Major Update

We reached out to the ATP concerning the copyright issues which you already know about. However, no concrete solutions have been put in place yet. We hope to follow-up with them throughout the coming week, so that we can resume with our content production as usual.

On a more positive note, we are one step closer to bringing the Courtside Tennis merchandise to you. Once we have designs for you all, we will put out polls on the channel and the newsletter to let you guys decide which pieces you like best

New Video 

Lately, a lot of fans have formed new opinions about Iga Świątek Undoubtedly the main protagonist on the WTA Tour, Iga is looking to make more history at the French Open this year. We just did a deep dive on what makes her so difficult to beat, comparisons with her rivals, all-time greats, and some major narratives about her.

Interestingly, Elena Rybakina just buttressed one of our points at the press conference yesterday, saying that Aryna Sabalenka was a more difficult opponent for her than Iga Swiatek. In Rybakina’s words, “With Iga, I feel like I have more dominance just by my power over Iga. With Aryna, it's tougher.”

The comments section is already blowing up. Check out the video and let us know what you think. 

What Happened Last Week

ATP

Geneva

Last week was a loose cannon in Geneva. Early upsets with Ben Shelton and Taylor Fritz in the early rounds were followed with the biggest upset of the tournament; Novak Djokovic losing to Tomas Machac in the semis. However at the end of the day, it was Casper Ruud pulling double duty to win his third Geneva title after the 25-year-old Norwegian ousted Machac 7-5, 6-3 in the final. Ruud hit more winners and made way fewer errors while being solid on the serve and return overall. The result? A 12th ATP career title for the Norwegian.

Lyon

Top seed Ugo Humbert, #3 seed Adrian Mannarino, #4 seed Francisco Cerundolo, and #5 seed Frances Tiafoe were all upset in the round-of-16. Shocker there. But the biggest surprise of them all was seeing Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, a player ranked outside the Top 100, going all the way to win the title in Lyon. The 20-year-old Frenchman was sensational against the more experienced Tomás Martín Etcheverry in the final but it came down to tiny margins on crucial points as both players battled for almost 2 hours and 30 minutes. Gio was more successful at the net. He also wasted no time firing down winners from both wings.

WTA

Strasbourg

Madison Keys won her first clay court title since 2019 beating Danielle Collins in the all-American final in straight sets. Keys started the year dealing with a shoulder injury & missed the entire Australian swing. However, she slowly worked her way back into fitness and form. All the hard work paid off in Strasbourg as Keys captured her 8the career WTA singles title and first title of the year cruising past her compatriot Collins 6-1, 6-2 at the WTA 500 tournament.

Rabat

Peyton Stearns battled through two narrow victories to squeak into Saturday's championship match against Mayar Sherif of Egypt. However, it took the 22-year-old American just over an hour to dispatch Sherif 6-2, 6-1 en route to her maiden trophy on tour. You won’t see a cooler champion’s photoshoot than this.

The Biggest Movers Of The Week

ATP

Rankings Watch: After winning Lyon, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard breaks into the Top 100. Machac hits a new career high after impressing at Geneva. Check live ranking

WTA

Rankings Watch: Collins returns to the Top 10 for the first time since 2022 after reaching the final in Strasbourg. Madison Keys isn’t far behind Collins at #12 spot after beating her compatriot in the final. Mayar Sheriff eyes a return to the Top 50 after reaching the final in Rabat. Peyton Stearns sees a massive jump in the ranking after lifting the title in Morocco. Check live ranking

Major Tournament Updates

Roland Garros, Paris, France | 26 May - 9 June, 2024

The stage has been set for the battle for No.1 between Novak and Sinner. This table shows the permutations.

Novak must defend his title and hope that Sinner doesn’t make it to the final. These are their paths.

Elsewhere, Carlos Alcaraz says his arm is 100% fully recovered and he still plans to play doubles with Rafael Nadal at the Olympics. Speaking about the King of Clay, things are a little tricky for him with this lineup.

Watch Out For This Player

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard

Perricard became the lowest ranked player to win the title in the tournament’s history after saving a match point in his first final ever. Standing at 6 feet 8 inches, Perricard moves remarkably well for his height. I can’t see recall seeing a player so tall and athletic. On top of that, he has a huge serve, solid groundstrokes, and a lot of variety, not to mention his beautiful one-handed backhand. The kid’s got an aggressive game and we see him doing great things in the future.

HOT TAKES/PREDICTIONS

Nole’s Quarter

Top Seeds: Djokovic, Ruud, Paul, Mannarino, Cerundolo, Etcheverry, Musetti.

Upset Alert: Casper Ruud (Reason = Fatigue)

Dark Horse: Paul (The Americans are getting better on European clay duhhh.)

Quarterfinal pick: Djokovic (Reason = He’s the GOAT)

Sascha’s Quarter

Top Seeds: Zverev, Medvedev, De Minaur, Rune, Khachanov, Bublik, Griekspoor, Navone

Upset Alert: Rune (Reason = Poor form, low confidence)

Dark Horse: Rafael Nadal

Quarterfinal pick = Zverev (Reason = Great form, no weaknesses on the surface, historical success)

Alcaraz’s Quarter

Top Seeds: Alcaraz, Rublev, Tsitsipas, Shelton, Humbert, FAA, Korda, Fils

Upset Alert: Ugo Humbert (I cheated because he already lost but I swear I was gonna pick him)

Dark Horse: Zhang Zhizhen (Reason = Deep runs at Masters 1000 clay tournaments)

Quarterfinal pick: Alcaraz (Reason = Assuming his health is 100%, no one stands a chance)

Sinner’s Quarter

Top Seeds: Sinner, Hurkacz, Dimitrov, Jarry, Baez, Tabilo, Tiafoe, Norrie

Upset Alert: Frances Tiafoe ( Would have picked Dimitrov since things haven’t been clicking for him on clay this season but Tiafoe can’t stop losing.)

Dark Horse: Fabio Maroszan

Quarterfinal pick: Sinner ( Reason =Assuming he is 100% healthy, he has every shot in the book)

Semi final - Djokovic def. Zverev (5 sets)

Alcaraz def. Sinner (4 sets)

Final - Djokovic def. Alcaraz (4 sets)

N.B: I would argue that Roland Garros isn’t as wide open as it seems. It’s still within the Top 4 seeds for me.

Off The Court

Tsitsidosa Back Together

Stefanos Tsitsipas says he & Paula Badosa are back together. “We're together. I will explain why some people make up different stories about us. Not that I care, but I think people shouldn't take it that way. Paula didn’t do anything wrong, nor did I do anything wrong. It was hard for us being apart and I was going through some hard times too. I would say that I didn't manage it very well either, because I was feeling the pressure of the tour, of my work. It seemed like a mountain to combine these two (personal and professional life) and I made the decision to take a break. After two-three weeks I realized that she is a person who has supported me a lot and when she tried to talk to me about meeting I felt how intense the love we have for each other is. I realized that this relationship I have with Paula is completely different from any other relationship I have had in the past, I feel that she is my person and we understand each other. And that puts more value in everything I do and I want her by my side as often as possible. So yes, we've reconnected and we're in a good moment,” said Tsitsipas.

Sascha’s Court Case

Zverev says his domestic violence case isn’t impacting his tennis & there’s no chance he’ll lose in his trial. Here’s what Sascha said “… At the end of the day, I do believe in the German system. I do believe in the truth. I have to be certain that, you know, I know what I did, I know what I didn't do. That's, at the end of the day, what's going to come out, and I have to trust in that. Everything else is out of my hands. Not out of my hands, but I do believe that l'm not going to lose this procedure… There's absolutely no chance I am. That's why I can play calmly, and I think my results have been showing it.”

Trivia of the Week

Highlights of the Week

1. Baez Magic

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2. Shot of the Year?

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Until next time, keep swinging.

For The Love of Tennis