madison Keys in the quarter finals - which can be the match of the fortnight according to Mert in terms of determining the champion. The conversation highlights some dangerous first round matches as well as some possible dynamite matches in the second week - especially a mouth watering potential duel between Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina. Mert also feels Coco Gauff may not have enough match reps on grass to make a deep run at Wimbledon. Tune in to listen to the full WTA preview. On the men’s side Mert believes the winner will come out of the trio of Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic. Is Djokovic more equipped to prevent the Alcaraz Sinner final here on grass compared to Roland Garros? Can Jack Draper come out of his murderer’s row of a draw? Tune in to listen to the full ATP draw preview as a highly compelling fortnight awaits.

In the latest episode of the podcast host Saqib Ali is joined by hall of fame tennis writer Steve Flink and noted tennis commentator Nick Lester to review the mid-point of the ATP season. The conversation is also geared towards the grass court swing which is in full flight - headed for Wimbledon. The episode covers the legitimacy of Jack Draper as a top Wimbledon favorite behind the esteemed trio of Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic. Its a fun episode which covers lot of ground along with a peak at the Tennis viz insights data

It was the closing weekend at Roland Garros! Host Matt Zemek is joined by resident guests Andrew Burton and Skip Schwarzman to review RG 2025. It was the first time in more than four decades that it was number one vs number two at both the men's and women's final. And fair to say both finals delivered - which makes this episode a deeper dive in terms of our analysis! Brew your coffee and dive right in!

Mert Ertunga and Andrew Burton join host Matt Zemek to preview both draws - ATP and WTA ahead of this year's Roland Garros. Four time champion Iga Swiatek was handed a difficult draw compared to her arch rivals Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff. On the men’s side the top two seeds - Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz start as big favorites. Our experts looks at some of the potential upsets and tricky matchups while dissecting the draws. Tune in!

Former Wimbledon semi finalist Tim Mayotte and our in house analyst Skip Schwarzman join host Matt Zemek to review the Rome 1000 event for both ATP and WTA.The conversation includes a wide variety of topics from the recently concluded Rome event with the central focus on the Winners, finalists and the usual suspects. Tune in!

Resident Guests Mert Ertunga and Andrew Burton join host Matt Zemek to break down the recently concluded Madrid 1000 event for both WTA and ATP. Topics covered include the maiden win of Casper Ruud at the masters 1000 level, the bankability of Aryna Sabalenka's tennis and the loss of confidence of Iga Swiatek. Tune in to listen to the review and other relevant topics.

Steve Flink and Gill Gross return to the annual clay power ranking get together and discuss the atp hierarchy with host Saqib Ali. It is a fun conversation - get your own lists ready to compare and tune into the show.

The Australian Open review podcast is here with host Matt Zemek, Andrew Burton and Skip Schwarzman. The discussion is a rich one with focus on the breakthrough triumph of Madison Keys. As Andrew would say this was the perfect "Murderers row" of a draw for Keys. The discussion also covers the continued dominance of Jannik Sinner and another runners up result for Sascha Zverev. Tune in to get a detailed discussion from the TWAA crew!

Andrew Burton joins host Matt Zemek for a mid point check in for the Australian Open 2025. The discussion centers around some of the marquee matches that loom large in the second week - and none bigger than the Novak Djokovic- Carlos Alcaraz clash. Tune in for a complete QF and beyond preview.

In the latest edition of the podcast we look back at the ATP decade of 2010s. Usual suspects Steve Flink and Mert Ertunga join host Saqib Ali to breakdown the decade which was dominated by Novak Djokovic - who was closely followed by Rafa Nadal. The group looks back with fondness and immense respect at the historic ten year span of the sport which saw the term "big three" come into prominence. This was also a decade where only six men won a major title. This type of top heavy decade may never come around again! Tune in to relive the most glorious chapter of the men's game with emphasis on big matches, key moments and great careers.

Rafael Nadal is a former tennis player. Here is a little belated tribute episode to look back at the tennis career of Nadal. Host Matt Zemek is joined by the podcast regulars Andrew Burton, Skip Schwarzman and Mert Ertunga. The episode is a collection of how the group looks back at Nadal's impact, his legacy and his greatest hits among other memories.

Former tennis player Mark Lewis is the podcast guest in this episode. Lewis is also widely remembered as Michael Stich's coach during the German's most successful tennis phase. In this episode Lewis sheds light on the tennis scene in his native country of New Zealand. He also touches upon his brother's magical run to the Wimbledon final in 1983 before losing to John McEnroe. The episode is an extremely candid and generous account of Lewis's tennis journey where he shares lot of details about Stich and life on tour as a coach.

We review the ATP finals in this episode. Andrew Burton returns to the podcast to join fellow resident guest Skip Schwarzman and host Matt Zemek. The discussions centers on the best matches of the week where Taylor Fritz vs Alex Zverev is discussed at length. Other parts of this episode focusses on similar playing styles from the eight man field with Carlos Alcaraz being the outlier. Another question addressed here is who will be the leading candidate to challenge the Jannik Sinner- Alcaraz dominance at the top. Last but not the least the group takes stock of players who either had a breakthrough year or a missed opportunity at the highest level - Fritz, Zverev and Daniil Medvedev figure in this discussion.