October 16, 2025 • 60 mins
Something a bit different for you this week! In lieu of our regular program, we’ve put together some highlights from our sister podcast The Sit-Down for your listening pleasure. Enjoy the best moments from interviews with Martina Hingis, Pat Rafter, Kim Clijsters, Maya Joint, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Garbine Muguruza, Tim Henman and Casper & Christian Ruud all from Season 2 of The Sit-Down — subscribe for more great interviews every week!
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Hey, it's Zavy.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
The tennis is taking a quick break this week, but
we've still got something special for you. Highlights reel from
our sister podcast. To sit down, We'll pulled together some
of the best interviews from season two, kicking off with
Matt and Viv chat with the legendary Martina Hingis.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
The end of the season in ninety six, I felt like,
you know, I finally kind of got into the groove.
I won my first tournaments and at the end of
the season and I had beaten some top ten players
and I felt like, Okay, you.
Speaker 4 (00:34):
Know, maybe it's my time to shine.
Speaker 3 (00:38):
But everybody was also a little bit suspicious, is she,
you know, ready enough?
Speaker 4 (00:43):
Is she grown up enough to actually win a major?
And in my way, in my little you know, back
of my head, I was like, I'm going to show you.
You know, yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
It was just still amazing when you look back at
it at such a young age to be able to
win a Slam.
Speaker 4 (01:02):
Yes, of course, we were a different generation looking at it.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
We had Monica Sellis and Jennifer Capriati who would win
one big tournaments bigot wins at being teenagers. So at
that time it was a little bit normal and I
always tried to like beat Jennifer Capriati's records even as
a junior, so that was something that But of course,
you know, it was also a big relief to be
(01:27):
able to win my first major as being you know,
high seat and one of the favorites to win the tournament.
Speaker 5 (01:34):
You still hold the record of as the youngest woman
to win a Grand Slam singles title. These days we
say not as many teenagers at the top of the game.
Why do you think that is the case.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
I think one of it is maybe because the game
has evolved. It is has gotten probably more physical, also
because of the records and the strings. Is a natural
evolution of the sport, that is. But even after me,
you had a Maria Sharapova who almost you know, got
(02:09):
close with winning her.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
Title at Wimbledon or Coco Golf.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
You know, you still get the kind of players that
have that special something to be able to win as teenager,
or Emma ra Dukano when she came from qualifying winning
the US Open title. So I do still believe that
it is possible to win Grand Slams at a young age.
(02:36):
But definitely what has changed is like you have to
be a discipline, you have to be fully focused, and
it's maybe what the generation has changed.
Speaker 4 (02:49):
To win a Grand Slam, you need to win seven
matches within two weeks. So sometimes players have a highlight,
you know, they they win a great match or two
couple of round and then all of a sudden, they're
already happy.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
That's what I sometimes miss about the game today that
I think, Okay, you know.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
They're satisfied too quickly with their successes.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
And even if they win a title, they're not able
to continue at that high level because everybody puts them already,
like you know, on a big as favorites. But yeah,
on the other hand, like I really that's why I
like to watch someone like Cocoa goth and If because
she's completely determined and professional about her sports and what
(03:38):
she wants to achieve.
Speaker 6 (03:39):
It's really cool hearing you talk about the current generation
because what they're doing on court now is your name
is coming up in association with a lot of what
they're doing. Two years ago, when igersh Fiontek won thirty
seven matches in a row, everyone kind of dug into
the record books to see, oh, who did that last time?
And it was you, but it was twenty five years ago.
And then this year we were looking at Sablenka and
(04:01):
she's trying to go for three Australian Open titles in
a row and we did the same thing. Who was
the last person that did that?
Speaker 4 (04:05):
And it was you?
Speaker 6 (04:06):
And so what is it like to hear the current
world number one and two kind of bringing up your
milestones again? What's that like to hear?
Speaker 4 (04:14):
Yeah, and I do follow tennis.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
I'm not totally aware of that, so I'm also doing
some commentary obviously, and it.
Speaker 4 (04:25):
Makes me proud. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
I mean at that time, you're thinking, okay, you know,
it's almost normal that you were winning those titles.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Because everybody expects you to do well.
Speaker 3 (04:34):
And as later on when I became number one, so
every tournament you go to, everybody expects you to always succeed.
Speaker 4 (04:41):
And win, and so it was the same.
Speaker 3 (04:46):
I was looking obviously, you have that kind of pressure
when you have such a winning streak. Then all of
a sudden, it's like you also get as a player.
I almost thought, like you get tight. You know, when
is that next time that you're going to lose? Eventually
it's gonna happen but yeah, and also yeah, you talk
about sap Alenka, I mean she's you know, she definitely
(05:09):
deserves to be number one now with her past or
this year, the way she she played with winning Grand Slams.
But also I enjoy watching like Mira Andreva. You know,
she was one of those that she made like quarter
final semifinals, excuse me, at various events like at the
French or she did well in Australia and all of
(05:30):
a sudden my name came up. And it was also
funny because she this year, she asked me if I
would want to coach her, and I'm a big fan
of hers, the way she plays, and unfortunately I couldn't
take that job because of my daughter going to kindergarten
and I'm not able to travel as much. But yeah,
Concida Martinez is doing a great job of helping her
(05:53):
on the way and defining her game and making her
a better play.
Speaker 4 (06:00):
So we'll see how far she's gonna take it.
Speaker 5 (06:02):
Were there any players that you particularly loved to compeigne against.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
I think that generation we all were really educated players.
I would say like we all had really good foundation,
whether it was the Williams sisters, Lindsay Devin Poor, Monica Sellis.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
Jennifer Capriati.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
Obviously the couple finals I played against her and later
it was Kim Clysies and Justine Hannen.
Speaker 4 (06:33):
So I think we had really good foundations and basics
and how to play the game.
Speaker 3 (06:39):
Sometimes again, today what I miss is not having a
plan B or C.
Speaker 4 (06:45):
Like most of the players. If they do plan A
and it doesn't.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
Work out, they have a hard time or they struggle
a little bit to find a solution a way to win.
Speaker 4 (06:57):
And that's what champions do.
Speaker 3 (06:59):
Sometimes you just need to win the match and it
doesn't matter how you can be just ballooning all of
a sudden and not just hitting winners from the baseline.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
And yeah, that's I think.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
We all had this capability to find a way to
win in that generation.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
That was tring to sit down with my Tina Hinkers.
Scroll back up to episode one for the full interview.
Next up, Matt sat down with two time US Open
champ Pat Rafter when he was in Melbourne Head of
AO twenty twenty five.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Paddle is a fun game, it's new, it's exciting. I'm learning,
you know tennis, I don't. I'm not learning anymore. I'm
sort of done with the learning part.
Speaker 6 (07:37):
Of that's fair. So you said earlier that tennis was
your job. Do you play it much these days now
that you're atire.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
I don't. I never looked to play tennis. So I
have a tennis caught at home. The only time I
get on the court is if i'm my daughter and
my son are in town and well, my wife really
wants to hit, so that's the only time I play it.
Speaker 6 (07:54):
So do your kids have a bit of an interesting
tennis Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
I made them play when they were young. They needed
to play the game, They need to have some understanding,
and they really enjoy It's a life sport for them.
Then you know, there's obviously all different levels of tennis,
and then they're they're at their own level, but they
love it. And so for me, it is a lifetime
sport that I wanted to teach. Like swimming, you know,
you have to learn to swim. Tennis is another game
(08:18):
for me that was very passionate for me to for
them to get involved with. If I sit in that
same moment of the new ninety seven US Open, when
it's it's just not I still don't enjoy it. It's
it's sort of interesting when I talk about it and
get brought up in conversation questions. I will reflect on
it and then I can answer the questions based on
my memories of that experience. But I don't sit around.
(08:39):
I don't want to go into it. Okay, should we
s get.
Speaker 7 (08:45):
It?
Speaker 1 (08:45):
It's it's a part that it's a past and I'm
done with it, and I don't.
Speaker 6 (08:50):
Yeah, it's but like when you reflect on it is
if it obviously it doesn't come imagine you said it's
the past, But when you reflect on it is the
emotional like I'm really satisfied with what I did, or
you're like, oh, I don't connect with it anymore.
Speaker 1 (09:01):
Different. I think I'm talking about more of the emotional
feeling because you can actually take yourself back into all
the feelings of it, you know, if you go deep
into it. Yeah, that bit I don't go into.
Speaker 8 (09:11):
I go.
Speaker 1 (09:14):
We're with the to look back and reflect on, you know,
just the achievements. So so proud of what I was
able to achieve with my career, with my ability. I'm
as staked, you know. But I don't sit there. But
if you want me to reflect on the moments and
the situations and the feelings and take myself back into
Wimbledon and those times. Yeah, those things I don't go into.
Speaker 6 (09:38):
No, that's fair, and I wasn't going to ask me
about that. I was actually going to talk about those
things because researching for this interview, I know your career
very well. I watched you when I was growing up,
but there were some things that came up that I
was like, I didn't know, Pat did that like you?
Speaker 4 (09:51):
Apparently.
Speaker 6 (09:51):
I'm not sure if you know this, but you are
one of only three men in open air history. The
others are labor in Edinburgh to make the semis of
all the slams in singles and doubles, and you're the
most recent person that's ever done that.
Speaker 1 (10:05):
Did you know that? I knew there's a few of us.
I thought they might have been more than that.
Speaker 4 (10:09):
Apparently not.
Speaker 6 (10:10):
So you're in a very select little group of this
kind of nice complete singles, doubles, all the surfaces, all
the majors, and yeah, you're apparently the last one that
did that. Whenever you achieved that, it might have been
late nineties, early two thousands, I'm not sure it would be.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
Yeah, doubles, singles. Well, I guess by I don't know.
Speaker 6 (10:29):
But I guess when you look at your career, you
won majors, you were world number one, you represented your country,
you won master's titles. You kind of did all of
the things that the tennact.
Speaker 1 (10:39):
I just didn't do a lot of it, you know
what I mean. I didn't win seven of them. I
didn't win people do I know? I know, but I
think as you know, you know, you put yourself in
the number one category of players. You know, I'd be
the worst performing number one category player in many.
Speaker 6 (10:56):
Ways, the worst number one.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
It's still a title to hold you one, I know,
but you put yourself in that category a bit. It's
probably the worst, I take it.
Speaker 6 (11:06):
When do you think you were at your career peak?
What year or what time? Ninety eight? That's something else.
You're the first person to do the America the Summer
Slam since Canada, Canada, since the US to do.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Did Andy Rotick do it after meon yep? And then
a couple other place things have done. Rafa has it's you?
That's it?
Speaker 6 (11:24):
That's it? See very select group. So ninety eight was
your peak? Do you have what's your favorite or finest win.
And I mean it could be a match, or it
could be a tournament.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
I think the whole thing is a combination. But the
ninety seven US Open win, my first Grand Slam win,
is the most memorable because that was to me winning
a Grand Slam. That's what it's all about. It might
not have been the prettiest match, but in terms of
career changing, it was definitely winning the US Open final.
And there's obviously great matches I played. I played a
(11:59):
lot of great matches with Andre Agason, a couple of
Wemble and few at Wembland, so yeah, awesome. And I
got to play in center court at Wimbledon in ninety three.
I qualified, got to the third round, played.
Speaker 6 (12:09):
Andrea ninety three cent co Wilden.
Speaker 9 (12:12):
I didn't know that I.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
Kicked my ass, but it was so much fun.
Speaker 4 (12:15):
That's awesome.
Speaker 6 (12:15):
Well you got him back later at Wimbledon.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Yeah, he got me again in ninety nine. Then I've
been in two thousand and two thousand and one, so too.
All let's go three semis in a row.
Speaker 3 (12:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (12:26):
We actually had Donna Kelso, the WTA supervisor on now
podcast a couple of weeks ago, and we asked her,
you know, you've been in tennis for thirty years, what
are some of your memories. You're always working, but if
you were ever watching, what do you remember? And she said,
you're ninety seven US Open wings. She remembers that as
an Australian And I remember I was allowed to go
to school late that day because it was like eight
thirty in the morning in Australia and we were just
watching waiting. We match went and then we could get
(12:47):
in the car to go to school.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
Cool.
Speaker 6 (12:50):
I was going to ask you one other thing. Yes,
when people talk to you about your tennis career, whether
it's in an interview, if it's just like people on
the street, I'm not sure. What's the one match they
bring up.
Speaker 1 (13:01):
Oh, probably the two thousand and one Goran match, the
final final, because it's a funny one because I played
Sampus the year before in the final. They don't bring
that up very much. But the Go Run match they
bring up a lot. I think there's just so many
emotions going on between both of us. Where Peter one
fifteen Wimblin's, I don't know, he won a lot of them.
(13:23):
Tennis is healthy. The Aussie Open has become. It's bigger
than any player right now. It's an event like Wimbledon.
It doesn't matter if you had two hundred the top
two hundred players in the world rock up over one
hundred and two hundred. People will come and watch it.
Speaker 7 (13:40):
You know.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
It's just healthy because of the event is so amazing
and top players will always come along. And we're seeing
again strength with Sinner and Alkhasm.
Speaker 3 (13:53):
My god.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
I mean you look at them play and go, wow,
they're awesome. So they keep coming. It keeps happy and
they will continue to keep happen in the men's and
the women's game. Thanks Pat.
Speaker 2 (14:06):
That was from episode two if you want to hear
the full interview. Now he's Matt again, this time catching
up with twenty eleven AO champion Kim Clousters about in
Indian wells.
Speaker 8 (14:16):
The best part about doing this with Andy is I
don't feel like I'm on a podcast, which is great
because we used to reach out through text messages when
we were watching tennis games and we would go back
and forth about like what do you think about this? Well,
I think so and so and yeah, and like we
just have that conversation. Even now, like when we're talking
(14:36):
about like a different topic or a match that we're
both watching at the same time. He's like, stop, we
got to stop talking about this, Like let's just keep
this for the podcast. Like we don't prepare anything. Everything
is really very kind of like yeah, our opinions and
how we feel. And I love his tennis brain. I
love learning from him.
Speaker 6 (14:55):
I love the thought of you too, though, sitting at
home watching tennis and texting each other, Like that's real
tennis fandom. I have that with you know, friends of
mine who are not players, like we do that, And
that has come across I think thinking about your career,
particularly since you stopped playing. I mean, you're involved with
the Hall of Fame, You've done a bit of media.
You've also coached, you have an academy, you've played Legends
(15:16):
events as well. It sounds like you were real It
comes across that you're a real fan of the game.
Speaker 9 (15:20):
Is that fair?
Speaker 8 (15:21):
I love the sport like I fell in love with
it when I was almost five years old, and I
still love playing. Like people ask me here like do
you miss playing here? And I'm like, no, I don't,
Like I don't miss playing here. I still love playing
tennis and it can be in a local, small little
tennis court and you know in New Jersey or any
public court, Like I love the sport and yeah, it's
(15:42):
it's it's a true passion. And I know it's very rare,
like you know, I see it with my kids too,
Like it's I know, it was really rare to have
found something very naturally that wasn't kind of pushed on
me from my parents or anything like, to find something
that you've loved from such a young age agent to
you know grow into yeah, have it grow into you know,
(16:04):
me still being connected into the sport, right. And I
never thought when I was a professional player that I
would still be you know, connected and have this whole
tennis family at the at the Hall of Fame and
now being able to you know, do the be legendary
program and talk to you know, young kids around the world,
Like I never thought of those things. And it's amazing
how tennis kind of brings people together. And that's the
(16:28):
beauty of the sport is that we get you know,
the sport is yeah, so well known around the world,
and we have to thank a lot of the you know,
the women that that kind of paved the way for us. Yea,
you know, early on, right, the Billy Jean Kings and
I mean from there on, you know, never had to
lover Chrissy Everett. I mean, I you know, there's so
(16:49):
many to name, but it's I'll never forget that I
was eighteen years old when I played. No, I was younger,
but I played the juniors at the US Open and
listen to Billy Jean King speak and you know, she
was very you know, she has a very powerful personality
and her passion is so strong, and just listening to
(17:10):
her at a young age, I think I was fourteen
and listening to her talk about the impact and the
you know what it took for them to get to
the level where tennis was back then and now I'm
talking maybe nineteen ninety eight or so. It was amazing.
Like it just stuck with me to be, you know,
(17:31):
always be ready to you know, sign your autographs, take
the pictures, be available accessible to you know, the media,
the fans, I mean, And that's what it is.
Speaker 4 (17:41):
It's it's you.
Speaker 8 (17:42):
I see it with my daughter now, she loves basketball.
You know, being able to connect with the players that
you like or that you watch on TV makes makes
the world a difference and makes the kids believe that
this is a world that is actually accessible and not
just something that I watch on TV.
Speaker 6 (17:58):
The Istralian Open Wing that you had with your fis
Grand Slam title as a mother, and your name comes
up a lot, particularly now, because there are so many
big names that have made recent comebacks to the tour
as moms, but you're the only one that's ever managed
to win a Grand Slam. I mean, obviously Evon, Gula Gong,
Macra Coort did it, but I think you're the most
recent player to win a Grand Slam as a mum.
(18:20):
And we've seen a lot of players do well and
come close, but they've never done what you did, And
I just wonder, Well, it's a hard question, I guess,
but why do you think that is?
Speaker 4 (18:31):
I don't know.
Speaker 8 (18:32):
I feel like Serena definitely was the one that has
come the closest right to winning. I think I don't
know how many finals she made, I think maybe three
or something as a mom when she came back.
Speaker 4 (18:47):
Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 8 (18:48):
I feel I'm so ready for a new mom to
do hold a Grand Slam trophy because I'm proud seeing
you know, so many women in the draw and see
the kids walk around here and seeing in their family
members in the in the player's restaurant, and that's what
it's all about.
Speaker 4 (19:06):
I mean, I remember the first year.
Speaker 8 (19:07):
So when I came back in two thousand and nine,
I came back in Cincinnati and I was playing a
tournament there and there was a player that came up
to me and said, oh, man, I wish I did
with you then, and that I had, you know, the
guts to do it because now mid thirties and I, yeah,
don't have a partner, I've you know, kind of yeah,
been playing a career and so it really kind of resent,
(19:31):
like it really made things like sink in for me
and realize like, oh wow, like people, this is an
issue for a lot of women, right, Like I don't know,
like there's so many women where your clock start sticking
and you feel like you want to start a family,
But at the same time you also feel like, oh,
I've been working. I've been playing tennis for twenty years
or even longer, working to be at this level and
(19:54):
to play the Grand Slams and having sponsors or not,
but like focused on your ranking, and so it's it's
a tough situation to leave.
Speaker 4 (20:05):
To start a family.
Speaker 8 (20:06):
And you know, I was very fortunate that I had
done well prior that I you know, whatever, I was
away for two years or so or a little bit under,
but that I had the luxury to do that, and
that I had the results to still get access to
wildcards if I had to, and and which they did.
And but that's not for everybody. And and so I
(20:27):
feel like now with the new the new pif WTA
Maternity Fund program that's come out, like I really feel
like it's going to make I mean, it's it's this
has taken our sport, I feel like, to another level
for independent women's athletes, because that's what we are, right,
We're all independents, and we don't get the opportunity like
(20:49):
you lose your sponsors. You you know, if you don't
play tournaments, you don't get paid. And there's a lot
of players who don't make enough money or haven't saved
enough money to say, oh, I would like to start
a family because this is what my body, in my
mind wants to do and then come back. So now
with this program, I really feel very excited to see
(21:11):
kind of the new you know, a new player that
will use this program, and there's so many great, great
things about it is from supporting like financing egg freezing
IVF treatment. I mean, it takes it to a completely
different level. And Victoria Azarenka has actually been a big,
big force on the Player's Task Force on the WTA
(21:32):
side of it all to push for this and and
then with the funds from the PIF, it's yeah, it's
been able to They've been able to make it possible.
Speaker 4 (21:42):
So very excited about it.
Speaker 2 (21:45):
That was from episode twelve with King Klausters. Next, We've
got Oussie rising star Maya joint. Matt spoke with her
and Brisbane during her Billy Jane King Cup debut.
Speaker 6 (21:54):
So at the end of twenty twenty four, when you
saw what you did, sixty one match wins, a ranking
that had improved so much, did you sell braided in
any way when you stopped and go, wow, what a
what a season?
Speaker 10 (22:06):
We didn't do anything. We I think when I got
into the top hundred in Merida, we went and got
ice cream. But we do that anyway, so it wasn't
but I mean we were aware of it, but I
(22:27):
don't know, we didn't We didn't really do anything Okay.
I think we were in tournaments at the time, so
there wasn't really anything to do.
Speaker 6 (22:33):
Do you think that helps actually not focusing on it
so much and just like oh, okay.
Speaker 4 (22:38):
Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 10 (22:39):
I just maybe I didn't quite believe it at the time,
but it was just it's weird to celebrate something that
you know you're not done yet.
Speaker 6 (22:48):
So what is what is done?
Speaker 10 (22:51):
I mean, I guess when you're finished with tennis, when
you get to number one, I guess then you've kind
of you've done it and you can celebrate. But I mean, no,
I mean anything any milestone, and the top hundred is
really special. A top fifty, top forty, top thirty, anything
is just a crazy achievement. So I think it's important
(23:15):
to celebrate when you do it, but not let it
take focus away from like you're not you're not rich
the goal yet.
Speaker 6 (23:24):
Well, you've cracked top eighty already, so more than ice cream,
that's what I think we need to think of something.
Top hundred ice cream is pretty nice. Top eighty, you've
made another milestone. What that has done for you is
just completely changed the way that your schedule and your
season is looking so like at the beginning of this year.
What has been the experience like suddenly walking onto pat
(23:45):
Raft Arena under lights in front of five thousand people
to play as a Reenka, or playing Pagoula on John
Cane Arena at a Grand Slam like twelve months ago,
you would know we need that. So how has that been?
Do you realize it in those moments like oh wow,
like this is cool or I can't believe I'm doing this,
or like, what's that experience been, Like.
Speaker 10 (24:05):
Yeah, it's definitely a this is ridiculous kind of moment
where I didn't really feel like I was supposed to
be there kind of okay, like it just felt really
weird me being there, or playing against Pegoula and John
Kayne that was very walking out into that court, I felt,
oh boy, this is I was like, I'm not.
Speaker 6 (24:27):
Winning this match, That's what I was saying, Okay.
Speaker 10 (24:29):
And I've had to work a lot with my mental
coach about just kind of playing those matches because more
of those matches have happened where I'm playing like a name, yeah,
and I just need to play the ball that's coming
at me. I'm not the person pretty much, but it's
a very different experience to what what a couple months ago,
(24:51):
I guess a year ago. So it's just been a
very crazy transition, but super exciting and just it's been
so cool being able to walk out into the stage
with all those people and play against those people, just
people that I've watched on television, and then realizing, oh,
someone might be watching me on television. This is really weird.
Speaker 6 (25:11):
Well, that's actually when I saw you play properly for
the first time, the match against Azarenka. I was based
in Melbourne. I didn't travel for any of the tournaments,
and I watched you your night match against Astarnkan. You
nearly beat her, it was, and I was like, oh, wow,
I can see I get the ranking rise. Like I'd
seen Maya Joint going up in then, I'd seen highlights
of you at the US Open, but that was the
(25:31):
first time I think I'd watched a full match every point.
So yeah, and you've made that point. You're now playing
bigger names more regularly. So there's a really cool stat.
Last year, you played five top one hundred players for
the whole year. In the first two months of this year,
you've played six top fifty players, So like it's just
You're competing as a completely different caliber of player now
(25:53):
and you're beating quite a few of them. What has
that experience been like playing the ball, playing the opponent
like you from the outside to have adjusted it out
quite well, But how has that been for you?
Speaker 10 (26:04):
Yeah, I feel like whenever I play like a name,
I just I play with no pressure. So it's just
it's a really fun experience to be out on the
court and just see what I can do. Pretty much. Yeah,
I mean, I've it's always exciting to go to a
new place because I had never been to any of
(26:24):
those tournaments before, never played those level of tournaments before,
So it's just super exciting to to realize that I
am there and that I am playing them, And yeah,
it's just so fun to be able to play against
those kinds of people and have those high level matches.
Speaker 7 (26:42):
That was from episode seventeen with my joint.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Now he's Matt and Vig with the Nazi Kokanagas.
Speaker 5 (26:48):
What's been the best feeling You've had on a court?
Speaker 11 (26:50):
Best feeling I've had on a court, I have to
be winning Adelaide. I'd say that that was the best
I've ever felt. Just I think It's the first time
I've actually kind of after a win, just having my
friends and family. The year before being COVID and me
kind of playing in these smaller cities, just challenger events
and honestly losing money every week. To sort of come
(27:11):
back and go eight and one in January and make
Semis and then win a home tournament that I'd been
growing up playing on those courts when I was sort
of seven, eight, nine, ten years old. Yeah, just doing
it in front of people that don't get to see
me play that much was special. So for me, that
was for sure the best memory.
Speaker 9 (27:29):
I've ever had.
Speaker 5 (27:29):
Tanasi, I'm going to cast your mind back a little
bit now. I first interviewed you in twenty twelve, twenty
twelve as a member of the Junior Davis Cup team.
Speaker 9 (27:39):
I actually saw this video the other day. It cracks
me up every time.
Speaker 6 (27:42):
How did that come across the right now?
Speaker 8 (27:44):
I don't know.
Speaker 11 (27:44):
Probably you've searched my name on YouTube or something and
these these come up. I remember this, Bendigo. We just
won the World Junior Teams qualifying.
Speaker 4 (27:52):
That's it. You just bet in Japan.
Speaker 5 (27:54):
Yeah, so you remember it very clearly.
Speaker 9 (27:55):
I remember it real clearly Mark Woodford was our coach,
Lee and big Gooch.
Speaker 5 (28:00):
Uh from the win itself, what did you get out
of being many others?
Speaker 7 (28:05):
Uh, it's a good team environment. All the boys played well.
Speaker 11 (28:09):
I know Lee felt a bit bad a few of
the losses, but he came up against players who were
playing from under the bus.
Speaker 9 (28:16):
I'm lucky, but he didn't keep his head up.
Speaker 7 (28:20):
There's been a good, good tournament everyone.
Speaker 11 (28:22):
Everyone played pretty well.
Speaker 6 (28:23):
And dudes just stepped up for the doubles and we
neither And how we celebrate.
Speaker 1 (28:29):
Coltext probably go to cow Text.
Speaker 9 (28:31):
Remember did you get a few skittles?
Speaker 7 (28:33):
And laughs with the voice.
Speaker 11 (28:37):
Righteous we were We were trying so hard not to
laugh that whole interview, as you can tell. And after
every win would literally go down to the local cowtexs
and just get this massive packt the skittles.
Speaker 9 (28:47):
And that's what we were doing every day.
Speaker 11 (28:49):
But yeah, you that's the stuff you miss when you
when you kind of grow up, those sort of tournaments
and and Davis Carps and welding your teams representing Australia
with your mates. Yeah, you always remember those those memories
with the coaches that take you out on those tours.
It's stuff that when everyone's career is done, will hang
out and talk about, and they're the things you really remember.
Speaker 5 (29:10):
Yeah, for sure, if my maths is correct, you would
have been sixteen at that time. Sort Of when you
look back, what do you remember of being sixteen and
what advice I guess would you give yourself now?
Speaker 11 (29:23):
Well, I remember, I remember I did a lot of hours,
a lot of training, more than probably a lot of
people could comprehend. I think that's why I did so
well when I was younger, but also potentially maybe that's
why I got injured. But I would just tell myself
try and enjoy the journey. It's a long one and
it's hard. A lot of people's parents kind of come
to me and they're like, oh, my kid's going to
(29:45):
do this, this, this, and I'm like, just relax, Like
you guys don't know how many steps there are and
how big of a journey it is. It's a really
long one, and one you've got to stay mentally tough
because it's going to test you in an individual sport.
Speaker 9 (29:59):
It's going to be a lot of ups and downs.
Speaker 11 (30:00):
Things aren't going to go well, but you've got to
kind of remember why you do it, and keep enjoying
it and remember the bigger picture. So yeah, it's hard
because you don't know what you don't know from that age.
But for me, yeah, it was just to kind of
enjoy the journey and lap up every experience because it
goes really quick, and I can't believe that's what thirteen
years ago.
Speaker 9 (30:19):
Yeah, I can't believe how quick it's gone.
Speaker 4 (30:21):
What was the joke? What were you trying not to
laugh about?
Speaker 9 (30:24):
I don't know.
Speaker 11 (30:24):
We're just three, We're just we're just three clowns. I
guess at that age, I don't actually know what we
were laughing at. I think we were just happy and
giggly and immature.
Speaker 9 (30:36):
So I still am.
Speaker 5 (30:38):
So do you ever sort of stop and think about
how tennis has changed our life?
Speaker 9 (30:42):
Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 11 (30:43):
I think I've got a few regrets as far as
sort of I wish I did things a little bit differently,
or I took a little bit different steps towards anything.
But you know, I've got a lot better than a
lot of people, So I try and remind that to myself.
I'm happy with how everything's gone. Obviously could have been better, yes,
could have been worse. Yes, but I've still got time
(31:03):
in the sport, and yeah, you learn a lot and
I'm still evolving, so yeah, it's a constant, constant journey.
Speaker 6 (31:10):
Do times like this where you're off make you consider,
like what's beyond tennis or life after tennis?
Speaker 11 (31:15):
Yeah, definitely, And I've thought about that earlier in my
career when I thought that it was the end for me.
But now I'm kind of exploring some different avenues. I'm
doing a little bit more of this sort of stuff,
some podcasts, I'm doing some TV stuff. I'm trying to
do some commentary coming up for the French Open, so
that'll be fun, and who knows, some TV shows, some
media stuff in the future.
Speaker 9 (31:34):
I think I've always enjoyed that.
Speaker 11 (31:35):
I feel pretty comfortable in front of the camera and microphone,
so yeah, I try not to look too far ahead,
but kind of have one foot through that door to just, yeah,
think about it, because a lot of people kind of
they play tennis and then they're like, what's now, What's next?
So for me, I kind of want to have it
a little bit of an idea. But yeah, tennis is
first and foremost, and I'll ride that out as long
as I can with that.
Speaker 6 (31:57):
You said that even at the start of the interview,
you kind of like doing this media side of this sport.
You would have done so many interviews, You've been into
so many press conferences. Tennis plays off and say, we're
always asked the same kind of questions and it can
get repetitive, So like, what is something that you would
love to talk about or you'd love journals to ask
you more about You're like, this isn't like no one
knows as part of my story or that you know,
(32:18):
no one ever asked me about this, and we can
only ask what we know. But I mean, yeah, what
is something that you'd like more people to know about
your story that we.
Speaker 11 (32:25):
Don't Well, that's a good question. I don't know if
I can answer that. I feel like for tennis, you're
very sort of clean cut. You can't really say too much.
I'd kind of be curious to see what everyone's life
is like away from the tennis, whether everyone is kind
of based on tennis everything they do is for their tennis,
(32:46):
or they're trying to enjoy their life and balance it
out a little bit, and what they do in their
spare time I think is an interesting one. Rather than
the generic answers. I get to sleep and mat well
and get ready for training the next day. So I
wouldn't mind if players opened up a little bit more.
I don't think it's really up to the journals. I
think it's more sort of what the players are willing
to give them and spill out, because a lot of
them are kind of scared about potentially the repercussions.
Speaker 9 (33:07):
And then they have if they are open and honest.
Speaker 2 (33:10):
I think no Arja the Nazi Matt and Vin caught
up with former French Open and Wimbledon champ being Magaruta
from her at home in Switzerland.
Speaker 6 (33:17):
No less, going back to that Wimbledon, you beat Venus
Williams in the final, and so that gave you this
really cool milestone that you're the only player to beat
Serena Williams and Venus Williams in major finals.
Speaker 7 (33:30):
Like both of them.
Speaker 6 (33:31):
So, and I know, I think they were pretty They
were idols of yours, weren't they. There were players you
looked up to when you were growing up. So how
do you think about that when you were like, Wow,
I beat both Williams sisters in my Grand Slam finals.
Speaker 12 (33:42):
I am happy about it.
Speaker 13 (33:44):
Some people say, like, what a bud luck that you
always had those finals, But in a way, like you
say the word like my hero, so I wanted to
play them. For me, it has an extra value with
no disrespecting other players. But for me, beating Serena or
Venus in a in a Grand Slam final had a
double value to that Grand Slam.
Speaker 3 (34:03):
You know.
Speaker 12 (34:03):
I felt like, wow, like she's.
Speaker 13 (34:05):
Best in history and I'm beating the best in history
in the final. For me, that was unique and special
and it felt great.
Speaker 12 (34:13):
It felt great.
Speaker 13 (34:14):
I don't think they know that they were my idols,
though I kept it very secret. I had a very
big poker face. But I wish I could tell them,
you know. I wish I could sit.
Speaker 12 (34:25):
Down in I don't know one day and just say
how much that meant to.
Speaker 13 (34:29):
Me, and really like just telling them, like I how
much I loved them when I was a kid starting
tennis in Venezuela with zero chances of making it and
watching them and thinking like I want to be like Serena,
you know, so it was amazing for me. Becoming number
one for me was like I dream come true. Some
people say that it's better to win Grand Slams. Some
people say it's better to be number one. I do
(34:51):
admit that it's better to win Grand Slams because that
feeling off, having the trophy in your hands, feeling the moment,
the victory.
Speaker 12 (35:00):
The best that's unique.
Speaker 13 (35:02):
Obviously being world number one, it's amazing, but it's you
cannot feel it, you can't touch it. It's it's a
number that in one week, if you don't play well,
you might lose it. So it's it's tricky.
Speaker 12 (35:14):
But to me, when I was little, little kid, I
always dreamed I want to be world number one. One
day I got to be word number.
Speaker 7 (35:22):
One, you know.
Speaker 12 (35:22):
I was like always like repeating this inside of my head.
And the day I saw myself at the top of
the ranking, I was like, wow, like it's happening. Really,
it's happening. Not only I want Grandstoms, but I actually
made it to world number one. And this is so difficult.
You really need to be consistent, and you really need
to be on top of the game and be the
best player. It's just I was like, I couldn't believe it,
(35:45):
you know, I couldn't believe it.
Speaker 4 (35:46):
And I'm so proud of that moment.
Speaker 6 (35:48):
Did you screenshot it on the ranking or something I did.
Speaker 12 (35:52):
I did, I screen chatted.
Speaker 13 (35:53):
It's somewhere on like seventeen pounds like whatever, But yes
I screenshotted, and yeah, it was a moment for my family,
for all together as well.
Speaker 12 (36:03):
The journey, Oh, such a crazy long journey too until.
Speaker 13 (36:07):
That day, and I think we all share a tear,
and you know, we felt like it was all worth
it in a way, and all the all the sacrifices
were worth it.
Speaker 5 (36:17):
Well, we got a first hand view of your you know,
your Grand Slam successes when Australian Open twenty twenty you
were it was a resurgence tournament for you, really unstated,
but you beat three top ten players to reach another
Slam final. How satisfying was that tournament?
Speaker 7 (36:36):
Oh?
Speaker 13 (36:37):
I every time I remind myself that final, it's the
most painful match I've ever played. Really, like, the most
painful loss I've ever had is the Australian Open final. Yes,
it was an amazing tournament. I came from a couple
tough years and it wasn't an easy tournament. I was
very sick at the beginning, but I made it through
(36:59):
when every match gave me that extra confidence to keep going,
keep going.
Speaker 12 (37:03):
I remember that, you know.
Speaker 13 (37:05):
I played a semi finals match with Simona Halep, and
I remember physically it was it was so tough that
I felt like, oh wow, I almost gave it all
what I had, so I don't know what do I
have left for the final? You know, Physically I was
so tired. It was such a hot day as well.
(37:26):
But that final I was with such a confidence and
it just didn't click at the end, you know. And
I was very proud of coming back and making it
that far in another Grand Slam.
Speaker 4 (37:39):
But that loss.
Speaker 13 (37:41):
I keep thinking about it, like when people asked me
that what was your most painful loss? So what's one
thing that you remember that you wish it would have
gone my way? Definitely, definitely that final. I mean in
twenty fifteen, when I played the Wimbledon final, it was
my first final. I was playing suren It was too much,
It was too much to handle. So of course I
would have liked to want.
Speaker 12 (38:03):
I admit that she was way better, she was prepared,
and I mean.
Speaker 13 (38:06):
I was such a rookie, but that twenty twenty final,
I ah, I wish I could go back, but it
is what it is. Congrats to Sophia. She did play amazing,
but yeah, that was a painful one. No one wants
to lose in the final of a Grands Camp.
Speaker 10 (38:20):
Come on, no one.
Speaker 12 (38:21):
Remembers the final is. All they care is about the winner.
So I want to be the winner, but you know,
it is what it is.
Speaker 5 (38:27):
Several years later with Sensa, you are still following tennis
very closely. What do you make of the tour today
and what are some of your favorite storylines?
Speaker 12 (38:37):
Hmm, the tour is great.
Speaker 13 (38:40):
There's a lot of new faces, a lot of faces
from my time as well, but I follow it very closely,
like things things.
Speaker 12 (38:47):
That I love is, for example, the con I follow
all the time. I have all these alert in my
phone when they jump on court and who are they playing?
And I chat with Corny a lot.
Speaker 13 (38:57):
I actually saw them a couple of times and matches
as well live, which is fun.
Speaker 12 (39:02):
Always.
Speaker 13 (39:03):
I love how Savalnka is dominating. I watch her quite often.
She's just a perfect personality for world number one. She's fun,
she's she's not shy, she has a lot of fans,
she gives her social media active, she has amazing strength
and talent.
Speaker 12 (39:21):
So I really like her as number one. Yeah, just
following the American tennis.
Speaker 13 (39:26):
It's crazy Navarro Coco go pegula by some keys.
Speaker 12 (39:30):
What's happening is it's too many players in the top ten.
What a success they're having. So I'm following that a lot.
Speaker 13 (39:37):
Yeah, and seeing IgA a little bit how she's gonna,
how she's going to play this French Open, following her
as well.
Speaker 4 (39:45):
Yeah, I'm really like on top of the tour.
Speaker 12 (39:47):
I've never been so like watching matchive and following the news.
I thought I was going to be a little bit
more passive, but I am super honent. I'm super honored.
Speaker 6 (39:55):
Yeah, never suddenly just a bit different.
Speaker 2 (39:57):
Guest chars Jackson Mansel jumped in for a chat Tim
Hemmant just before Wimbledon twenty twenty five.
Speaker 14 (40:03):
Look, the first time I went to Wimbledon was when
I was six and my mum took me in first
Monday in nineteen eighty one and I saw beyond board
play and he was defending champion.
Speaker 7 (40:15):
And.
Speaker 14 (40:16):
You know, I can remember where we were sitting. I've
still got the ticket today. And certainly when and you know,
Ball came out of the doors underneath the raw box
and walked around onto center court. That was very much
when I made my one and only career disctition that
you know, that's what I wanted to do. I wanted
to be a professional Terenminis player, and I wanted to
play at Wimbledon, and I wanted to play on center court.
(40:38):
So yeah, that's the earliest recollection and been every year since.
And yeah, I think then to get the opportunity fifteen
years later to play on center court, I was a
top hundred player by that time draw came out and
I was playing fgen. He confound a CoV who was
French Open champion. Heid just won singles and doubles at Garrels,
(41:01):
So you know, I knew that was going to be
a center court match. And you know, to then be
out there and win seven, five and the fifth and
say two match points, I think that was a pretty
special way to start my center court career.
Speaker 15 (41:16):
And what does that sort of mean to you to
be able to play on center court, like one of
the most prestigious courts in the world Grand Slam time,
What did that experience mean to you? And it's something
that you've done on numerous occasions throughout your career.
Speaker 14 (41:30):
Yeah, I mean, it meant everything. And you know, first
and foremost you want to be a professional player, so
you want to be playing in the Grant and Slams.
But we are, you know, so fortunate to you know,
have Wimbledon in our own country and and so you know,
as I worked my way up, I was you know,
I wasn't particularly good junior at I did play junior
(41:52):
Wimbledon my last year of junior is under eighteen and
I lost the six two six one first round. So
you know, that was nineteen ninety two, sort of four
years later, you know, to be I think I was
probably top fifty when I plaker Fanakov. You know, it
was it was a quick transition.
Speaker 4 (42:11):
And you know that Wimbledon and professional tenants.
Speaker 14 (42:17):
I was always you know, extremely motivated at you know
a lot of hunger and desire to be a professional player.
So you know, the two kind of went hand in hand.
But you know, my favorite time of year was always
the grass court season. If I could have played my
whole career on one court, it would have been center
court at Wimbledon. I absolutely loved that environment, the support
(42:40):
that I had, The conditions for most of my career
were favorable, The grass got a lot slower in two
thousand and two, but now it was a massive privilege
to you know, to play at Wimbledon and sort.
Speaker 15 (42:55):
Of throughout your time, like probably towards the peak of
your career, you're continued as there is title contender at
events like Queens and wible don't like throughout that grass
court season. I suppose take us through, like take us
inside what it was like being a title contender during
those times, Like the pressure that you had to deal
with and those moments with the whole country behind you.
(43:15):
What did that sort of mean to you?
Speaker 14 (43:18):
Yeah, it's it meant enormous amounts And as I just said,
you know, it was my favorite time of year, and
I very much thrived in those conditions. I think the
question I'm asked most often still is you know, how
did I deal with the pressure and expectation. But the
reality was I didn't feel pressure. You know, pressure is
(43:38):
self inflicted, and so if you are reading the newspapers
and listening to what's been said on television on the radio,
and then you know, that's just not conducive to having
a clear mindset as to the way that you want
to practice and prepare and then play your matches. And
so I always felt that I did a good job
of just controlling my controls, which was my preparation and
(44:01):
my performance. And I think when I reflect nineteen ninety five,
some of you will remember, some of you won't. When
I got disqualified at Wimbledon, I was the first person
in one hundred and twenty five years to be disqualified.
I accidentally hit a ball girl. We were two sets
of the one up in the in the doubles first round,
(44:23):
in the four set tiebreak, so we were pretty close
to winning the match. So you know, it wasn't as
if I was completely throwing my toys out of the bram.
But you know, I think that that whole scenario, that
whole incident was a steep learning cub because the next
day I read all the newspapers and the back page
of the Sun. The headline was he hit it so
(44:44):
hard it could have killed her, and you know, which
was just such a ridiculous exaggeration. But I remember sort
of thinking to myself two things, I'll never read the
I'll never read the newspapers again. And secondly, I bet
out some half decent results, otherwise I'm going to be
remembered as this British player that was disqualified at the Championships.
So yeah, I think then moving on from that, I
(45:08):
was very I was able to focus on, you know,
what I was doing, and you know, I had, you know,
always had a small but very good team around me,
you know, a great family, and you know, those are
the opinions that I listened to. I didn't really listen
to anyone else. And so, you know, I think on
(45:29):
the back of not really having any you know, particularly well,
I would say sort of title contenders, as you mentioned
prior to me in the men's game. I think then
when I came along and you know, I was, you know,
getting to the latter stages of Queens and Wimbledon, I
think that's where and why I had.
Speaker 7 (45:49):
So much support and I loved it.
Speaker 15 (45:53):
Well, you talk about half days of results, you're a
full time semi finalist at Wimbledon, at your slam. How
proud of you of those experiences, in those moments and
reaching the latter stage of a Slam like that.
Speaker 4 (46:08):
Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 14 (46:10):
You know, I grew up in an environment where you know,
I heard the narrative, we've got the best tennis tournament
in the world and no players. And I always believed
that it could be a good player. So then you know,
once you have progressed up through the ranks of you know,
being top under, the top fifty, top twenty, top tens,
(46:31):
off five and grass was a great surface for me.
It suited my attacking style. Yeah, to be you know
deep in the second week and you know, playing some
of the greats of the game.
Speaker 1 (46:44):
It was.
Speaker 14 (46:45):
It was amazing and sure, you know, I'd love to
have won it, but and I think I was. I
think I was good enough to win wimbled and I
think there were other players that were better than me,
as you say, to get to you know, for semi
finals and some of the nature of those matches. You know,
I think I was good enough to win it. But
as I said, you know, Sam Press was in a
(47:07):
different class. He was, you know, one of the greatest
grass court players of all time. And you know, and
lost to Hewett in two thousand and two. You know,
he was absolutely number one in the world, and and
you know, in those types of conditions it was much
slower that that was the first year and he played
now Bandying in the final, and I think there was
(47:28):
six Baseliners in the in the quarterfinals. That never happened
at Wimbledon, So that was that was a difficult you
know change. And then obviously two thousand and one against Ibnisovich.
I've played many matches that i'd you know, been delayed
and come back the next day, but never you know,
played over three days and add to that sort of
(47:49):
magnitude of the match. Yeah, that was definitely, definitely, you know,
one of the toughest matches of my career. And if
I could play one again, it would be it.
Speaker 15 (47:59):
Be that on And I suppose, you know, three days
playing against Ivanisovitch and wanting to sort of change that, Like,
what would you do, I suppose if you if you
had your time again in that moment, obviously you know
the roof, have the roof pretty quick.
Speaker 14 (48:18):
Yeah, that that probably would have helped. But no, I
mean I, as I said, and people tend to forget.
There were you know, plenty of times where I did
have an interruption when I wasn't playing well and then
came back Todd Martin.
Speaker 9 (48:33):
I remember I had a problem.
Speaker 14 (48:37):
I had a backspasm just before well, just when I
was warping up against him, and I was down two
sets to one. Then I was struggling and we had
to come back the next day. And I came back
the next day and won the fourth and fifth you know,
relatively comfortably. But yeah, people don't tend to remember those
occasions because the focus was all on the Evenisovich match.
(48:59):
And sure, you know, I won the third set six love,
I think in fourteen minutes and only lost four points
and that's the fastest set my whole career in the
women's semi final. And at that stage, you know, gorm
was I think mentally pretty gone, but then the rain
came in the early part of the fourth set and
he was able to regroup and you know, go home
(49:20):
and you know, come back fresh the next day. So look,
that's that's just the way it goes. I I I'm
not the type of person that looks back a great deal.
I I you know, enjoy talking about it.
Speaker 9 (49:34):
But for me, I.
Speaker 14 (49:36):
I never dwelt on these things. And I'm just you know,
very proud of, you know, my career, and I still
love the game. I'm still involved in the game.
Speaker 7 (49:49):
And yeah, here we are.
Speaker 2 (49:53):
Now we're almost at the end. But there really are
so many great interviews available on the sitdown. But to
finish us off, Matt and Vivi spoke with one about
absolute favorite combos Christian and Casper would during the Cincinnati Open.
Speaker 6 (50:05):
Casper was that with those benchmarks that Christian set goals
for you or did you have different goals I.
Speaker 16 (50:10):
Had, Like I remember we had a school project once
when I was I don't know, twelve thirteen, and I
remember at that age I said that my main goal
was to be top fifty in the world within twenty
twenty five, I think, or something like this, which we
are at now. And I felt at twelve years old,
(50:34):
watching you know, all the greades on TV almost every day,
if I could Rafa Roger Nova, can all the other
ones stand you know, Suddling Swedish and a lot of
other guys, you know, you can just go on the name.
But that felt like a realistic goal because I felt
like Tennis had become you know, they were playing so
(50:56):
good Thatnis.
Speaker 7 (50:56):
I didn't I didn't necessarily think every day of my life.
Speaker 16 (50:59):
When I was twelve that I was going to be
number one in the world or top ten, that's what's
going to happen, like for certain So I set more
of a realistic goal, which I felt like was you know, humble,
but still being top fifty in the world is a
really really good achievement in itself. So I remember at
twelve that was like my main realistic goal and if
I reached that, I would be very proud.
Speaker 7 (51:21):
I was thinking back then, and then when I grew up, I.
Speaker 16 (51:27):
Was asked hundreds of times by the media and Norwegian
media like when are you going to beat your father
the record thirty nine?
Speaker 7 (51:34):
When you're going to beat him?
Speaker 17 (51:35):
This?
Speaker 4 (51:35):
That?
Speaker 6 (51:35):
In the sorry say, you know, that's fine.
Speaker 16 (51:39):
That's fine, because that's I'm going to get to the point.
But I was getting tired of it, you know, towards
the end, and I would always say, you know, I,
you know, it's not about when, it's about if if
you ask me, because I mean, reaching thirty nine in
the world in twenty twenty or twenty nineteen or whatever,
it's not like it's just going to happen guarantee.
Speaker 7 (51:58):
Like I think a lot of the.
Speaker 16 (52:01):
Media and Norway are very focused on soccer, and I
told them, you know, this is not soccer. You don't
sign a contract that you're going to be top twenty
in the world. You have to work your way up.
Every single spot is just purely based on your result
and having good results along the way. So sure, I'm
gonna try my best, and I hope I beat it
one day the record of being thirty nine ranked number
(52:21):
thirty nine, But and the sooner the better in a way.
Speaker 7 (52:24):
But I if I end.
Speaker 16 (52:27):
My career never having beaten that, and you know, let's
say I get to number fifty or forty, I will
still be happy with my career. But yeah, it was
nice to get it done because then they didn't need
to ask any more about the questions. But then the
other question came up, how did it feel when you
did it? So I've heard that one too, but it's
no problem. I think it's fun to talk about now.
(52:47):
And like he said, I think my dad was very
proud of it, and myself too. And since then, I
remember it quite clearly because it was one of the
last weeks before it shut down with COVID. I won
my first title in Buenos Aires back in twenty twenty February.
Oh yeah, and then I reached reached reach final in
Chile two a week later, which got me to like
(53:10):
thirty two or something like this, and then it shut down.
Speaker 7 (53:12):
We didn't play for like half years, So you know,
I was good. I was thirty two in the world,
I was home, didn't have to play.
Speaker 16 (53:17):
It was just you know, enjoying my time at home.
And I knew that i'd beaten the record. So I
think that COVID period would have been tough if I
was like forty two. You know, I couldn't, you know,
you know, yes, I'm happy that I was able to
do it right before. And then I think we did
some really good training in work during the COVID break,
let's call it of three four months, and I think
(53:39):
those who worked harder and you know, sophisticated, structured every day,
they kind of separated, not separated, but they had a
good curve after COVID, and you could clearly, you could
almost clearly see who didn't train that hard for those
four or five months and who kind of started fell
off a little bit. And we had that thing with
the ranking system was semi frozen and this and that.
(53:59):
So a lot of things happened. But since COVID, I've
just you know, only really gone steady, steady one way,
which is has been great.
Speaker 8 (54:07):
But I am.
Speaker 7 (54:12):
Since we started COVID.
Speaker 16 (54:13):
It went faster than I thought was maybe realistic. From
let's say August twenty twenty until August twenty two, I was.
I went from thirty two to number two in the world,
which is quite crazy when you think about it in
the span of just two years. Because two years ago
I wasn't like a very I was now like superstar.
As a junior, I didn't have like an unbelievable result.
(54:34):
So for me to go from ranked thirty two in
August or thirty let's say in August September twenty twenty,
and then two years later I played for world number
one and my first Slam title against Alcoholz in US
Open was an incredible curve that went, you know, honestly
quite fast, which was in a way a little life
(54:55):
changing in career changing for me, but it was of
course very fun. I think I'm glad that he watched
you a lot of tennis through through commentating at that time,
because Roger Raff and Novac, you know, they kind of
took it to a new level when they when they arrived,
and they were so dominant for all of their careers
pretty much, so they set the standard and bar really
(55:16):
high and it's a little bit, you know, they're it's unique,
you know, they're kind of generational.
Speaker 7 (55:23):
Few talents that.
Speaker 16 (55:24):
Come up, and those three I got to witness and
watch every day more or less for for my my
youth and childhood and tried to learn from all of them.
Speaker 7 (55:32):
Personally, I always kind of idolized.
Speaker 16 (55:34):
Rafa even more because I thought it was fun to
watch and when him and Roger played, it was like
fire and ice in terms that the games were very different,
but they they played some incredible matches in rallies all
the time.
Speaker 7 (55:45):
And then.
Speaker 16 (55:48):
So, yeah, there are pictures of me when I was young,
I was like wearing full raff out with even like
a wig, to have long hair and bandana.
Speaker 7 (55:55):
Yeah, yeah, so that was the Yeah.
Speaker 16 (55:58):
Just the only wish was that I was left him
maybe so I had exactly the same, But yeah, I
really really idolized him and realized, you know, I I am,
you have a big, big weapon from the from the baseline,
you can you can reach far. And of course there
are a lot of other things that needs to come
in place, you know, fitness, you know, the psychologically mentally
(56:18):
you need to be you know, also a good competitor
in these things. But yeah, groundstroke wise, I think my
dad had a plan for me to develop a big,
killer shot, and for me that was always the natural
shot was.
Speaker 7 (56:30):
The forehand for me.
Speaker 5 (56:31):
It must have been such a thrill to go from
admiring those players, particularly Raper, and then going on to
play such big matches against him.
Speaker 7 (56:40):
Yeah, it's really fun.
Speaker 16 (56:42):
You know, you have to pinch your arm every now
and then when you're when you're an athlete and you
watch you know, your idols become in a way rivals
and opponents.
Speaker 7 (56:51):
Is really fun.
Speaker 16 (56:52):
And I'm very proud because I get to I got
to play all three of them. And also I want
to add you know, Andy Murray in there, because he
was also a big part of my childhood, but.
Speaker 7 (57:00):
I was watching him a lot.
Speaker 16 (57:01):
He was always challenging them to like the highest level,
even though he didn't end up with as many slams
as them or these things, but he was always there
for my most part and challenging them. So having played
all those four has been kind of like a checklist
for me to say, I played, you know, the four
greatest players I watched when I grew up, and and yeah,
(57:22):
it's been really fun.
Speaker 7 (57:23):
I I never got to beat Roger Rafa, But.
Speaker 16 (57:29):
Yeah, I'm also proud to say I've beaten Andy and Novak,
and I have a bad record against Novak, but at
least I have one win, so that's something I'll take
with me. And you know, he's also inching towards the
end of his career unfortunately, but that's that's how it goes.
And yeah, the three the four of them had some
(57:49):
great matches down Under as well. I remember particularly many
matches where those four us they just took it to
like crazy level.
Speaker 7 (57:57):
Yeah, crazy level.
Speaker 6 (57:58):
I guess Kasper, You're bright through at a GRANDSLNG level.
Did come here when you made the second week of
a major for the first time in twenty twenty one,
Was it meaningful to reach the same round and have
your breakthrough at the same tournament the Christian, Yeah, I
would say so.
Speaker 7 (58:10):
I mean twenty twenty one was a very good year
for me in many ways.
Speaker 16 (58:15):
I think I won five eightyp too fifty tournaments, and
I reached a few semifinals in Masters thousands and such.
So that was a kind of a break three year
for me. Like we talked about earlier about the COVID break,
how I kind of started the fall twenty twenty as
number thirty or thirty five or whatever it was, and
then from there it just kind of gradually went a
(58:36):
little er, little higher, and twenty one was a big
year and a year I started believing that I could
have some good results because I was winning tournaments and
I reached some semis of a thousand, which was a
big result back back then and still is, don't get
me wrong, but for the first time and second and
third time, it's more it's more of a little bit of.
Speaker 7 (58:55):
A surprise for your career.
Speaker 16 (58:56):
But I didn't have a very good Slam result except
for Australia.
Speaker 7 (59:01):
I lost early in the Slams.
Speaker 16 (59:02):
So when twenty two came around, you know, that was
a big goal to have a good Slam result. And
then I reached two finals, which was a little also surprising.
I mean, first one happened in Paris, and then more
to surprise, was in New York.
Speaker 7 (59:16):
I remember I.
Speaker 16 (59:17):
Lost every practice set in the practice week to any
player I would lose, and then three weeks later I
was there in the final and played some of my
best hardcore tennis or tennis that I've ever played.
Speaker 7 (59:27):
So crazy, how tennis work sometimes.
Speaker 2 (59:30):
So there you go, just a handful of par large
from season two of The sit Down. If you like
what you heard, you could find all the full episodes
in the sit Down.
Speaker 7 (59:37):
Feed links are in the description at this app.
Speaker 2 (59:39):
The Tennis will be back next week with so much
more as we start building towards the year end finals.
Speaker 4 (59:44):
We'll catch it in. Have a great way, Hi everyone,
have s and Andy here.
Speaker 15 (59:49):
Just want to remind you that you can watch every
episode of The Tennis on our YouTube channel astrain Open TV.
Speaker 16 (59:53):
And you can also catch us on Tennis Plus by
heading to ozopen dot com forward slash Tennis Plus.
Speaker 17 (59:58):
And if you want to flick us a email feedback
thoughts on the show comments, we're at podcast at tennis
dot com DOTU. One of us too will read it,
but in the meantime we'll catch you in the next one.
Speaker 4 (01:00:09):
See yeah,
Hey, it's Zavy.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
The tennis is taking a quick break this week, but
we've still got something special for you. Highlights reel from
our sister podcast. To sit down, We'll pulled together some
of the best interviews from season two, kicking off with
Matt and Viv chat with the legendary Martina Hingis.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
The end of the season in ninety six, I felt like,
you know, I finally kind of got into the groove.
I won my first tournaments and at the end of
the season and I had beaten some top ten players
and I felt like, Okay, you.
Speaker 4 (00:34):
Know, maybe it's my time to shine.
Speaker 3 (00:38):
But everybody was also a little bit suspicious, is she,
you know, ready enough?
Speaker 4 (00:43):
Is she grown up enough to actually win a major?
And in my way, in my little you know, back
of my head, I was like, I'm going to show you.
You know, yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
It was just still amazing when you look back at
it at such a young age to be able to
win a Slam.
Speaker 4 (01:02):
Yes, of course, we were a different generation looking at it.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
We had Monica Sellis and Jennifer Capriati who would win
one big tournaments bigot wins at being teenagers. So at
that time it was a little bit normal and I
always tried to like beat Jennifer Capriati's records even as
a junior, so that was something that But of course,
you know, it was also a big relief to be
(01:27):
able to win my first major as being you know,
high seat and one of the favorites to win the tournament.
Speaker 5 (01:34):
You still hold the record of as the youngest woman
to win a Grand Slam singles title. These days we
say not as many teenagers at the top of the game.
Why do you think that is the case.
Speaker 3 (01:47):
I think one of it is maybe because the game
has evolved. It is has gotten probably more physical, also
because of the records and the strings. Is a natural
evolution of the sport, that is. But even after me,
you had a Maria Sharapova who almost you know, got
(02:09):
close with winning her.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
Title at Wimbledon or Coco Golf.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
You know, you still get the kind of players that
have that special something to be able to win as teenager,
or Emma ra Dukano when she came from qualifying winning
the US Open title. So I do still believe that
it is possible to win Grand Slams at a young age.
(02:36):
But definitely what has changed is like you have to
be a discipline, you have to be fully focused, and
it's maybe what the generation has changed.
Speaker 4 (02:49):
To win a Grand Slam, you need to win seven
matches within two weeks. So sometimes players have a highlight,
you know, they they win a great match or two
couple of round and then all of a sudden, they're
already happy.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
That's what I sometimes miss about the game today that
I think, Okay, you know.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
They're satisfied too quickly with their successes.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
And even if they win a title, they're not able
to continue at that high level because everybody puts them already,
like you know, on a big as favorites. But yeah,
on the other hand, like I really that's why I
like to watch someone like Cocoa goth and If because
she's completely determined and professional about her sports and what
(03:38):
she wants to achieve.
Speaker 6 (03:39):
It's really cool hearing you talk about the current generation
because what they're doing on court now is your name
is coming up in association with a lot of what
they're doing. Two years ago, when igersh Fiontek won thirty
seven matches in a row, everyone kind of dug into
the record books to see, oh, who did that last time?
And it was you, but it was twenty five years ago.
And then this year we were looking at Sablenka and
(04:01):
she's trying to go for three Australian Open titles in
a row and we did the same thing. Who was
the last person that did that?
Speaker 4 (04:05):
And it was you?
Speaker 6 (04:06):
And so what is it like to hear the current
world number one and two kind of bringing up your
milestones again? What's that like to hear?
Speaker 4 (04:14):
Yeah, and I do follow tennis.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
I'm not totally aware of that, so I'm also doing
some commentary obviously, and it.
Speaker 4 (04:25):
Makes me proud. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
I mean at that time, you're thinking, okay, you know,
it's almost normal that you were winning those titles.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Because everybody expects you to do well.
Speaker 3 (04:34):
And as later on when I became number one, so
every tournament you go to, everybody expects you to always succeed.
Speaker 4 (04:41):
And win, and so it was the same.
Speaker 3 (04:46):
I was looking obviously, you have that kind of pressure
when you have such a winning streak. Then all of
a sudden, it's like you also get as a player.
I almost thought, like you get tight. You know, when
is that next time that you're going to lose? Eventually
it's gonna happen but yeah, and also yeah, you talk
about sap Alenka, I mean she's you know, she definitely
(05:09):
deserves to be number one now with her past or
this year, the way she she played with winning Grand Slams.
But also I enjoy watching like Mira Andreva. You know,
she was one of those that she made like quarter
final semifinals, excuse me, at various events like at the
French or she did well in Australia and all of
(05:30):
a sudden my name came up. And it was also
funny because she this year, she asked me if I
would want to coach her, and I'm a big fan
of hers, the way she plays, and unfortunately I couldn't
take that job because of my daughter going to kindergarten
and I'm not able to travel as much. But yeah,
Concida Martinez is doing a great job of helping her
(05:53):
on the way and defining her game and making her
a better play.
Speaker 4 (06:00):
So we'll see how far she's gonna take it.
Speaker 5 (06:02):
Were there any players that you particularly loved to compeigne against.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
I think that generation we all were really educated players.
I would say like we all had really good foundation,
whether it was the Williams sisters, Lindsay Devin Poor, Monica Sellis.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
Jennifer Capriati.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
Obviously the couple finals I played against her and later
it was Kim Clysies and Justine Hannen.
Speaker 4 (06:33):
So I think we had really good foundations and basics
and how to play the game.
Speaker 3 (06:39):
Sometimes again, today what I miss is not having a
plan B or C.
Speaker 4 (06:45):
Like most of the players. If they do plan A
and it doesn't.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
Work out, they have a hard time or they struggle
a little bit to find a solution a way to win.
Speaker 4 (06:57):
And that's what champions do.
Speaker 3 (06:59):
Sometimes you just need to win the match and it
doesn't matter how you can be just ballooning all of
a sudden and not just hitting winners from the baseline.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
And yeah, that's I think.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
We all had this capability to find a way to
win in that generation.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
That was tring to sit down with my Tina Hinkers.
Scroll back up to episode one for the full interview.
Next up, Matt sat down with two time US Open
champ Pat Rafter when he was in Melbourne Head of
AO twenty twenty five.
Speaker 1 (07:29):
Paddle is a fun game, it's new, it's exciting. I'm learning,
you know tennis, I don't. I'm not learning anymore. I'm
sort of done with the learning part.
Speaker 6 (07:37):
Of that's fair. So you said earlier that tennis was
your job. Do you play it much these days now
that you're atire.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
I don't. I never looked to play tennis. So I
have a tennis caught at home. The only time I
get on the court is if i'm my daughter and
my son are in town and well, my wife really
wants to hit, so that's the only time I play it.
Speaker 6 (07:54):
So do your kids have a bit of an interesting
tennis Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
I made them play when they were young. They needed
to play the game, They need to have some understanding,
and they really enjoy It's a life sport for them.
Then you know, there's obviously all different levels of tennis,
and then they're they're at their own level, but they
love it. And so for me, it is a lifetime
sport that I wanted to teach. Like swimming, you know,
you have to learn to swim. Tennis is another game
(08:18):
for me that was very passionate for me to for
them to get involved with. If I sit in that
same moment of the new ninety seven US Open, when
it's it's just not I still don't enjoy it. It's
it's sort of interesting when I talk about it and
get brought up in conversation questions. I will reflect on
it and then I can answer the questions based on
my memories of that experience. But I don't sit around.
(08:39):
I don't want to go into it. Okay, should we
s get.
Speaker 7 (08:45):
It?
Speaker 1 (08:45):
It's it's a part that it's a past and I'm
done with it, and I don't.
Speaker 6 (08:50):
Yeah, it's but like when you reflect on it is
if it obviously it doesn't come imagine you said it's
the past, But when you reflect on it is the
emotional like I'm really satisfied with what I did, or
you're like, oh, I don't connect with it anymore.
Speaker 1 (09:01):
Different. I think I'm talking about more of the emotional
feeling because you can actually take yourself back into all
the feelings of it, you know, if you go deep
into it. Yeah, that bit I don't go into.
Speaker 8 (09:11):
I go.
Speaker 1 (09:14):
We're with the to look back and reflect on, you know,
just the achievements. So so proud of what I was
able to achieve with my career, with my ability. I'm
as staked, you know. But I don't sit there. But
if you want me to reflect on the moments and
the situations and the feelings and take myself back into
Wimbledon and those times. Yeah, those things I don't go into.
Speaker 6 (09:38):
No, that's fair, and I wasn't going to ask me
about that. I was actually going to talk about those
things because researching for this interview, I know your career
very well. I watched you when I was growing up,
but there were some things that came up that I
was like, I didn't know, Pat did that like you?
Speaker 4 (09:51):
Apparently.
Speaker 6 (09:51):
I'm not sure if you know this, but you are
one of only three men in open air history. The
others are labor in Edinburgh to make the semis of
all the slams in singles and doubles, and you're the
most recent person that's ever done that.
Speaker 1 (10:05):
Did you know that? I knew there's a few of us.
I thought they might have been more than that.
Speaker 4 (10:09):
Apparently not.
Speaker 6 (10:10):
So you're in a very select little group of this
kind of nice complete singles, doubles, all the surfaces, all
the majors, and yeah, you're apparently the last one that
did that. Whenever you achieved that, it might have been
late nineties, early two thousands, I'm not sure it would be.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
Yeah, doubles, singles. Well, I guess by I don't know.
Speaker 6 (10:29):
But I guess when you look at your career, you
won majors, you were world number one, you represented your country,
you won master's titles. You kind of did all of
the things that the tennact.
Speaker 1 (10:39):
I just didn't do a lot of it, you know
what I mean. I didn't win seven of them. I
didn't win people do I know? I know, but I
think as you know, you know, you put yourself in
the number one category of players. You know, I'd be
the worst performing number one category player in many.
Speaker 6 (10:56):
Ways, the worst number one.
Speaker 1 (10:58):
It's still a title to hold you one, I know,
but you put yourself in that category a bit. It's
probably the worst, I take it.
Speaker 6 (11:06):
When do you think you were at your career peak?
What year or what time? Ninety eight? That's something else.
You're the first person to do the America the Summer
Slam since Canada, Canada, since the US to do.
Speaker 1 (11:18):
Did Andy Rotick do it after meon yep? And then
a couple other place things have done. Rafa has it's you?
That's it?
Speaker 6 (11:24):
That's it? See very select group. So ninety eight was
your peak? Do you have what's your favorite or finest win.
And I mean it could be a match, or it
could be a tournament.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
I think the whole thing is a combination. But the
ninety seven US Open win, my first Grand Slam win,
is the most memorable because that was to me winning
a Grand Slam. That's what it's all about. It might
not have been the prettiest match, but in terms of
career changing, it was definitely winning the US Open final.
And there's obviously great matches I played. I played a
(11:59):
lot of great matches with Andre Agason, a couple of
Wemble and few at Wembland, so yeah, awesome. And I
got to play in center court at Wimbledon in ninety three.
I qualified, got to the third round, played.
Speaker 6 (12:09):
Andrea ninety three cent co Wilden.
Speaker 9 (12:12):
I didn't know that I.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
Kicked my ass, but it was so much fun.
Speaker 4 (12:15):
That's awesome.
Speaker 6 (12:15):
Well you got him back later at Wimbledon.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Yeah, he got me again in ninety nine. Then I've
been in two thousand and two thousand and one, so too.
All let's go three semis in a row.
Speaker 3 (12:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (12:26):
We actually had Donna Kelso, the WTA supervisor on now
podcast a couple of weeks ago, and we asked her,
you know, you've been in tennis for thirty years, what
are some of your memories. You're always working, but if
you were ever watching, what do you remember? And she said,
you're ninety seven US Open wings. She remembers that as
an Australian And I remember I was allowed to go
to school late that day because it was like eight
thirty in the morning in Australia and we were just
watching waiting. We match went and then we could get
(12:47):
in the car to go to school.
Speaker 1 (12:50):
Cool.
Speaker 6 (12:50):
I was going to ask you one other thing. Yes,
when people talk to you about your tennis career, whether
it's in an interview, if it's just like people on
the street, I'm not sure. What's the one match they
bring up.
Speaker 1 (13:01):
Oh, probably the two thousand and one Goran match, the
final final, because it's a funny one because I played
Sampus the year before in the final. They don't bring
that up very much. But the Go Run match they
bring up a lot. I think there's just so many
emotions going on between both of us. Where Peter one
fifteen Wimblin's, I don't know, he won a lot of them.
(13:23):
Tennis is healthy. The Aussie Open has become. It's bigger
than any player right now. It's an event like Wimbledon.
It doesn't matter if you had two hundred the top
two hundred players in the world rock up over one
hundred and two hundred. People will come and watch it.
Speaker 7 (13:40):
You know.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
It's just healthy because of the event is so amazing
and top players will always come along. And we're seeing
again strength with Sinner and Alkhasm.
Speaker 3 (13:53):
My god.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
I mean you look at them play and go, wow,
they're awesome. So they keep coming. It keeps happy and
they will continue to keep happen in the men's and
the women's game. Thanks Pat.
Speaker 2 (14:06):
That was from episode two if you want to hear
the full interview. Now he's Matt again, this time catching
up with twenty eleven AO champion Kim Clousters about in
Indian wells.
Speaker 8 (14:16):
The best part about doing this with Andy is I
don't feel like I'm on a podcast, which is great
because we used to reach out through text messages when
we were watching tennis games and we would go back
and forth about like what do you think about this? Well,
I think so and so and yeah, and like we
just have that conversation. Even now, like when we're talking
(14:36):
about like a different topic or a match that we're
both watching at the same time. He's like, stop, we
got to stop talking about this, Like let's just keep
this for the podcast. Like we don't prepare anything. Everything
is really very kind of like yeah, our opinions and
how we feel. And I love his tennis brain. I
love learning from him.
Speaker 6 (14:55):
I love the thought of you too, though, sitting at
home watching tennis and texting each other, Like that's real
tennis fandom. I have that with you know, friends of
mine who are not players, like we do that, And
that has come across I think thinking about your career,
particularly since you stopped playing. I mean, you're involved with
the Hall of Fame, You've done a bit of media.
You've also coached, you have an academy, you've played Legends
(15:16):
events as well. It sounds like you were real It
comes across that you're a real fan of the game.
Speaker 9 (15:20):
Is that fair?
Speaker 8 (15:21):
I love the sport like I fell in love with
it when I was almost five years old, and I
still love playing. Like people ask me here like do
you miss playing here? And I'm like, no, I don't,
Like I don't miss playing here. I still love playing
tennis and it can be in a local, small little
tennis court and you know in New Jersey or any
public court, Like I love the sport and yeah, it's
(15:42):
it's it's a true passion. And I know it's very rare,
like you know, I see it with my kids too,
Like it's I know, it was really rare to have
found something very naturally that wasn't kind of pushed on
me from my parents or anything like, to find something
that you've loved from such a young age agent to
you know grow into yeah, have it grow into you know,
(16:04):
me still being connected into the sport, right. And I
never thought when I was a professional player that I
would still be you know, connected and have this whole
tennis family at the at the Hall of Fame and
now being able to you know, do the be legendary
program and talk to you know, young kids around the world,
Like I never thought of those things. And it's amazing
how tennis kind of brings people together. And that's the
(16:28):
beauty of the sport is that we get you know,
the sport is yeah, so well known around the world,
and we have to thank a lot of the you know,
the women that that kind of paved the way for us. Yea,
you know, early on, right, the Billy Jean Kings and
I mean from there on, you know, never had to
lover Chrissy Everett. I mean, I you know, there's so
(16:49):
many to name, but it's I'll never forget that I
was eighteen years old when I played. No, I was younger,
but I played the juniors at the US Open and
listen to Billy Jean King speak and you know, she
was very you know, she has a very powerful personality
and her passion is so strong, and just listening to
(17:10):
her at a young age, I think I was fourteen
and listening to her talk about the impact and the
you know what it took for them to get to
the level where tennis was back then and now I'm
talking maybe nineteen ninety eight or so. It was amazing.
Like it just stuck with me to be, you know,
(17:31):
always be ready to you know, sign your autographs, take
the pictures, be available accessible to you know, the media,
the fans, I mean, And that's what it is.
Speaker 4 (17:41):
It's it's you.
Speaker 8 (17:42):
I see it with my daughter now, she loves basketball.
You know, being able to connect with the players that
you like or that you watch on TV makes makes
the world a difference and makes the kids believe that
this is a world that is actually accessible and not
just something that I watch on TV.
Speaker 6 (17:58):
The Istralian Open Wing that you had with your fis
Grand Slam title as a mother, and your name comes
up a lot, particularly now, because there are so many
big names that have made recent comebacks to the tour
as moms, but you're the only one that's ever managed
to win a Grand Slam. I mean, obviously Evon, Gula Gong,
Macra Coort did it, but I think you're the most
recent player to win a Grand Slam as a mum.
(18:20):
And we've seen a lot of players do well and
come close, but they've never done what you did, And
I just wonder, Well, it's a hard question, I guess,
but why do you think that is?
Speaker 4 (18:31):
I don't know.
Speaker 8 (18:32):
I feel like Serena definitely was the one that has
come the closest right to winning. I think I don't
know how many finals she made, I think maybe three
or something as a mom when she came back.
Speaker 4 (18:47):
Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 8 (18:48):
I feel I'm so ready for a new mom to
do hold a Grand Slam trophy because I'm proud seeing
you know, so many women in the draw and see
the kids walk around here and seeing in their family
members in the in the player's restaurant, and that's what
it's all about.
Speaker 4 (19:06):
I mean, I remember the first year.
Speaker 8 (19:07):
So when I came back in two thousand and nine,
I came back in Cincinnati and I was playing a
tournament there and there was a player that came up
to me and said, oh, man, I wish I did
with you then, and that I had, you know, the
guts to do it because now mid thirties and I, yeah,
don't have a partner, I've you know, kind of yeah,
been playing a career and so it really kind of resent,
(19:31):
like it really made things like sink in for me
and realize like, oh wow, like people, this is an
issue for a lot of women, right, Like I don't know,
like there's so many women where your clock start sticking
and you feel like you want to start a family,
But at the same time you also feel like, oh,
I've been working. I've been playing tennis for twenty years
or even longer, working to be at this level and
(19:54):
to play the Grand Slams and having sponsors or not,
but like focused on your ranking, and so it's it's
a tough situation to leave.
Speaker 4 (20:05):
To start a family.
Speaker 8 (20:06):
And you know, I was very fortunate that I had
done well prior that I you know, whatever, I was
away for two years or so or a little bit under,
but that I had the luxury to do that, and
that I had the results to still get access to
wildcards if I had to, and and which they did.
And but that's not for everybody. And and so I
(20:27):
feel like now with the new the new pif WTA
Maternity Fund program that's come out, like I really feel
like it's going to make I mean, it's it's this
has taken our sport, I feel like, to another level
for independent women's athletes, because that's what we are, right,
We're all independents, and we don't get the opportunity like
(20:49):
you lose your sponsors. You you know, if you don't
play tournaments, you don't get paid. And there's a lot
of players who don't make enough money or haven't saved
enough money to say, oh, I would like to start
a family because this is what my body, in my
mind wants to do and then come back. So now
with this program, I really feel very excited to see
(21:11):
kind of the new you know, a new player that
will use this program, and there's so many great, great
things about it is from supporting like financing egg freezing
IVF treatment. I mean, it takes it to a completely
different level. And Victoria Azarenka has actually been a big,
big force on the Player's Task Force on the WTA
(21:32):
side of it all to push for this and and
then with the funds from the PIF, it's yeah, it's
been able to They've been able to make it possible.
Speaker 4 (21:42):
So very excited about it.
Speaker 2 (21:45):
That was from episode twelve with King Klausters. Next, We've
got Oussie rising star Maya joint. Matt spoke with her
and Brisbane during her Billy Jane King Cup debut.
Speaker 6 (21:54):
So at the end of twenty twenty four, when you
saw what you did, sixty one match wins, a ranking
that had improved so much, did you sell braided in
any way when you stopped and go, wow, what a
what a season?
Speaker 10 (22:06):
We didn't do anything. We I think when I got
into the top hundred in Merida, we went and got
ice cream. But we do that anyway, so it wasn't
but I mean we were aware of it, but I
(22:27):
don't know, we didn't We didn't really do anything Okay.
I think we were in tournaments at the time, so
there wasn't really anything to do.
Speaker 6 (22:33):
Do you think that helps actually not focusing on it
so much and just like oh, okay.
Speaker 4 (22:38):
Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 10 (22:39):
I just maybe I didn't quite believe it at the time,
but it was just it's weird to celebrate something that
you know you're not done yet.
Speaker 6 (22:48):
So what is what is done?
Speaker 10 (22:51):
I mean, I guess when you're finished with tennis, when
you get to number one, I guess then you've kind
of you've done it and you can celebrate. But I mean, no,
I mean anything any milestone, and the top hundred is
really special. A top fifty, top forty, top thirty, anything
is just a crazy achievement. So I think it's important
(23:15):
to celebrate when you do it, but not let it
take focus away from like you're not you're not rich
the goal yet.
Speaker 6 (23:24):
Well, you've cracked top eighty already, so more than ice cream,
that's what I think we need to think of something.
Top hundred ice cream is pretty nice. Top eighty, you've
made another milestone. What that has done for you is
just completely changed the way that your schedule and your
season is looking so like at the beginning of this year.
What has been the experience like suddenly walking onto pat
(23:45):
Raft Arena under lights in front of five thousand people
to play as a Reenka, or playing Pagoula on John
Cane Arena at a Grand Slam like twelve months ago,
you would know we need that. So how has that been?
Do you realize it in those moments like oh wow,
like this is cool or I can't believe I'm doing this,
or like, what's that experience been, Like.
Speaker 10 (24:05):
Yeah, it's definitely a this is ridiculous kind of moment
where I didn't really feel like I was supposed to
be there kind of okay, like it just felt really
weird me being there, or playing against Pegoula and John
Kayne that was very walking out into that court, I felt,
oh boy, this is I was like, I'm not.
Speaker 6 (24:27):
Winning this match, That's what I was saying, Okay.
Speaker 10 (24:29):
And I've had to work a lot with my mental
coach about just kind of playing those matches because more
of those matches have happened where I'm playing like a name, yeah,
and I just need to play the ball that's coming
at me. I'm not the person pretty much, but it's
a very different experience to what what a couple months ago,
(24:51):
I guess a year ago. So it's just been a
very crazy transition, but super exciting and just it's been
so cool being able to walk out into the stage
with all those people and play against those people, just
people that I've watched on television, and then realizing, oh,
someone might be watching me on television. This is really weird.
Speaker 6 (25:11):
Well, that's actually when I saw you play properly for
the first time, the match against Azarenka. I was based
in Melbourne. I didn't travel for any of the tournaments,
and I watched you your night match against Astarnkan. You
nearly beat her, it was, and I was like, oh, wow,
I can see I get the ranking rise. Like I'd
seen Maya Joint going up in then, I'd seen highlights
of you at the US Open, but that was the
(25:31):
first time I think I'd watched a full match every point.
So yeah, and you've made that point. You're now playing
bigger names more regularly. So there's a really cool stat.
Last year, you played five top one hundred players for
the whole year. In the first two months of this year,
you've played six top fifty players, So like it's just
You're competing as a completely different caliber of player now
(25:53):
and you're beating quite a few of them. What has
that experience been like playing the ball, playing the opponent
like you from the outside to have adjusted it out
quite well, But how has that been for you?
Speaker 10 (26:04):
Yeah, I feel like whenever I play like a name,
I just I play with no pressure. So it's just
it's a really fun experience to be out on the
court and just see what I can do. Pretty much. Yeah,
I mean, I've it's always exciting to go to a
new place because I had never been to any of
(26:24):
those tournaments before, never played those level of tournaments before,
So it's just super exciting to to realize that I
am there and that I am playing them, And yeah,
it's just so fun to be able to play against
those kinds of people and have those high level matches.
Speaker 7 (26:42):
That was from episode seventeen with my joint.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Now he's Matt and Vig with the Nazi Kokanagas.
Speaker 5 (26:48):
What's been the best feeling You've had on a court?
Speaker 11 (26:50):
Best feeling I've had on a court, I have to
be winning Adelaide. I'd say that that was the best
I've ever felt. Just I think It's the first time
I've actually kind of after a win, just having my
friends and family. The year before being COVID and me
kind of playing in these smaller cities, just challenger events
and honestly losing money every week. To sort of come
(27:11):
back and go eight and one in January and make
Semis and then win a home tournament that I'd been
growing up playing on those courts when I was sort
of seven, eight, nine, ten years old. Yeah, just doing
it in front of people that don't get to see
me play that much was special. So for me, that
was for sure the best memory.
Speaker 9 (27:29):
I've ever had.
Speaker 5 (27:29):
Tanasi, I'm going to cast your mind back a little
bit now. I first interviewed you in twenty twelve, twenty
twelve as a member of the Junior Davis Cup team.
Speaker 9 (27:39):
I actually saw this video the other day. It cracks
me up every time.
Speaker 6 (27:42):
How did that come across the right now?
Speaker 8 (27:44):
I don't know.
Speaker 11 (27:44):
Probably you've searched my name on YouTube or something and
these these come up. I remember this, Bendigo. We just
won the World Junior Teams qualifying.
Speaker 4 (27:52):
That's it. You just bet in Japan.
Speaker 5 (27:54):
Yeah, so you remember it very clearly.
Speaker 9 (27:55):
I remember it real clearly Mark Woodford was our coach,
Lee and big Gooch.
Speaker 5 (28:00):
Uh from the win itself, what did you get out
of being many others?
Speaker 7 (28:05):
Uh, it's a good team environment. All the boys played well.
Speaker 11 (28:09):
I know Lee felt a bit bad a few of
the losses, but he came up against players who were
playing from under the bus.
Speaker 9 (28:16):
I'm lucky, but he didn't keep his head up.
Speaker 7 (28:20):
There's been a good, good tournament everyone.
Speaker 11 (28:22):
Everyone played pretty well.
Speaker 6 (28:23):
And dudes just stepped up for the doubles and we
neither And how we celebrate.
Speaker 1 (28:29):
Coltext probably go to cow Text.
Speaker 9 (28:31):
Remember did you get a few skittles?
Speaker 7 (28:33):
And laughs with the voice.
Speaker 11 (28:37):
Righteous we were We were trying so hard not to
laugh that whole interview, as you can tell. And after
every win would literally go down to the local cowtexs
and just get this massive packt the skittles.
Speaker 9 (28:47):
And that's what we were doing every day.
Speaker 11 (28:49):
But yeah, you that's the stuff you miss when you
when you kind of grow up, those sort of tournaments
and and Davis Carps and welding your teams representing Australia
with your mates. Yeah, you always remember those those memories
with the coaches that take you out on those tours.
It's stuff that when everyone's career is done, will hang
out and talk about, and they're the things you really remember.
Speaker 5 (29:10):
Yeah, for sure, if my maths is correct, you would
have been sixteen at that time. Sort Of when you
look back, what do you remember of being sixteen and
what advice I guess would you give yourself now?
Speaker 11 (29:23):
Well, I remember, I remember I did a lot of hours,
a lot of training, more than probably a lot of
people could comprehend. I think that's why I did so
well when I was younger, but also potentially maybe that's
why I got injured. But I would just tell myself
try and enjoy the journey. It's a long one and
it's hard. A lot of people's parents kind of come
to me and they're like, oh, my kid's going to
(29:45):
do this, this, this, and I'm like, just relax, Like
you guys don't know how many steps there are and
how big of a journey it is. It's a really
long one, and one you've got to stay mentally tough
because it's going to test you in an individual sport.
Speaker 9 (29:59):
It's going to be a lot of ups and downs.
Speaker 11 (30:00):
Things aren't going to go well, but you've got to
kind of remember why you do it, and keep enjoying
it and remember the bigger picture. So yeah, it's hard
because you don't know what you don't know from that age.
But for me, yeah, it was just to kind of
enjoy the journey and lap up every experience because it
goes really quick, and I can't believe that's what thirteen
years ago.
Speaker 9 (30:19):
Yeah, I can't believe how quick it's gone.
Speaker 4 (30:21):
What was the joke? What were you trying not to
laugh about?
Speaker 9 (30:24):
I don't know.
Speaker 11 (30:24):
We're just three, We're just we're just three clowns. I
guess at that age, I don't actually know what we
were laughing at. I think we were just happy and
giggly and immature.
Speaker 9 (30:36):
So I still am.
Speaker 5 (30:38):
So do you ever sort of stop and think about
how tennis has changed our life?
Speaker 9 (30:42):
Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 11 (30:43):
I think I've got a few regrets as far as
sort of I wish I did things a little bit differently,
or I took a little bit different steps towards anything.
But you know, I've got a lot better than a
lot of people, So I try and remind that to myself.
I'm happy with how everything's gone. Obviously could have been better, yes,
could have been worse. Yes, but I've still got time
(31:03):
in the sport, and yeah, you learn a lot and
I'm still evolving, so yeah, it's a constant, constant journey.
Speaker 6 (31:10):
Do times like this where you're off make you consider,
like what's beyond tennis or life after tennis?
Speaker 11 (31:15):
Yeah, definitely, And I've thought about that earlier in my
career when I thought that it was the end for me.
But now I'm kind of exploring some different avenues. I'm
doing a little bit more of this sort of stuff,
some podcasts, I'm doing some TV stuff. I'm trying to
do some commentary coming up for the French Open, so
that'll be fun, and who knows, some TV shows, some
media stuff in the future.
Speaker 9 (31:34):
I think I've always enjoyed that.
Speaker 11 (31:35):
I feel pretty comfortable in front of the camera and microphone,
so yeah, I try not to look too far ahead,
but kind of have one foot through that door to just, yeah,
think about it, because a lot of people kind of
they play tennis and then they're like, what's now, What's next?
So for me, I kind of want to have it
a little bit of an idea. But yeah, tennis is
first and foremost, and I'll ride that out as long
as I can with that.
Speaker 6 (31:57):
You said that even at the start of the interview,
you kind of like doing this media side of this sport.
You would have done so many interviews, You've been into
so many press conferences. Tennis plays off and say, we're
always asked the same kind of questions and it can
get repetitive, So like, what is something that you would
love to talk about or you'd love journals to ask
you more about You're like, this isn't like no one
knows as part of my story or that you know,
(32:18):
no one ever asked me about this, and we can
only ask what we know. But I mean, yeah, what
is something that you'd like more people to know about
your story that we.
Speaker 11 (32:25):
Don't Well, that's a good question. I don't know if
I can answer that. I feel like for tennis, you're
very sort of clean cut. You can't really say too much.
I'd kind of be curious to see what everyone's life
is like away from the tennis, whether everyone is kind
of based on tennis everything they do is for their tennis,
(32:46):
or they're trying to enjoy their life and balance it
out a little bit, and what they do in their
spare time I think is an interesting one. Rather than
the generic answers. I get to sleep and mat well
and get ready for training the next day. So I
wouldn't mind if players opened up a little bit more.
I don't think it's really up to the journals. I
think it's more sort of what the players are willing
to give them and spill out, because a lot of
them are kind of scared about potentially the repercussions.
Speaker 9 (33:07):
And then they have if they are open and honest.
Speaker 2 (33:10):
I think no Arja the Nazi Matt and Vin caught
up with former French Open and Wimbledon champ being Magaruta
from her at home in Switzerland.
Speaker 6 (33:17):
No less, going back to that Wimbledon, you beat Venus
Williams in the final, and so that gave you this
really cool milestone that you're the only player to beat
Serena Williams and Venus Williams in major finals.
Speaker 7 (33:30):
Like both of them.
Speaker 6 (33:31):
So, and I know, I think they were pretty They
were idols of yours, weren't they. There were players you
looked up to when you were growing up. So how
do you think about that when you were like, Wow,
I beat both Williams sisters in my Grand Slam finals.
Speaker 12 (33:42):
I am happy about it.
Speaker 13 (33:44):
Some people say, like, what a bud luck that you
always had those finals, But in a way, like you
say the word like my hero, so I wanted to
play them. For me, it has an extra value with
no disrespecting other players. But for me, beating Serena or
Venus in a in a Grand Slam final had a
double value to that Grand Slam.
Speaker 3 (34:03):
You know.
Speaker 12 (34:03):
I felt like, wow, like she's.
Speaker 13 (34:05):
Best in history and I'm beating the best in history
in the final. For me, that was unique and special
and it felt great.
Speaker 12 (34:13):
It felt great.
Speaker 13 (34:14):
I don't think they know that they were my idols,
though I kept it very secret. I had a very
big poker face. But I wish I could tell them,
you know. I wish I could sit.
Speaker 12 (34:25):
Down in I don't know one day and just say
how much that meant to.
Speaker 13 (34:29):
Me, and really like just telling them, like I how
much I loved them when I was a kid starting
tennis in Venezuela with zero chances of making it and
watching them and thinking like I want to be like Serena,
you know, so it was amazing for me. Becoming number
one for me was like I dream come true. Some
people say that it's better to win Grand Slams. Some
people say it's better to be number one. I do
(34:51):
admit that it's better to win Grand Slams because that
feeling off, having the trophy in your hands, feeling the moment,
the victory.
Speaker 12 (35:00):
The best that's unique.
Speaker 13 (35:02):
Obviously being world number one, it's amazing, but it's you
cannot feel it, you can't touch it. It's it's a
number that in one week, if you don't play well,
you might lose it. So it's it's tricky.
Speaker 12 (35:14):
But to me, when I was little, little kid, I
always dreamed I want to be world number one. One
day I got to be word number.
Speaker 7 (35:22):
One, you know.
Speaker 12 (35:22):
I was like always like repeating this inside of my head.
And the day I saw myself at the top of
the ranking, I was like, wow, like it's happening. Really,
it's happening. Not only I want Grandstoms, but I actually
made it to world number one. And this is so difficult.
You really need to be consistent, and you really need
to be on top of the game and be the
best player. It's just I was like, I couldn't believe it,
(35:45):
you know, I couldn't believe it.
Speaker 4 (35:46):
And I'm so proud of that moment.
Speaker 6 (35:48):
Did you screenshot it on the ranking or something I did.
Speaker 12 (35:52):
I did, I screen chatted.
Speaker 13 (35:53):
It's somewhere on like seventeen pounds like whatever, But yes
I screenshotted, and yeah, it was a moment for my family,
for all together as well.
Speaker 12 (36:03):
The journey, Oh, such a crazy long journey too until.
Speaker 13 (36:07):
That day, and I think we all share a tear,
and you know, we felt like it was all worth
it in a way, and all the all the sacrifices
were worth it.
Speaker 5 (36:17):
Well, we got a first hand view of your you know,
your Grand Slam successes when Australian Open twenty twenty you
were it was a resurgence tournament for you, really unstated,
but you beat three top ten players to reach another
Slam final. How satisfying was that tournament?
Speaker 7 (36:36):
Oh?
Speaker 13 (36:37):
I every time I remind myself that final, it's the
most painful match I've ever played. Really, like, the most
painful loss I've ever had is the Australian Open final. Yes,
it was an amazing tournament. I came from a couple
tough years and it wasn't an easy tournament. I was
very sick at the beginning, but I made it through
(36:59):
when every match gave me that extra confidence to keep going,
keep going.
Speaker 12 (37:03):
I remember that, you know.
Speaker 13 (37:05):
I played a semi finals match with Simona Halep, and
I remember physically it was it was so tough that
I felt like, oh wow, I almost gave it all
what I had, so I don't know what do I
have left for the final? You know, Physically I was
so tired. It was such a hot day as well.
(37:26):
But that final I was with such a confidence and
it just didn't click at the end, you know. And
I was very proud of coming back and making it
that far in another Grand Slam.
Speaker 4 (37:39):
But that loss.
Speaker 13 (37:41):
I keep thinking about it, like when people asked me
that what was your most painful loss? So what's one
thing that you remember that you wish it would have
gone my way? Definitely, definitely that final. I mean in
twenty fifteen, when I played the Wimbledon final, it was
my first final. I was playing suren It was too much,
It was too much to handle. So of course I
would have liked to want.
Speaker 12 (38:03):
I admit that she was way better, she was prepared,
and I mean.
Speaker 13 (38:06):
I was such a rookie, but that twenty twenty final,
I ah, I wish I could go back, but it
is what it is. Congrats to Sophia. She did play amazing,
but yeah, that was a painful one. No one wants
to lose in the final of a Grands Camp.
Speaker 10 (38:20):
Come on, no one.
Speaker 12 (38:21):
Remembers the final is. All they care is about the winner.
So I want to be the winner, but you know,
it is what it is.
Speaker 5 (38:27):
Several years later with Sensa, you are still following tennis
very closely. What do you make of the tour today
and what are some of your favorite storylines?
Speaker 12 (38:37):
Hmm, the tour is great.
Speaker 13 (38:40):
There's a lot of new faces, a lot of faces
from my time as well, but I follow it very closely,
like things things.
Speaker 12 (38:47):
That I love is, for example, the con I follow
all the time. I have all these alert in my
phone when they jump on court and who are they playing?
And I chat with Corny a lot.
Speaker 13 (38:57):
I actually saw them a couple of times and matches
as well live, which is fun.
Speaker 12 (39:02):
Always.
Speaker 13 (39:03):
I love how Savalnka is dominating. I watch her quite often.
She's just a perfect personality for world number one. She's fun,
she's she's not shy, she has a lot of fans,
she gives her social media active, she has amazing strength
and talent.
Speaker 12 (39:21):
So I really like her as number one. Yeah, just
following the American tennis.
Speaker 13 (39:26):
It's crazy Navarro Coco go pegula by some keys.
Speaker 12 (39:30):
What's happening is it's too many players in the top ten.
What a success they're having. So I'm following that a lot.
Speaker 13 (39:37):
Yeah, and seeing IgA a little bit how she's gonna,
how she's going to play this French Open, following her
as well.
Speaker 4 (39:45):
Yeah, I'm really like on top of the tour.
Speaker 12 (39:47):
I've never been so like watching matchive and following the news.
I thought I was going to be a little bit
more passive, but I am super honent. I'm super honored.
Speaker 6 (39:55):
Yeah, never suddenly just a bit different.
Speaker 2 (39:57):
Guest chars Jackson Mansel jumped in for a chat Tim
Hemmant just before Wimbledon twenty twenty five.
Speaker 14 (40:03):
Look, the first time I went to Wimbledon was when
I was six and my mum took me in first
Monday in nineteen eighty one and I saw beyond board
play and he was defending champion.
Speaker 7 (40:15):
And.
Speaker 14 (40:16):
You know, I can remember where we were sitting. I've
still got the ticket today. And certainly when and you know,
Ball came out of the doors underneath the raw box
and walked around onto center court. That was very much
when I made my one and only career disctition that
you know, that's what I wanted to do. I wanted
to be a professional Terenminis player, and I wanted to
play at Wimbledon, and I wanted to play on center court.
(40:38):
So yeah, that's the earliest recollection and been every year since.
And yeah, I think then to get the opportunity fifteen
years later to play on center court, I was a
top hundred player by that time draw came out and
I was playing fgen. He confound a CoV who was
French Open champion. Heid just won singles and doubles at Garrels,
(41:01):
So you know, I knew that was going to be
a center court match. And you know, to then be
out there and win seven, five and the fifth and
say two match points, I think that was a pretty
special way to start my center court career.
Speaker 15 (41:16):
And what does that sort of mean to you to
be able to play on center court, like one of
the most prestigious courts in the world Grand Slam time,
What did that experience mean to you? And it's something
that you've done on numerous occasions throughout your career.
Speaker 14 (41:30):
Yeah, I mean, it meant everything. And you know, first
and foremost you want to be a professional player, so
you want to be playing in the Grant and Slams.
But we are, you know, so fortunate to you know,
have Wimbledon in our own country and and so you know,
as I worked my way up, I was you know,
I wasn't particularly good junior at I did play junior
(41:52):
Wimbledon my last year of junior is under eighteen and
I lost the six two six one first round. So
you know, that was nineteen ninety two, sort of four
years later, you know, to be I think I was
probably top fifty when I plaker Fanakov. You know, it
was it was a quick transition.
Speaker 4 (42:11):
And you know that Wimbledon and professional tenants.
Speaker 14 (42:17):
I was always you know, extremely motivated at you know
a lot of hunger and desire to be a professional player.
So you know, the two kind of went hand in hand.
But you know, my favorite time of year was always
the grass court season. If I could have played my
whole career on one court, it would have been center
court at Wimbledon. I absolutely loved that environment, the support
(42:40):
that I had, The conditions for most of my career
were favorable, The grass got a lot slower in two
thousand and two, but now it was a massive privilege
to you know, to play at Wimbledon and sort.
Speaker 15 (42:55):
Of throughout your time, like probably towards the peak of
your career, you're continued as there is title contender at
events like Queens and wible don't like throughout that grass
court season. I suppose take us through, like take us
inside what it was like being a title contender during
those times, Like the pressure that you had to deal
with and those moments with the whole country behind you.
(43:15):
What did that sort of mean to you?
Speaker 14 (43:18):
Yeah, it's it meant enormous amounts And as I just said,
you know, it was my favorite time of year, and
I very much thrived in those conditions. I think the
question I'm asked most often still is you know, how
did I deal with the pressure and expectation. But the
reality was I didn't feel pressure. You know, pressure is
(43:38):
self inflicted, and so if you are reading the newspapers
and listening to what's been said on television on the radio,
and then you know, that's just not conducive to having
a clear mindset as to the way that you want
to practice and prepare and then play your matches. And
so I always felt that I did a good job
of just controlling my controls, which was my preparation and
(44:01):
my performance. And I think when I reflect nineteen ninety five,
some of you will remember, some of you won't. When
I got disqualified at Wimbledon, I was the first person
in one hundred and twenty five years to be disqualified.
I accidentally hit a ball girl. We were two sets
of the one up in the in the doubles first round,
(44:23):
in the four set tiebreak, so we were pretty close
to winning the match. So you know, it wasn't as
if I was completely throwing my toys out of the bram.
But you know, I think that that whole scenario, that
whole incident was a steep learning cub because the next
day I read all the newspapers and the back page
of the Sun. The headline was he hit it so
(44:44):
hard it could have killed her, and you know, which
was just such a ridiculous exaggeration. But I remember sort
of thinking to myself two things, I'll never read the
I'll never read the newspapers again. And secondly, I bet
out some half decent results, otherwise I'm going to be
remembered as this British player that was disqualified at the Championships.
So yeah, I think then moving on from that, I
(45:08):
was very I was able to focus on, you know,
what I was doing, and you know, I had, you know,
always had a small but very good team around me,
you know, a great family, and you know, those are
the opinions that I listened to. I didn't really listen
to anyone else. And so, you know, I think on
(45:29):
the back of not really having any you know, particularly well,
I would say sort of title contenders, as you mentioned
prior to me in the men's game. I think then
when I came along and you know, I was, you know,
getting to the latter stages of Queens and Wimbledon, I
think that's where and why I had.
Speaker 7 (45:49):
So much support and I loved it.
Speaker 15 (45:53):
Well, you talk about half days of results, you're a
full time semi finalist at Wimbledon, at your slam. How
proud of you of those experiences, in those moments and
reaching the latter stage of a Slam like that.
Speaker 4 (46:08):
Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 14 (46:10):
You know, I grew up in an environment where you know,
I heard the narrative, we've got the best tennis tournament
in the world and no players. And I always believed
that it could be a good player. So then you know,
once you have progressed up through the ranks of you know,
being top under, the top fifty, top twenty, top tens,
(46:31):
off five and grass was a great surface for me.
It suited my attacking style. Yeah, to be you know
deep in the second week and you know, playing some
of the greats of the game.
Speaker 1 (46:44):
It was.
Speaker 14 (46:45):
It was amazing and sure, you know, I'd love to
have won it, but and I think I was. I
think I was good enough to win wimbled and I
think there were other players that were better than me,
as you say, to get to you know, for semi
finals and some of the nature of those matches. You know,
I think I was good enough to win it. But
as I said, you know, Sam Press was in a
(47:07):
different class. He was, you know, one of the greatest
grass court players of all time. And you know, and
lost to Hewett in two thousand and two. You know,
he was absolutely number one in the world, and and
you know, in those types of conditions it was much
slower that that was the first year and he played
now Bandying in the final, and I think there was
(47:28):
six Baseliners in the in the quarterfinals. That never happened
at Wimbledon, So that was that was a difficult you
know change. And then obviously two thousand and one against Ibnisovich.
I've played many matches that i'd you know, been delayed
and come back the next day, but never you know,
played over three days and add to that sort of
(47:49):
magnitude of the match. Yeah, that was definitely, definitely, you know,
one of the toughest matches of my career. And if
I could play one again, it would be it.
Speaker 15 (47:59):
Be that on And I suppose, you know, three days
playing against Ivanisovitch and wanting to sort of change that, Like,
what would you do, I suppose if you if you
had your time again in that moment, obviously you know
the roof, have the roof pretty quick.
Speaker 14 (48:18):
Yeah, that that probably would have helped. But no, I
mean I, as I said, and people tend to forget.
There were you know, plenty of times where I did
have an interruption when I wasn't playing well and then
came back Todd Martin.
Speaker 9 (48:33):
I remember I had a problem.
Speaker 14 (48:37):
I had a backspasm just before well, just when I
was warping up against him, and I was down two
sets to one. Then I was struggling and we had
to come back the next day. And I came back
the next day and won the fourth and fifth you know,
relatively comfortably. But yeah, people don't tend to remember those
occasions because the focus was all on the Evenisovich match.
(48:59):
And sure, you know, I won the third set six love,
I think in fourteen minutes and only lost four points
and that's the fastest set my whole career in the
women's semi final. And at that stage, you know, gorm
was I think mentally pretty gone, but then the rain
came in the early part of the fourth set and
he was able to regroup and you know, go home
(49:20):
and you know, come back fresh the next day. So look,
that's that's just the way it goes. I I I'm
not the type of person that looks back a great deal.
I I you know, enjoy talking about it.
Speaker 9 (49:34):
But for me, I.
Speaker 14 (49:36):
I never dwelt on these things. And I'm just you know,
very proud of, you know, my career, and I still
love the game. I'm still involved in the game.
Speaker 7 (49:49):
And yeah, here we are.
Speaker 2 (49:53):
Now we're almost at the end. But there really are
so many great interviews available on the sitdown. But to
finish us off, Matt and Vivi spoke with one about
absolute favorite combos Christian and Casper would during the Cincinnati Open.
Speaker 6 (50:05):
Casper was that with those benchmarks that Christian set goals
for you or did you have different goals I.
Speaker 16 (50:10):
Had, Like I remember we had a school project once
when I was I don't know, twelve thirteen, and I
remember at that age I said that my main goal
was to be top fifty in the world within twenty
twenty five, I think, or something like this, which we
are at now. And I felt at twelve years old,
(50:34):
watching you know, all the greades on TV almost every day,
if I could Rafa Roger Nova, can all the other
ones stand you know, Suddling Swedish and a lot of
other guys, you know, you can just go on the name.
But that felt like a realistic goal because I felt
like Tennis had become you know, they were playing so
(50:56):
good Thatnis.
Speaker 7 (50:56):
I didn't I didn't necessarily think every day of my life.
Speaker 16 (50:59):
When I was twelve that I was going to be
number one in the world or top ten, that's what's
going to happen, like for certain So I set more
of a realistic goal, which I felt like was you know, humble,
but still being top fifty in the world is a
really really good achievement in itself. So I remember at
twelve that was like my main realistic goal and if
I reached that, I would be very proud.
Speaker 7 (51:21):
I was thinking back then, and then when I grew up, I.
Speaker 16 (51:27):
Was asked hundreds of times by the media and Norwegian
media like when are you going to beat your father
the record thirty nine?
Speaker 7 (51:34):
When you're going to beat him?
Speaker 17 (51:35):
This?
Speaker 4 (51:35):
That?
Speaker 6 (51:35):
In the sorry say, you know, that's fine.
Speaker 16 (51:39):
That's fine, because that's I'm going to get to the point.
But I was getting tired of it, you know, towards
the end, and I would always say, you know, I,
you know, it's not about when, it's about if if
you ask me, because I mean, reaching thirty nine in
the world in twenty twenty or twenty nineteen or whatever,
it's not like it's just going to happen guarantee.
Speaker 7 (51:58):
Like I think a lot of the.
Speaker 16 (52:01):
Media and Norway are very focused on soccer, and I
told them, you know, this is not soccer. You don't
sign a contract that you're going to be top twenty
in the world. You have to work your way up.
Every single spot is just purely based on your result
and having good results along the way. So sure, I'm
gonna try my best, and I hope I beat it
one day the record of being thirty nine ranked number
(52:21):
thirty nine, But and the sooner the better in a way.
Speaker 7 (52:24):
But I if I end.
Speaker 16 (52:27):
My career never having beaten that, and you know, let's
say I get to number fifty or forty, I will
still be happy with my career. But yeah, it was
nice to get it done because then they didn't need
to ask any more about the questions. But then the
other question came up, how did it feel when you
did it? So I've heard that one too, but it's
no problem. I think it's fun to talk about now.
(52:47):
And like he said, I think my dad was very
proud of it, and myself too. And since then, I
remember it quite clearly because it was one of the
last weeks before it shut down with COVID. I won
my first title in Buenos Aires back in twenty twenty February.
Oh yeah, and then I reached reached reach final in
Chile two a week later, which got me to like
(53:10):
thirty two or something like this, and then it shut down.
Speaker 7 (53:12):
We didn't play for like half years, So you know,
I was good. I was thirty two in the world,
I was home, didn't have to play.
Speaker 16 (53:17):
It was just you know, enjoying my time at home.
And I knew that i'd beaten the record. So I
think that COVID period would have been tough if I
was like forty two. You know, I couldn't, you know,
you know, yes, I'm happy that I was able to
do it right before. And then I think we did
some really good training in work during the COVID break,
let's call it of three four months, and I think
(53:39):
those who worked harder and you know, sophisticated, structured every day,
they kind of separated, not separated, but they had a
good curve after COVID, and you could clearly, you could
almost clearly see who didn't train that hard for those
four or five months and who kind of started fell
off a little bit. And we had that thing with
the ranking system was semi frozen and this and that.
(53:59):
So a lot of things happened. But since COVID, I've
just you know, only really gone steady, steady one way,
which is has been great.
Speaker 8 (54:07):
But I am.
Speaker 7 (54:12):
Since we started COVID.
Speaker 16 (54:13):
It went faster than I thought was maybe realistic. From
let's say August twenty twenty until August twenty two, I was.
I went from thirty two to number two in the world,
which is quite crazy when you think about it in
the span of just two years. Because two years ago
I wasn't like a very I was now like superstar.
As a junior, I didn't have like an unbelievable result.
(54:34):
So for me to go from ranked thirty two in
August or thirty let's say in August September twenty twenty,
and then two years later I played for world number
one and my first Slam title against Alcoholz in US
Open was an incredible curve that went, you know, honestly
quite fast, which was in a way a little life
(54:55):
changing in career changing for me, but it was of
course very fun. I think I'm glad that he watched
you a lot of tennis through through commentating at that time,
because Roger Raff and Novac, you know, they kind of
took it to a new level when they when they arrived,
and they were so dominant for all of their careers
pretty much, so they set the standard and bar really
(55:16):
high and it's a little bit, you know, they're it's unique,
you know, they're kind of generational.
Speaker 7 (55:23):
Few talents that.
Speaker 16 (55:24):
Come up, and those three I got to witness and
watch every day more or less for for my my
youth and childhood and tried to learn from all of them.
Speaker 7 (55:32):
Personally, I always kind of idolized.
Speaker 16 (55:34):
Rafa even more because I thought it was fun to
watch and when him and Roger played, it was like
fire and ice in terms that the games were very different,
but they they played some incredible matches in rallies all
the time.
Speaker 7 (55:45):
And then.
Speaker 16 (55:48):
So, yeah, there are pictures of me when I was young,
I was like wearing full raff out with even like
a wig, to have long hair and bandana.
Speaker 7 (55:55):
Yeah, yeah, so that was the Yeah.
Speaker 16 (55:58):
Just the only wish was that I was left him
maybe so I had exactly the same, But yeah, I
really really idolized him and realized, you know, I I am,
you have a big, big weapon from the from the baseline,
you can you can reach far. And of course there
are a lot of other things that needs to come
in place, you know, fitness, you know, the psychologically mentally
(56:18):
you need to be you know, also a good competitor
in these things. But yeah, groundstroke wise, I think my
dad had a plan for me to develop a big,
killer shot, and for me that was always the natural
shot was.
Speaker 7 (56:30):
The forehand for me.
Speaker 5 (56:31):
It must have been such a thrill to go from
admiring those players, particularly Raper, and then going on to
play such big matches against him.
Speaker 7 (56:40):
Yeah, it's really fun.
Speaker 16 (56:42):
You know, you have to pinch your arm every now
and then when you're when you're an athlete and you
watch you know, your idols become in a way rivals
and opponents.
Speaker 7 (56:51):
Is really fun.
Speaker 16 (56:52):
And I'm very proud because I get to I got
to play all three of them. And also I want
to add you know, Andy Murray in there, because he
was also a big part of my childhood, but.
Speaker 7 (57:00):
I was watching him a lot.
Speaker 16 (57:01):
He was always challenging them to like the highest level,
even though he didn't end up with as many slams
as them or these things, but he was always there
for my most part and challenging them. So having played
all those four has been kind of like a checklist
for me to say, I played, you know, the four
greatest players I watched when I grew up, and and yeah,
(57:22):
it's been really fun.
Speaker 7 (57:23):
I I never got to beat Roger Rafa, But.
Speaker 16 (57:29):
Yeah, I'm also proud to say I've beaten Andy and Novak,
and I have a bad record against Novak, but at
least I have one win, so that's something I'll take
with me. And you know, he's also inching towards the
end of his career unfortunately, but that's that's how it goes.
And yeah, the three the four of them had some
(57:49):
great matches down Under as well. I remember particularly many
matches where those four us they just took it to
like crazy level.
Speaker 7 (57:57):
Yeah, crazy level.
Speaker 6 (57:58):
I guess Kasper, You're bright through at a GRANDSLNG level.
Did come here when you made the second week of
a major for the first time in twenty twenty one,
Was it meaningful to reach the same round and have
your breakthrough at the same tournament the Christian, Yeah, I
would say so.
Speaker 7 (58:10):
I mean twenty twenty one was a very good year
for me in many ways.
Speaker 16 (58:15):
I think I won five eightyp too fifty tournaments, and
I reached a few semifinals in Masters thousands and such.
So that was a kind of a break three year
for me. Like we talked about earlier about the COVID break,
how I kind of started the fall twenty twenty as
number thirty or thirty five or whatever it was, and
then from there it just kind of gradually went a
(58:36):
little er, little higher, and twenty one was a big
year and a year I started believing that I could
have some good results because I was winning tournaments and
I reached some semis of a thousand, which was a
big result back back then and still is, don't get
me wrong, but for the first time and second and
third time, it's more it's more of a little bit of.
Speaker 7 (58:55):
A surprise for your career.
Speaker 16 (58:56):
But I didn't have a very good Slam result except
for Australia.
Speaker 7 (59:01):
I lost early in the Slams.
Speaker 16 (59:02):
So when twenty two came around, you know, that was
a big goal to have a good Slam result. And
then I reached two finals, which was a little also surprising.
I mean, first one happened in Paris, and then more
to surprise, was in New York.
Speaker 7 (59:16):
I remember I.
Speaker 16 (59:17):
Lost every practice set in the practice week to any
player I would lose, and then three weeks later I
was there in the final and played some of my
best hardcore tennis or tennis that I've ever played.
Speaker 7 (59:27):
So crazy, how tennis work sometimes.
Speaker 2 (59:30):
So there you go, just a handful of par large
from season two of The sit Down. If you like
what you heard, you could find all the full episodes
in the sit Down.
Speaker 7 (59:37):
Feed links are in the description at this app.
Speaker 2 (59:39):
The Tennis will be back next week with so much
more as we start building towards the year end finals.
Speaker 4 (59:44):
We'll catch it in. Have a great way, Hi everyone,
have s and Andy here.
Speaker 15 (59:49):
Just want to remind you that you can watch every
episode of The Tennis on our YouTube channel astrain Open TV.
Speaker 16 (59:53):
And you can also catch us on Tennis Plus by
heading to ozopen dot com forward slash Tennis Plus.
Speaker 17 (59:58):
And if you want to flick us a email feedback
thoughts on the show comments, we're at podcast at tennis
dot com DOTU. One of us too will read it,
but in the meantime we'll catch you in the next one.
Speaker 4 (01:00:09):
See yeah,
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