Thirty Love: Conversations About Tennis

Returning guest Matt Marolf (@mattmarolf), who writes match previews for big tournaments year-round, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik after the 2023 U.S. Open to recap the tournament and Matt's prescient picks, predict the careers of the finalists, and air grievances about the sport we love and love to find ways to make better. Links: Matt on Twitter Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."  

Jeff Sackmann, proprietor of the stats and history site Tennis Abstract, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about Battles, Boycotts, and Breakouts: 1973 Redux, Jeff's project to revisit memorable moments from the pivotal tennis season of a half-century ago. Carl and Jeff discuss the 50th anniversary of equal prize money at the U.S. Open, what made 1973 special, and how 2023 might look 50 years from now.  Links: 1973 Redux Tennis Abstract Jeff on Twitter Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2023 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Tumaini Carayol, the Guardian's tennis correspondent, joins the show to talk about players who have caught his eye and had memorable matches at this tournament: Frances Tiafoe, Caroline Wozniacki, Daria Kasatkina, and Andy Murray. He also talks about the rise of hard-court sliding. Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2023 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Jim Chairusmi, part of the Wall Street Journal's team covering the 2023 U.S. Open, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about tennis pros leaving the sport to play pickleball, and how the Average Joe, Jane, and Jim would do against pro tennis players. Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2023 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Giri Nathan, who writes about tennis for Defector and Racquet, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about his experience covering the French Open and Wimbledon in person for the first time, how tennis speeding up might have slowed it down, and the joys of Wide Tennis and Greek Yogurt. Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2023 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Matt Marolf (@mattmarolf), who writes match previews for big tournaments year-round, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik after they played a tennis match ahead of the 2023 U.S. Open to preview the tournament, explain his process for researching players and matches, share insights from a week on the grounds before the event began, and rant about the sport's rulebook.

Returning guest Matt Marolf, who writes match previews for big tournaments year-round, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik after they played a windy tennis match to wrap the 2022 U.S. Open, preview the rest of the season, and solve all of tennis's problems along the way: how a change to the scoring system could simplify the fan experience and prevent late finishes, what to do about faulty let calls, which singles runner-up will win their first major first, and what to watch for at Laver Cup and the WTA tour finals. Links: Matt Marolf on Twitter Thirty Love returned for a mini-season around the 2022 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Jeff Sackmann, proprietor of the stats and history site Tennis Abstract, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about the Tennis 128, Jeff's project to name and profile the 128 greatest tennis players from 1919 to the present. Carl and Jeff discuss the project's progress, whether players at the U.S. Open have a shot at better spots, and how Jeff will handle the response when he unveils his algorithm's ranking of the very best.  Links: The Tennis 128 Tennis Abstract Jeff on Twitter (while he's still there, anyway) Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2022 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Caitlin Thompson, co-founder of Racquet, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to catch up on what's new at her tennis media company: Racquet House, Ambush Tennis, and dealmaking. We also talk about junior wheelchair tennis at the U.S. Open, what makes something Racquet, and what she has learned about her audience. Links: Caitlin on Twitter Racquet on Twitter Racquet in Hellgate Racquet House Ambush Tennis 1976 Davis Cup final Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2022 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Jim Chairusmi, part of the Wall Street Journal's team covering the 2022 U.S. Open, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik the day after Serena Williams's loss in what she has said will be her final tournament, to talk about what's next for her and he sister Venus Williams. We also talk about what's left in the tournament and memories of Tom Perrotta. Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2022 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Giri Nathan, who writes about tennis for Defector and Racquet, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik the day after Serena Williams's loss in what she has said will be her final tournament, to talk about what he saw at her last match of this tournament. We also talk about whether there will ever be an event like her retirement at a future Open, and about Nathan being awarded the inaugural Tom Perrotta Prize for Tennis Journalism by the International Tennis Writers Association during this year's tournament. Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2022 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Tumaini Carayol, the Guardian's tennis correspondent, joins the show right after Serena and Venus Williams lost their first-round doubles match, and ahead of Serena Williams's third-round match in singles, to marvel at how thoroughly Serena and her retirement have dominated the tournament — and how realistic a long stay in the draw suddenly looks for the 23-time major singles champ. We also talk about the prospects of British men's hopes Jack Draper, Cam Norrie, and Andy Murray. Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2022 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Filmmaker Barney Douglas, director of the new Showtime documentary "McEnroe," joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about how a non-tennis diehard came to make a film about John McEnroe, how New York City became a costar, the interview that got away, and which tennis figure he'd want to profile next. Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2022 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Matt Marolf, who writes match previews for big tournaments year-round and teaches Thirty Love host Carl Bialik a thing or two on the court in between, joins the show to preview the 2022 U.S. Open: how far Serena Williams can go, what her entry in the doubles draw means, favorites in the women's and men's draws, and tips for attending the tournament. Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2022 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Returning guest Ian Katz, who has been playing and following tennis for nearly 50 years, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to weigh in on major tennis debates ahead of the 2022 U.S. Open: should head-to-head records count when evaluating who is the most accomplished player, should the sport allow in-match coaching, and more. Thirty Love is back for a mini-season around the 2022 U.S. Open. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Tim Wigmore, sports journalist for The Telegraph and co-author of The Best: How Elite Athletes are Made, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to apply his sports-science insights to tennis: why younger siblings thrive in tennis and other sports, how Andre Agassi figured out how to beat Boris Becker, and how the pandemic upended 2020 for athletes and the people who write about them. Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Racquet Magazine cofounder Caitlin Thompson, cohost of The Racquet Podcast and The Main Draw, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about the new book collecting the best of Racquet, how the pandemic did and didn't affect the latest issue of Racquet, and how to celebrate a fan-free US Open with friends, Racquet-style. Previously on Thirty Love: Caitlin Thompson On The Expanding Racquet Empire Caitlin Thompson on Racquet Magazine's Sophomore Surge Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Tennis enthusiast Ana Mitric, who refers to herself as a fake Serb and not quite a journalist, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about the tennis world's English-language bias and what the tennis media missed about Novak Djokovic and the ill-fated Adria Tour.   Previously on Thirty Love: Katrina Williams on Djokovic Fandom Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Rodney Rapson, PlaySight's managing director for Europe & UK, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about the company's role in staging and televising the return of live pro tennis, how to write the rules on sports safety during a pandemic, and the way to host an event with the fewest possible people. Trying something new: The episode has bonus content after the first 30 minutes. If you want to leave before we get to Minute 31, the first playing of the outro music is your cue.  Previously on Thirty Love: Ben Rothenberg On PlaySight PlaySight's Chen Shachar On Helping Tennis Players To Know Themselves Have feedback, a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, or anything else you want to say? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Freelance tennis writer Ben Rothenberg, host of the No Challenges Remaining tennis podcast, rejoins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about the pandemic's effect on the tennis writing business, the seismic effect the tours' interruption could have on its power balance, and his first two acts if he became commissioner of tennis (Carl's idea). Previously on Thirty Love: Ben Rothenberg On PlaySight Ben Rothenberg On Exposing The Darko Grncarov Myth Ben Rothenberg On Former Phenom Monique Viele Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Matt Marolf, writer for UbiTennis, rejoins his neighbor Carl Bialik—host of Thirty Love—from an appropriate social distance to talk about Roger Federer's tweeted support for a WTA-ATP merger, speculate wildly (OK, that's mostly Carl) about what drove the move and what might come next, and discuss which member(s) of tennis's Murray family would make the best boss of tennis.  Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Former college tennis player Alex Aksanov, now a coach and a physical therapist at a Brooklyn hospital, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about helping people with coronavirus recover their health and strength, exercises for the homebound tennis player without a net, and the joys and heartbreak of finding a tennis court to play on in New York City. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Carlos Silva, the CEO of World TeamTennis, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about planning for the possible return of the pro game; the range of possibilities for what could constitute World TeamTennis in an age of physical distancing; and why this unusual season could be unusually American, or atypically global. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Craig Shapiro, host of the Under Review Tennis Podcast, joins Thirty Love podcast host Carl Bialik to talk about tennis organizations and players uniting during the virus-induced shutdown of sports, which classic matches to watch when there are no live ones, and how he's built and grown his 20-month-old show. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Matt Marolf, writer for UbiTennis, joins his neighbor Carl Bialik—host of Thirty Love—from an appropriate social distance to talk about Wimbledon's cancellation, the implications for the record books, and how tennis might come back—as a live sport, a spectator sport, and a participatory sport—before the tours are ready to return.  Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Cecil Harris, author of the books Different Strokes and Charging the Net about black tennis history, rejoins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about his sense that the Williams sisters will retire in 2020, why young African-American men aren't picking up tennis racquets, and where the Black Tennis Hall of Fame should make its home. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Dan Golden, senior editor at ProPublica and author of The Price of Admission, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about the ProPublica article he co-wrote entitled "An Unseen Victim of the College Admissions Scandal: The High School Tennis Champion Aced Out by a Billionaire Family"; all the ways college admission for sports can bypass merit; and who's harmed when wealthy parents buy spots on teams for their children. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Taiwan men's tennis No. 1 Jason Jung, fresh off reaching his second straight New York Open quarterfinal, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about his aspiration to break into the top 100 and qualify for the Olympics, how close he came to never playing professional tennis, and why he used to blog more. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Doctor, farmer, and peace activist Peter Underwood joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about his book The Pros: The Forgotten Era Of Tennis. Underwood explains why tennis took so long to go professional, what motivated pros such as Jack Kramer and Rod Laver to endure tough conditions for small purses, and how today's top men would do as barnstormers. Underwood works with the Medical Association for Prevention of War, the founder of ICAN (the International Campaign Against Nuclear Weapons) and the recipient of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize. His forthcoming book is a collection of poetry. He lives in Perth and runs a small farm in Denmark, West Australia. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Freelance tennis writer Ben Rothenberg, host of the No Challenges Remaining tennis podcast, rejoins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about his two-part series for Racquet about Monique Viele, who was hyped as the next big star in tennis but never won a tour-level match. Among the adults who helped make Viele a millionaire while possibly hurting her tennis prospects: Donald Trump. Previously on Thirty Love: Ben Rothenberg On PlaySight Ben Rothenberg On Exposing The Darko Grncarov Myth Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Filmmaker Theo Anthony, director of ESPN Films 30 for 30 Shorts documentary Subject to Review, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about the origin story of instant replay in sports, how cricket does it better, and why the 2018 World Tour Finals set the perfect stage for his film. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Guitar repair hero and tennis-racquet expert Ethan Lee rejoins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about Lee's idea for a new kind of tennis tiebreaker: the Aphabreaker, in which not every point is created equal. Lee explains how his innovation puts the serve in its rightful place and suggests ways tennis can embrace new formats to find the best ones it's never tried. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Novelist Benjamin Markovits rejoins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about his two books that touch on tennis: "A Weekend In New York" and its sequel, "Christmas in Austin." On the publication day of his latest book, and after a tennis match with his podcast host, Markovits describes how solitary an athlete's existence can be, whether in career or out, in a team sport or an individual one; how a retired tennis pro in the midst of a breakdown can make a lot of reasonable points; and how a career of competition can into an entire life viewed through the lens of competition. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Author Ann Leary, whose 2013 Modern Love essay in The New York Times "Rallying to Keep the Game Alive" was adapted for the Modern Love streaming series this year, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about how tennis has fit into her marriage to her husband (actor Denis Leary), why she has been using a one-handed backhand lately, and whether the tennis tradition can make way for alternative rules. A recent New York Times interview with Leary about her essay Leary on the Modern Love podcast Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Patrick Moran, who recently became the president of Racketlon USA, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about who joined tennis with three other racquet sports to form racketlon, how the sport has grown worldwide, which discipline is most prone to blowouts, and what makes racketlon so mentally tough. Wall Street Journal video on racketlon Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Former Top 5 player Julie Heldman rejoins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about what she learned while touring to promote her memoir "Driven: A Daughter's Odyssey," why she's glad she decided to include her struggle with mental illness in the book, how tennis has changed since she retired, and what it was like to narrate her story for the book's new audio edition. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Alex Tilney, author of The Expectations, joins his longtime friend and occasional racquet-sports opponent Carl Bialik to talk about how squash figures in both his novel and an exclusive slice of American society, why substituting tennis for squash would have made for a very different tale, and what tennis and squash can learn from each other about keeping spectators entertained. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Gay and longtime tennis writer Tom Perrotta rejoin Thirty Love host Carl Bialik from the US Open to wrap the 2019 tournament: the epic men's final, Bianca Andreescu's earth-shaking win, the preeminence of women's tennis, and what it'll all look like in five years. Listen to Jason Gay's prior appearances on Thirty Love: after the 2018 US Open, after the 2017 US Open, and in July 2017. Listen to Tom Perrotta's prior appearances on Thirty Love: from the 2018 US Open, in October 2017, in July 2017, and in May 2017. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Host Carl Bialik's friends Amanda Herling and Morlene Chin joined him on the last day of the 2019 US Open for their first live-tennis experience. They share their impressions, including a newfound love for doubles, immense appreciation for wheelchair tennis, and a preference for watching tennis from on high. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, during the US Open or beyond? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Laura Wagner, who covers tennis and sports media for Deadspin, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik from the US Open to talk about Bianca Andreescu's swagger, Nick Kyrgios's ennui, tennis's web of conflicts of interest, and how to make the sport more exciting. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, during the US Open or beyond? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Kamakshi Tandon, who is covering the US Open for tennis.com, rejoins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik from the Open to talk about the rise of tennis emotions, positive and negative; what social media has done for tennis and what it can still do; and how to make the sport a better TV product. Listen to Kamakshi's 2018 appearance on Thirty Love. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, during the US Open or beyond? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Rose Hobson, coordinator of volunteers for the US Open bookstore, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik from the US Open to talk about her favorite tennis book, her own tennis game, how the Open has changed, and the volunteer life at the tournament. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, during the US Open or beyond? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Tumaini Carayol, a sportswriter for The Guardian, rejoins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik from the US Open to talk about Serena Williams's candor after her fourth-round win, Coco Gauff's precociousness and penchant for doubles, and the young men's stars' heel turns. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, during the US Open or beyond? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Jim Chairusmi, who writes and edits sports articles at The Wall Street Journal, rejoins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik from the US Open to share ideas for how to expand the sport, from tiebreaks at 4-4 to reaching the platonic ideal of two-hour matches to 3-on-1 against Novak Djokovic. He also makes his title picks. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, during the US Open or beyond? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Glenn Gilliam, executive director of strategic partnerships for the documentary film "Althea," joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik at the US Open to talk about the new Althea Gibson sculpture on the grounds, how Gibson compares to Serena Williams, and what's holding tennis back from being more representative of the world around it today. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, during the US Open or beyond? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Liz Weil, writer-at-large for the New York Times Magazine under the byline Elizabeth Weil, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about Weil's profile of Venus Williams for the Times Magazine, covering tennis as an outsider, whether there would have been Venus without Serena, and what's next for Venus. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, during the US Open or beyond? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Adriana Isaza-Mohring, founder of the New York City-based Elite Tennis Travel company, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik at the US Open to talk about what the "elite" in the name means, why Havana has been such a hit with her customers, and her own playing career's very different travel style. Have a suggestion for a Thirty Love guest, during the US Open or beyond? Email Carl at bialik@pm.me Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Eric Goulder, the artist who conceived of and created the new Althea Gibson sculpture at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center unveiled on the first day of main-draw play at the 2019 US Open, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about what he learned about Gibson during the creative process, why he normally doesn't like sports sculptures, and how he hopes technology will make his artwork a living and evolving creation. Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Don Van Natta Jr., host and executive producer of the new ESPN show Backstory, joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about the debut episode of his new show, on the 2018 US Open women's final. Won by Naomi Osaka over Serena Williams, the match was overshadowed by chair umpire Carlos Ramos's officiating and Williams's reaction. Van Natta and Bialik talk about the controversy's impact on tennis, why new footage adds to the case that Williams received the barred coaching instruction, and what happened when Williams and Ramos met privately immediately after the match's conclusion. Listen to Don's 2017 appearance on Thirty Love. Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Tennis journalist Reem Abulleil joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik from the US Open to talk about the struggle to find stories in qualifying, the unique approach the US Open takes to qualies, why she finds it essential to be on site even when travel logistics pose a burden, why she launched a Patreon, and how she finds stories in every interview she conducts with players. Listen to Reem's 2017 appearance on Thirty Love. Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."

Economist Ian Fillmore of Washington University joins Thirty Love host Carl Bialik to talk about his recent co-authored study on how racquet change disrupted tennis, gave rise to faulty predictions, and lifted a young generation of stars.  Music by Lee Rosevere: "Credit Roll" and "Glass Android."