Podcast appearances and mentions of Carl Bialik

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 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.

This year, I ranked the top 128 players of the last 100 years. I wrote long-form essays about each one, which I've published over the last eleven months. Carl Bialik joined me for a podcast episode to mark the end of the project. We solicited questions, and many of you came through--we ended up with a list of over 200 questions! Spoiler alert: Even after three hours, we didn't get through them all. I may write something in the next couple of weeks touching on some of the questions we didn't have time for. We talk about the algorithm, players with controversial rankings (or no rankings at all), reactions to the project, and much, much more.

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."

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 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."

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."

We're up to #115 in The Tennis 128, my year-long countdown of the greatest players of the last century. Carl joins me to talk about #115 herself, Rosie Casals. We also do a book-club episode of sorts, discussing Grace Lichtenstein's 1974 book, A Long Way, Baby, which covered the 1973 WTA season, including plenty of great material on Casals. Carl and I talk about whether the 2020s game would allow for such an insider's account of a year on tour, why players seem less unique than Rosie and her peers did, and whether Casals's reputation does her justice. We consider whether today's game would be better off with top players who are more committed to competing week-in, week-out, whether 1970s-style barnstorming would open up new markets for tennis, and why Margaret Court got massacred on Mother's Day and Billie Jean straight-setted the same opponent a few months later. Also, Jeff answers a few questions about The Tennis 128 so far.

Carl Bialik rejoins the podcast to talk about player #127 on the Tennis 128, Stan Wawrinka. We consider how he improved so late in his career, what role Magnus Norman played in the transformation, how he might have fared in other eras, and much more. We start by recapping some highlights from the Australian Open, particularly the domination of Ashleigh Barty and the difficulty of forecasting a return to form such as the one we saw from Rafael Nadal. If you've had enough Australian Open talk by now, skip to start of the Wawrinka discussion at 28:15.

A digressive novel centered on a 16th-century real tennis match inspires a discussion that strays far afield from the contents of the book itself. Carl Bialik and I get into the advantages and difficulties of writing blow-by-blow descriptions of points, how many numbers is too many numbers, the various ways theatrical productions depict tennis, and why tennis fans seem so insecure.

How much do we need to revise our assessment of Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal after their early losses in Monte Carlo this year? Carl Bialik and I discuss the week that was in the principality from many angles, starting with those two key upsets. Is Stefanos Tsitsipas now the biggest threat to Nadal at Roland Garros? Has Djokovic fallen back to the pack? Has Rafa lost a step? Is Dan Evans someone worth watching on clay now? Can a slice backhand ever be a weapon on a slow surface? What can flat hitters do to overcome their disadvantage on clay? We have lots of questions, and offer at least a few potential answers.

Ashe's 1993 memoir gives us a chance to get inside the mind of one of the most important figures in tennis history. He was the first African American man to rise to the top of the tennis world, played a leading role in the professionalization of the sport, took on apartheid South Africa, captained the U.S. Davis Cup team through the turbulent Connors-McEnroe era, and ultimately used his battle with AIDS as an opportunity to educate the public and raise money to fight the disease. Carl Bialik and I talk about whether he is sufficiently remembered in tennis today, whether his game was as mercurial as he claimed, how he compares to Billie Jean King, and whether we should chill out about the latest round of changes to the Davis Cup.

Carl Bialik joins me for a recap of the Miami Open, with a particular focus on the Italian teenager who reached the final there. Sinner has a relatively weak first serve, but seems to do everything else right. We talk about how to balance what he is with what he could be, the importance of his evident emotional maturity, whether he'll eventually win more first serve points, how well he'll fare on clay this year, and just how much we can compare him with Rafael Nadal. We also touch on the man who beat Sinner in the Miami final, Hubert Hurkacz. Is a 24-year-old without any obvious elite-level weapons still on the rise, or will the Masters 1000 title mark his career peak?

How do we fight the pandemic without losing everything we're fighting for? Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik discuss how to focus the fight on what works best, how to avoid an absolutist stand with impossibly high standards, and whether we can abandon the measures that are more like the performance of safety. Episode reading list: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/12/briefing/trump-covid-chick-corea-olympics-president.html https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/12/americas-bipartisan-covid-19-illiteracy/617368/ https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/04/upshot/epidemiologists-virus-survey-.html https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/11/pandemic-restrictions-no-logic/617204/ https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/02/hygiene-theater-still-waste/617939/ https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/07/scourge-hygiene-theater/614599/ https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/08/wear-your-mask-and-stop-talking/615796/ https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/18/world/asia/covid-cleaning.html https://nypost.com/2021/01/19/3-out-of-4-riders-say-mta-cleaning-for-covid-makes-them-feel-safer/

The U.S. and Europe have grown accustomed to hearing about vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson. How about vaccines developed in Russia, China, and India that have been administered for weeks or months and are being given to millions of people in dozens of countries? Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik consider the varied approaches to vaccination and ask whether there's a better way. Episode reading list: https://zeynep.substack.com/p/why-you-should-take-any-vaccine https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/02/08/the-sputnik-v-vaccine-and-russias-race-to-immunity https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/india-coronavirus-vaccinations/2021/01/15/342a7282-55c9-11eb-acc5-92d2819a1ccb_story.html https://www.wsj.com/articles/argentina-is-a-testing-ground-for-moscows-global-vaccine-drive-11610965529 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-06/putin-s-once-scorned-vaccine-is-now-a-favorite-in-pandemic-fight https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/russia-coronavirus-vaccine-sputnik/2020/11/25/8ebb62fe-186d-11eb-8bda-814ca56e138b_story.html?itid=lk_interstitial_manual_23 https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/2/9/russia-china-seek-to-expand-mena-influence-through-vaccines

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."

Before the novel coronavirus emerged, we had rankings of countries' readiness. Now we have rankings of countries' responses, using all kinds of measures. Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik consider the rankings. Do we know enough to say how well people and their governments have responded? How much does luck play a role? Is it too early for a true assessment? Please let us know what you think of this and other episodes, and what you want us to cover next, in our feedback form: https://forms.gle/ik7Mifxq7HMrg2nL8 Episode reading list: https://news.yahoo.com/brazils-covid-19-response-worst-023523992.html https://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2020/07/which-country-has-had-the-best-response-to-the-coronavirus.html https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-02596-8 https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2021-01-03/singapore-s-covid-success-isn-t-easily-replicated http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jan/03/swedish-model-failed-covid-19 https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/12/22/sweden-coronavirus-covid-response/ https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-01-22/how-winter-california-covid-19-surge-got-so-bad https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/01/15/ireland-has-one-of-the-worlds-highest-covid-19-infection-rates https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/23/business/coronavirus-vaccines-global-economy.html

Are masks truly the lowest-cost major measure we can take to curb the pandemic? Why do some people refuse to wear them? And why do most people in many countries still not have high-quality masks? Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik dive into the data and confusing messaging around masks. Please let us know what you think of this and other episodes, and what you want us to cover next, in our feedback form: https://forms.gle/ik7Mifxq7HMrg2nL8 Episode reading list: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/20/nyregion/nyc-face-masks.html https://www.slowboring.com/p/the-masks-and-the-experts https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/01/why-arent-we-wearing-better-masks/617656/ https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-19-was-consuming-india-until-nearly-everyone-started-wearing-masks-11609329603 https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/17/opinion/coronavirus-face-masks.html https://www.vox.com/2020/3/31/21198132/coronavirus-covid-face-masks-n95-respirator-ppe-shortage https://www.aier.org/article/the-question-of-masks/

From lockdowns to research spending to vaccine prioritization, every pandemic decision involves tradeoffs. Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik ask for better data to decide on tradeoffs, and clearer communication from leaders about how they decided what to trade. Please let us know what you think of this and other episodes, and what you want us to cover next, in our feedback form: https://forms.gle/ik7Mifxq7HMrg2nL8 Episode reading list: https://www.wired.com/story/group-house-covid-risk-points/ https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1350416428025962498.html  

Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik ask how well we're doing in administering the Covid-19 vaccine, what we can learn from the country at the top of the scoreboard, and whether it's such a bad idea to use a popular tech platform to schedule inoculations. As always, there are caveats. Please let us know what you think of this and other episodes, and what you want us to cover next, in our feedback form: https://forms.gle/ik7Mifxq7HMrg2nL8 Episode reading list: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/us/covid-19-vaccine-doses.html https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/covid-vaccine-slow-rollout/2021/01/11/2e804898-5100-11eb-bda4-615aaefd0555_story.html https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1348599933650296832.html https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/vaccine-roll-out-israels-circumstances-arent-special-zvi-schreiber/?trackingId=eEZAhJjV98AQo5Zyz7GHnA%3D%3D

Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik discuss how the virus variants make the pandemic's exponents all the more dangerous, and consider ways to protect more people from outbreaks fueled by the more-contagious mutations.  Please let us know what you think of this and other episodes, and what you want us to cover next, in our feedback form: https://forms.gle/ik7Mifxq7HMrg2nL8 Episode reading list: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/12/virus-mutation-catastrophe/617531/ https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/24/world/covid-mutation.html  

Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik explore the numbers behind superspreader events. What makes an event a superspreader, how do we know the extent of the spread, and will society change permanently to stop them? Please let us know what you think of this and other episodes, and what you want us to cover next, in our feedback form: https://forms.gle/ik7Mifxq7HMrg2nL8 Episode reading list: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/12/10/nation/biogen-conference-boston-likely-linked-330000-covid-19-cases-worldwide-researchers-say/ https://gijn.org/2020/10/26/tracking-the-superspreader-events-driving-the-covid-19-pandemic/ https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/15/world/asia/india-coronavirus-shramik-specials.html https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2020/10/22/trumps-campaign-made-stops-nationwide-then-coronavirus-cases-surged/3679534001/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/09/08/worst-case-scenerios-sturgis-rally-may-be-linked-266000-coronavirus-cases-study-says/ https://slate.com/technology/2020/09/sturgis-rally-covid19-explosion-paper.html https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-soccer-match-that-kicked-off-italys-coronavirus-disaster-11585752012

Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik dig into herd immunity: Is there really such a thing, how do we get there, and how will we know we have? Please let us know what you think of this and other episodes, and what you want us to cover next, in our feedback form: https://forms.gle/ik7Mifxq7HMrg2nL8 Reading list: https://www.jhsph.edu/covid-19/articles/achieving-herd-immunity-with-covid19.html https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-02948-4 https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/09/herd-immunity-is-not-a-strategy/615967/ https://www.quantamagazine.org/the-tricky-math-of-covid-19-herd-immunity-20200630/ https://ccdd.hsph.harvard.edu/2020/12/17/covid-19-vaccines-and-herd-immunity/

Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik analyze what's lost and gained when students are kept out of the classroom, and we plead for more data and research on the best way to keep students and staff safe and effective.

Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik discuss the coronavirus vaccines that are making their way into arms around the world as we speak. How did we get them so quickly? How useful are they likely to be? And who should get them first, a nurse or LeBron James?

Co-hosts Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik discuss how small changes and uncertainty in R0, Rt, and K can have big impacts on the pandemic—and the challenges of translating all that into a clear public-health message. Relevant links: https://rt.live/ http://metrics.covid19-analysis.org/

In the pilot episode of their new podcast about Covid-19, Jeff Sackmann and Carl Bialik discuss the forthcoming U.S. holiday, Thanksgiving, and the public-health recommendations against big celebratory gatherings. Taking an analytical approach to the virus, Jeff and Carl discuss: Whether small gatherings are a major source of infection; How limits to data availability are holding back policy; How incentives, creativity, and harm reduction could aid the fight  

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."

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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."

Jeff is joined by Carl Bialik and Jeff McFarland, dipping our collective toe into a debate in the tennis coaching world. With rallies short and aggressive, should players be using practice time differently? What types of skills can still be improved, once a player has reached the top? What tactics can a coach teach their charges, and which ones are too deeply ingrained in the physical nature of hitting the shots? Is a 3- or 4-shot rally qualitatively different from a 5- or more-shot rally? How would you teach Madison Keys to retain the positives of her aggressive style while dialing back the aggression a bit? We offer more questions than answers, which seems appropriate for a topic that is far from settled, and is likely to remain controversial for years to come.

Jeff is joined by Carl Bialik and Jeff McFarland, trying out a new format for a new year. We dig into the new ATP Cup, considering whether the format is appealing to players and fans, how we should feel about odd matchups between players hundreds of ranking places apart, and--most importantly--what captains should be doing with the stats available to them. We also look at the top of the WTA ranking table, considering whether Ashleigh Barty will continue her reign for another twelve months, or if Bianca Andreescu--or Karolina Pliskova--will topple her.