👋 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.
On tap today: something stinks in France, injuries are piling up, Mirra Andreeva eyes a Porsche, Stefanos Tsitsipas takes on Sebastian Korda, plus more in today’s tennis news.
Let’s tennis!
Three Points
🎾 A lucky week: We’re only in the second week of the clay season — the most grueling one, according to the pros — and the withdrawals from injury are already piling up. Among the men, five lucky losers made it into the main draw in Munich after as many people pulled out with injuries. In Barcelona, there were three. On the women’s side, three players pulled out of Stuttgart and three more from Rouen. To be sure, it’s not all that unusual for players to save themselves for majors or 1000-level events. But this week’s withdrawal rates are still quite high.
🎾 Something stinks, alright: Harriet Dart has once again found herself in the middle of a controversy of her own making. On Tuesday, during her match against French player Lois Boisson, Dart asked the chair umpire if she could make her opponent wear deodorant, claiming “she smells really bad.”
What she said: “Can you tell her to wear deodorant,” Dart said to the chair umpire. “Because the smell,” Dart added. “Can you tell her to wear deodorant? She smells really bad.”
Quite a choice: Dart decision to play the role of Mean Girl while getting absolutely slaughtered 6-0, 6-3 is truly something else. Perhaps it’s of little surprise. Dart has a history of nasty behavior with anybody in the area of her matches — most notably fellow Brits.
Later: Dart apologized on Instagram, while Boisson poked fun at Dart and the situation.
🎾 Expediting victory: Emma Navarro lost just five points in the second set against Beatriz Maia Haddad, winning the first-round Stuttgart match 6-3, 6-0 — perhaps a turning points for Navarro, who has struggled in most of her matches so far this year.
What she said: “I’ve had a lot of long matches this year, and a lot of three-sets," Navarro said after the match. “To get it done a little bit quicker feels good. Proud of my form ... It’s my first tournament on red clay this year, so I’m leaning into it and having some fun out here.”
And, that’s game.
What They Said
The view on the center court is super nice. I already thought about which cars I would like to get. But we’re not there yet. I’m just looking around. I still don’t have my driver's license.
-Mirra Andreeva on the possibility of winning a car at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart this week.
Watch This!
🔥 Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Sebastian Korda (2nd round ATP 500 - Barcelona): There is something about this match-up that brings out the best tennis in each of them. Let’s see if that holds true at a time when each of them lost early in Monte Carlo. Expect lots of big ball striking from each, with Tsitsipas looking to close off points at the net. This match will likely come down to how well each of them serves and returns.
The record: The head-to-head record between Stefanos Tsitsipas and Sebastian Korda is tied at one apiece. But! Both matches have been played on hard court, adding a new challenge to today’s match.
On the line: Tsitsipas has finalist points to defend in Barcelona. An early exit could mean dropping outside the top 20 after being a top 10 player just two weeks ago. More than that, it would mean a rough streak that would need to be corrected going into Roland-Garros next month, where he has even more points to defend. For Korda, this match is about getting a win just so he can get more clay matches under his belt, particularly given his first-round loss to Lehecka last week in Monte Carlo.
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For real-time match commentary and conversation,
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On The Radar
More tennis matches we’re monitoring today:
Stuttgart - WTA 500 (Clay)
Mirra Andreeva vs. Erika Andreeva (1st round)
Jana Fett vs. Iga Swiatak (2nd round)
Elise Mertens vs. Diana Shnaider (2nd round)
Rouen - WTA 250 (Clay)
Bernarda Pera vs. Linda Noskova (1st round)
Bianca Andreescu vs. Suzan Lamens (1st round)
Elina Svitolina vs. Jil Teichmann (1st round)
Munich - ATP 500 (Clay)
Luciano Darderi vs. Miomir Kecmanovic (2nd round)
Botic van de Zandschulp vs. Ben Shelton (2nd round)
Tallon Griekspoor vs. Yannick Hanfmann (2nd round)
Barcelona - ATP 500 (Clay)
Pedro Martinez vs. Arthur Fils (2nd round)
Holger Rune vs. Sebastian Baez (2nd round)
Hamad Medjedovic vs. Casper Ruud (2nd round)
📺 Learn how to watch today’s action over at Tennis Watchers.
Read, Watch, Listen
Jelena Ostapenko dishes on her speed demon driving and hopes the Latvian police aren’t watching.
Dominic Thiem is in Munich as a spectator.
Diego Dedura-Palomero, the 17-year-old Spaniard, made history on Tuesday.
And logged quite the celebration after winning by retirement.
Thanks For Reading The Daily Theory!
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