Good morning, Court Theorists! ☕️
Today’s tennis mood: Shocked + eagerly awaiting action.
Let’s tennis!
-Allen
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🎾 Finally: ESPN announced on Monday that Andy Roddick, one of the most insightful analytical minds in tennis, will join the broadcaster for Wimbledon and the U.S. Open this year. The former U.S. Open champ will provide studio and match coverage.
What he said: “Simply, I’m always just a massive fan of tennis. I’m very excited to join the ESPN tennis team and look forward to covering the two biggest tournaments in the world.”
Noteworthy: Roddick quickly pointed out that Served will not suffer one bit during those majors. But might there be a sponsorship clash again?
Question: Is ESPN going to rethink its stale coverage to take advantage of such a huge talent win?
🎾 One big upset: That belongs to Patrick Kypson, who defeated Alex de Minaur in the first round of Acapulco 6-1, 6-7, 7-6. The win marked his first tour-level win in nearly two years when he took down Ethan Quinn in the first round of Indian Wells in 2024.
What he said: “It feels amazing,” Kypson said after the match. “Everything was important. I had to serve well. I had to return well. I hit my forehand really big. Luckily, I was able to do those things for a pretty extended period of time.”
Next: Kypson faces fellow American Brandon Nakashima in the second round.
Honorable mention: Rafael Jodar otherwise would have had the upset of the day, decisively taking out Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-2.
🎾 Jack’s back!: Jack Draper pulled off his first tournament win since the U.S. Open, taking down Quentin Halys, 7-6, 6-3, in the first round in Dubai on Monday. Draper has been sidelined with injury for months, with several false starts in his attempt to return to competition.
What he said: “I’ve been craving the feeling of competing for a very long time,” Draper said in his post-match interview. “It just felt normal, it felt like I was coming back to doing what I love, which is being out here, competing, and having the adrenaline of winning and losing points.” He added: “It’s not been easy to be back here, and that’s something I can be really proud of. Long may it continue.”
Next: Draper faces Arthur Rinderknech.
🎾 One to watch: Venus Williams vs. Ajla Tomljanovic (1st round - WTA 250 - Austin): At this stage of her return to competitive tennis, we here at Court Theory HQ don’t miss Venus Williams matches. Each player gives the other exactly the kind of ball the other wants (and it’s the same thing): hard struck balls with a relatively straight trajectory. That should make for a ton of fun points.
The record: This will be the first time Venus Williams and Ajla Tomljanovic face each other.
On the line: This match is the same for both — the need for matches.
🎾 🏆 🎤 YOUR CALL
And that’s game.
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Now booking: Indian Wells, Roland-Garros, Wimbledon & more!
Matches we’re monitoring today:
Merida - WTA 500 (Hard)
Camila Osorio vs. Janice Tjen (1st rd)
Priscilla Hon vs. Renata Zarazua (1st rd)
Cadence Brace vs. Zeynep Sonmez (1st rd)
Jessica Bouzas Maneiro vs. Heather Watson (1st rd)
Austin - WTA 250 (Hard)
Anna Blinkova vs. Iva Jovic (1st rd)
Jessica Pegula vs. Rebecca Sramkova (1st rd)
Francesca Jones vs. Peyton Stearns (1st rd)
Lulu Sun vs. Caroline Dolehide (1st rd)
Ashlyn Krueger vs. Caty McNally (1st rd)
Anastasia Zakharova vs. Mary Stoiana (1st rd)
Dubai - ATP 500 (Hard)
Jan-Lennard Struff vs. Alexander Bublik (1st rd)
Ugo Humbert vs. Stefanos Tsitsipas (1st rd)
Luca Nardi vs. Jiri Lehecka (1st rd)
Jakub Mensik vs. Hubert Hurkacz (1st rd)
Zizou Bergs vs. Jenson Brooksby (1st rd)
Fabian Marozsan vs. Arthur Rinderknech (1st rd)
Otto Virtanen vs. Tallon Griekspoor (1st rd)
Acapulco - ATP 500 (Hard)
Terence Atmane vs. Grigor Dimitrov (1st rd)
Alexander Zverev vs. Corentin Moutet (1st rd)
Casper Ruud vs. Ybing Wu (1st rd)
Frances Tiafoe vs. Nuno Borges (1st rd)
Damir Dzhumur vs. Gael Monfils (1st rd)
Santiago - ATP 250 (Clay)
Emilio Nava vs. Matteo Berrettini (1st rd)
Juan Manuel Cerundolo vs. Cristian Garin (1st rd)
Mariano Navone vs. Vit Kopriva (1st rd)
Thiago Agustin Tirante vs. Ignacio Buse (1st rd)
📺 Learn how to watch today’s action over at Tennis Watchers.
💬 For real-time match commentary and conversation, follow Court Theory on Bluesky.
Emma Raducanu says she’s going coachless for a while – and a number of other interesting things in an interview with The Guardian.
Daniil Medvedev gets into the other side of the big prize money checks.
Continuing their series on best shots, Chris Eubanks and Andy Roddick move on to best serves.
Meanwhile, over on Tennis Insider Club, Caroline Garcia talks with Judy Murray.
