👋 Welcome back to The Daily Theory, our morning rundown to help you stay on top of your favorite sport. I’m Allen McDuffee, your guide to all things tennis.

Programming note: I’m still a touch under the weather (but on the mend!), so today’s edition is a bit abbreviated. Tomorrow should be back to normal. 🤞🏻

On tap today: Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray part ways, Arthur Fils takes on Alexander Zverev, plus more in today’s tennis news.

Let’s tennis!

One Big Story

🎾 The end of Djokovic-Murray: The experiment of Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray working together has ended after just four tournaments and six months. In that period, Djokovic had highs of reaching the semifinals of the Australian Open (before injury snatched his opportunity away) and the final of Miami. But there were many more lows that included four puzzling first-match losses.

  • An assessment: There may be plenty of reasons why the partnership didn’t work. But here’s a serious one: it was clear from everything we saw, the dynamic between the two was simply strange. Neither one of them was their natural selves. Two of the chirpiest players on tour suddenly became silent. For Djokovic, that meant bottled-up energy that was never released when he needed an adversary to unleash upon.
  • What they said: “Thank you, coach Andy, for all the hard work, fun and support over last six months on and off the court, really enjoyed deepening our friendship together,” Djokovic said in a statement. Murray added: “Thanks to Novak for the unbelievable opportunity to work together and thanks to his team for all their hard work over the past six months. I wish Novak all the best for the rest of the season.”
  • Next: Djokovic heads to Geneva for a 250 event for the second year in a row. Will he go back to being coachless, as he was before Murray joined his team? We’ll have to see.

And, that’s game.

What They Said

When I go on court, I have a plan how to play each player. But some shots, you just feel down-the-line is the right shot, and you just play it. You just smash it, because you’re feeling great...[Coaches] understand it’s good to have a plan, but for sure the player knows better what she can do on each point and what she feels more...Coach cannot say I don’t feel down-the-line shot today, or whatever. On court everything mostly depends on the player.

-Diana Shnaider on her need to play with creativity.

Watch This!

🔥 Arthur Fils vs. Alexander Zverev (4th round ATP 1000 - Rome): Watch this one because it’s a drama-filled battle that goes the distance every time they step on the court (okay, except their very first meeting in 2023). Watch for Fils to take the match to Zverev as he counterpunches. This match will likely come down to how well Fils serves and his ability to be disciplined about when to go for it and when to let Zverev crumble under his self-doubt.

  • The record: Alexander Zverev leads the head-to-head record over Arthur Fils, 3-2. However, Fils won their most recent meeting in Miami.
  • On the line: Fils, now number 14 in the world, is making a huge push toward the top 10. A win today could bump him up two more spots. Meanwhile, Zverev is still trying to right the ship on his year after falling in the Australian Open final. A fourth-round exit for the number two players in the world won’t help matters.
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For real-time match commentary and conversation, follow Court Theory on Bluesky.

On The Radar

More tennis matches we’re monitoring today:

Rome - WTA 1000 (Clay)

  • Jasmine Paolini vs. Diana Shnaider (Quarterfinals)
  • Peyton Stearns vs. Elina Svitolina (Quarterfinals)

Rome - ATP 1000 (Clay)

  • Karen Khachanov vs. Carlos Alcaraz (4th round)
  • Jannik Sinner vs. Francisco Cerundolo (4th round)
  • Jaume Munar vs. Casper Ruud (4th round)
  • Lorenzo Musetti vs. Daniil Medvedev (4th round)
  • Tommy Paul vs. Alex de Minaur (4th round)
  • Jack Draper vs. Corentin Moutet (4th round)
  • Hubert Hurkacz vs. Jakub Mensik (4th round)

📺 Learn how to watch today’s action over at Tennis Watchers.

Read, Watch, Listen

Thanks For Reading The Daily Theory!

For real-time match commentary and conversation, follow Court Theory on Bluesky.