Perspectives from the next wave of world-class investors and operators
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Tennis Unfiltered is a weekly podcast where we try to make sense - tactical, ethical, emotional sense - of the tennis world. And we don't hold back.
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French Open, Round Two: Raducanu out, Gasquet retires and the game of the tournament
54:19
54:19
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54:19This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered Seeds out: (ATP) Ruud, De Minaur, Mensik, Tsitsipas, Humbert, Davidovich Fokina, Shapovalov, Mpetshi Perricard; (WTA) Shnaider, …
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French Open, Round One: Norrie produces upset and Sinner wears worst outfit ever
23:34
23:34
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23:34This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered ATP seeds out: Medvedev, Fritz, Dimitrov, Cerundolo, Machac, Nakashima, Auger-Aliassime, Hurkacz, Michelsen WTA seeds out: Navar…
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Rome review: Alcaraz and Sinner's 'friendly' rivalry renewed
1:06:03
1:06:03
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1:06:03This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered Calvin Betton drags himself out of a karaoke bar in Hamburg to join James Gray for a look back at the Italian Open, before My…
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Jannik Sinner is back - and everyone is (mostly) delighted
1:03:35
1:03:35
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1:03:35This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered Calvin Betton joins live from Rome, where he has been busy celebrating the new pope (not), George Bellshaw is at home in north …
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Madrid review: Ruud edges out Draper, Sabalenka dominates and Swiatek spirals
1:51:37
1:51:37
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1:51:37This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered The lads are back together! For the first time in a couple of weeks, James Gray (The i Paper), Calvin Betton (ATP coach) and Geor…
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Inside the Madrid blackout + Purcell ban reaction
47:32
47:32
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47:32This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered We got him! Calvin Betton finally has power again so can tell us all about why players were walking nearly two hours back to their …
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Djokovic, Raducanu and the lights are all going out in Madrid
1:22:29
1:22:29
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1:22:29This episode is sponsored by Tide. Visit tide.co/savings, and use the bonus code "tennisunfiltered" to support the podcast and get a great deal Calvin Betton is stranded! The power cut in Spain means we are unable to contact our resident coach, so James Gray and George Bellshaw are taking up the mantle (or trying) in his absence. They discussed... …
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Rune stuns Alcaraz, Zverev overcomes adversity, Iga's nemesis - and Calvin's a champion again
1:41:03
1:41:03
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1:41:03This episode is brought to you by Tide. If you're interested in one of their savings accounts for businesses - and supporting the podcast at the same time, please follow the link: http://tide.co/offers/tennisunfiltered This week, Calvin is fresh off a Barcelona title, George is prepping for a big vegan night out and James has promised not to entert…
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Alcaraz returns to the top, Djokovic loses the fire and the struggle to sell the BJK Cup
1:52:38
1:52:38
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1:52:38James Gray, Calvin Betton and George Bellshaw are back together again - but you might wish they weren't... Here is an extended episode featuring: Carlos Alcaraz's Monte Carlo win The struggle to sell the Billie Jean King Cup Why Novak Djokovic has lost the hunger Ben Shelton's doubles beef A home win in Monaco PLUS Some absolute first-rate nonsense…
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The clay is back - and so is the nonsense
1:19:33
1:19:33
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1:19:33Calvin Betton, George Bellshaw and James Gray are in particularly nonsensical mood, discussing... The return of the clay-court season Emma Raducanu's decision to skip Billie Jean King Cup duty An epic head-to-head battle between Calvin and George The best tennis court in the world The rise of the super-coach And more! Learn more about your ad choic…
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Mensik's breakout, Djokovic's demise, Sabalenka's statement and the coaching roundabout turns again
1:36:51
1:36:51
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1:36:51In this episode of Tennis Unfiltered, James Gray, George Bellshaw, and Calvin Betton discuss everything that has been going on in the world of tennis and more from coaching techniques and the Wimbledon dress code to scheduling and the recent Miami Open. Jakub Mensik defeated Novak Djokovic, even though the Czech teenager almost withdrew from the to…
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Tennis civil war finally breaks out, Kyrgios is 'back' and a coachless Raducanu is on the charge
1:39:07
1:39:07
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1:39:07Calvin Betton calls in from Miami and Molly McElwee subs in for Barcelona with George Bellshaw on holiday. The PTPA has finally broken cover on a legal battle with the ATP, WTA, ITF and ITIA across three different territories. The men's tour says it will not be cowed by the players union, but over the weekend the PTPA filed a motion with US judge a…
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Indian Wells review: Draper breaks through, Andreeva dominates the desert and Iga's sad slump
1:24:48
1:24:48
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1:24:48Presented by Calvin Betton, James Gray and George Bellshaw Produced and edited by James Gray At 23, Jack Draper secured his first Masters 1000 title at Indian Wells, defeating four top-15 players, including Carlos Alcaraz in the semi-finals. This victory propelled him to a career-high world ranking of No 7. Mirra Andreeva matched fellow Russian Mar…
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Another Raducanu trial, Kyrgios is injured and Botic spoils the party again
1:20:44
1:20:44
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1:20:44George Bellshaw and James Gray are stuck on this side of the Atlantic while Calvin Betton is sunning himself in Tennis Paradise: Indian Wells. We delve into the mailbag for your emails on weird dreams, George's long-term hatred of Indian Wells, the let rule, and comments on coaching by Janko Tipsarevic Emma Raducanu has another coach on trial Nick …
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Feud with Roddick continues, VAR controversy and Pique's wild ideas
1:21:28
1:21:28
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1:21:28Calvin Betton (ATP tennis coach), George Bellshaw (writer and broadcaster) and James Gray (journalist) all gather round the microphone once again to discuss the biggest issues in tennis. On the eve of "the fifth slam", there has been plenty of off-court controversy... Calvin reacts to Andy Roddick's claim that Rohan Bopanna being a good person and …
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Raducanu's Dubai ordeal, Andreeva's biggest title and clapping back at Reilly Opelka
1:45:53
1:45:53
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1:45:53Molly McElwee (Substack here: https://mollymcelwee.substack.com/) joins James Gray, Calvin Betton and George Bellshaw to talk about a busy and often fraught week of tennis. Emma Raducanu was approached by a stalker in Dubai, who allegedly followed her across four tournaments, and burst into tears on court, triggering widespread discussion of women'…
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Jannik Sinner banned, Rybakina coach suspended and Fonseca makes his move
1:46:20
1:46:20
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1:46:20Quiet week in tennis? It will never happen. ATP coach Calvin Betton, The i Paper journalist James Gray and former tennis reporter George Bellshaw sit down to discuss a couple of weighty issues in tennis this week. Jannik Sinner has agreed a three-month ban with Wada after two positive test for clostebol last March. Wada re-stated their acceptance o…
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A Raducanu losing streak, Murray-Djokovic latest and Simona Halep retires
1:34:16
1:34:16
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1:34:16Grand-slam winning tennis coach Calvin Betton, tennis writer George Bellshaw and The i Paper's sports news correspondent James Gray are all back for another episode of the award-winning Tennis Unfiltered podcast. They discussed... Emma Raducanu is on a four-match losing streak after another defeat in the first round, this time to Ekaterina Alexandr…
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Davis Cup drama, 15-day tournaments and award-winning content
1:33:07
1:33:07
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1:33:07Thank you SO MUCH for voting for us in the Sports Podcast Awards. After two years of disappointment, we the WINNERS of the Best Tennis and Racket Podcast for 2024. We literally could not have done it without you, so thank you to each and every one of you who voted. James, George and Calvin triumphantly returned to the microphones this week to discu…
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Australian Open review: Q+A, Djokovic injury latest, Keys's 'greatest ever' run and Discovery+ price hike
1:25:48
1:25:48
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1:25:48Calvin Betton, George Bellshaw and James Gray are reunited in the wake of a furiously busy grand slam. They discussed Calvin helping Henry and Harri to their second grand slam title and refusing to fly economy class ever again Jannik Sinner wins his third hard-court slam in 13 months and Alexander Zverev vows not to be the best player ever not to w…
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Australian Open, Day 15: Sinner's unmatched brilliance
14:50
14:50
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14:50The pod is still coming down from the highs of Saturday night (and early Sunday morning) but there is the small matter of a men's final to discuss as Jannik Sinner dismantled Alexander Zverev to claim his third straight hard-court grad slam title. He becomes the most successful Italian player, male or female, of all time. Learn more about your ad c…
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Australian Open, Day 14: Two. Time. Slam. Champs.
13:03
13:03
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13:03Henry Patten. Harri Heliovaara. What a team. Two of the last three slams. There is so much work by so many other people that went into that win, but they were the two men standing - or more correctly lying - on court at the end. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesBy Tennis Unfiltered
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Australian Open, Day 13: Djokovic booed off and Calvin reveals final preparations
21:07
21:07
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21:07How doubles champions prepare for a late-night final Did Novak Djokovic deserve to be booed off? Does Alexander Zverev have a chance against Jannik Sinner? Has Ben Shelton got any better? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesBy Tennis Unfiltered
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Australian Open, Day 12: No offence, Madison...
20:41
20:41
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20:41...but we wanted a Sabalenka vs Swiatek final. Aryna Sabalenka did her part, beating best friend Paula Badosa with ease But then Madison Keys upset the apple-cart, brilliantly hitting Iga Swiatek off the court to reach her second grand slam final, eight years after her first Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…
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Australian Open, Day 11: Double-bounce gate erupts as the semis are set
21:24
21:24
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21:24Iga Swiatek wins her Australian Open semi-final with ease but not before a controversial double bounce incident (https://inews.co.uk/sport/iga-swiatek-double-bounce-australian-open-emma-navarro-3494688) Jannik Sinner batts Alex de Minaur, guaranteeing 50 years since the last Australian male winner here Ben Shelton books his place in a second grand …
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Australian Open, Day 10: Djokovic and Alcaraz light up the night sky
27:24
27:24
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27:24George Bellshaw and James Gray look back at a thrilling day - or specifically, night - of tennis at Melbourne Park Novak Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz in an instant classic across four sets Djokovic had treatment for a left leg injury, thought to be groin or hamstring, but rallied from losing the first set to triumph just before 1am in Melbourne How…
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Australian Open, Day 8: It's Novak vs the world
24:29
24:29
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24:29Novak Djokovic boycotted Channel 9 interviews after beating Jiri Lehecka, claiming he had been offended by comments made by anchor Tony Jones. Jones appeared to have already apologised on Saturday, but Djokovic said he would not talk to the broadcaster until an official apology had been issued Jack Draper was forced to retire after two sets of his …
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Australian Open, Day 7: End of the road for Emma Raducanu and a great day for the Monfilses
16:02
16:02
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16:02Emma Raducanu is thrashed 6-1, 6-0 by Iga Swiatek to end her Australian Open run Gael Monfils shocks Taylor Fritz to reach the fourth round - and then watches his wife do the same thing by beating Jasmine Paolini on the very same court Eva Lys, the lucky loser, continues her dream fortnight by reaching the last 16 and setting up the biggest match o…
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Australian Open, Day 6: Jack Draper, you've done it again
13:38
13:38
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13:38NO. SLEEP. TIL. BROOKLYN. James Gray is delirious, Jack Draper is through to round three and it's going off in Melbourne Park. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesBy Tennis Unfiltered
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Australian Open, Day 5: Catch up with Calvin as the Brits go for history
31:44
31:44
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31:44It's the fifth day of the tournament and I've finally tracked down Calvin Betton, our resident tennis coach, to chat through the biggest issues of the day - including why the Brits are on the verge of history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesBy Tennis Unfiltered
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Australian Open, Day 4: Why oh why is Jack Draper doing this to us?
11:56
11:56
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11:56Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesBy Tennis Unfiltered
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Australian Open, Day 3: Raducanu leads Brits on a charge and Fonseca delivers upset
18:49
18:49
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18:49Tuesday at the Australian Open wraps up the first round of the year's opening major Emma Raducanu beat Ekaterina Alexandrova despite hitting 15 double-faults in an error-strewn performance - but she did win her 7th and 8th tie-breaks in a row A win for Katie Boulter over Rebecca Marino made it six Brits into the second round, a new record But Cam N…
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Australian Open, Day 2: Fearnley retires Kyrgios and the curious tale of Sonny Bill Williams
17:50
17:50
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17:50Jacob Fearnley beat Nick Kyrgios in straight sets on Monday, leaving the Australian questioning whether he would ever play singles at the Australian Open ever again. In his first-round match, Novak Djokovic, now coached by former rival Andy Murray, overcame a challenging start to defeat 19-year-old American Nishesh Basavareddy. After losing the fir…
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Australian Open, Day 1: Doping updates, Sabalenka wobble and some dark horses emerge
43:27
43:27
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43:27George Bellshaw and James Gray look back a rain-affected first day of the Australian Open, talking about Kei Nishikori, Emma Raducanu, Jiri Lehecka and more! An interview with Andrey Rublev: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/jan/12/andrey-rublev-i-dont-feel-any-more-that-crazy-anxiety-and-stress Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastc…
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Australian Open draw analysis + fantasy tennis launch
1:15:33
1:15:33
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1:15:33Play FTU, AO 2025 edition sponsored by Raquex NOW: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/19oQbG9pcnYnX0oXLGFgDkta5ugKcs5MEizCPmXLC3A8/ [Closes 12 January] James and George go line by line through both draws to suss out the new fantasy tennis format. Don't forget to vote for us in the Sports Podcast Awards either! https://www.sportspodcastgroup.com/sports…
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The Kyrgios comeback, Gauff vs Swiatek vs Rybakina and praise for the United Cup
1:17:43
1:17:43
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1:17:43VOTE FOR US: It’s your last chance to get a vote in for us in the Sports Podcast Awards, which we would dearly like to win this time after narrowly missing out two years in a row. The deadline is THIS WEEKEND: www.sportspodcastgroup.com/sports_category/best-tennis-podcast/ George Bellshaw (from convalescence after surgery) and James Gray (preparing…
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Purcell faces anti-doping ban, Draper and Raducanu's new year and the return of Kyrgios
1:15:52
1:15:52
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1:15:52VOTE FOR US! We are desperately trying to beat Dan Kiernan to an award and *really* need your help in doing so. It takes about 20 seconds to vote for us, just head to this link: https://www.sportspodcastgroup.com/sports_category/best-tennis-podcast/ This week, George Bellshaw is a late withdrawal after being called in for surgery on a torn meniscus…
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Tennis Insights special: Tom Corrie breaks down the tennis by numbers
1:16:02
1:16:02
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1:16:02Merry Christmas! (Or just happy Wednesday if you don't celebrate.) VOTE FOR US: It's the Sports Podcast Awards next month and Tennis Unfiltered is up for best tennis show. We came third two years ago and second last year, so would mean a lot if you added your vote and helped us complete the set! https://www.sportspodcastgroup.com/sports_category/be…
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Djokovic and Kyrgios team up and end of season awards revealed
1:31:41
1:31:41
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1:31:41Thanks to Chris, Deb and Colum for their questions and comments which we read out this week. You can get in touch by emailing us on tennisunfiltered at gmail dot com - and James does read them all even if they don't all make the pod! If you want to sign up for our newsletter, Substack is the place to do it: https://tennisunfiltered.substack.com/ An…
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BONUS: Rune, Kokkinakis and Humbert join James and George at UTS
53:14
53:14
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53:14A special BONUS episode from James Gray and George Bellshaw from the UTS Grand Final in east London, held at a sold-out Copper Box Arena. NB: James apologises for the edit and audio quality. An amateur sound engineer at best, this is as good as he can do with the equipment in hand! VOTE in our Tennis Unfiltered 2025 awards: https://docs.google.com/…
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What's the most boring era of tennis ever?
1:17:56
1:17:56
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1:17:56Calvin Betton, James Gray and George Bellshaw are in full off-season mode - and spending as much time talking nonsense as possible. No Peaky Blinders chat, this time, although our Spotify Wrapped does get a mention We answered questions from Taz, Jeff, Ben and Nicolas about boring tennis matches, the 2009 US Open and tennis analytics. Plus... Emma …
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Tennis never takes a week off, does it? And neither (sort of) do James Gray, Calvin Betton and George Bellshaw, who are back to discuss all the latest goings on in a busy week of breaking tennis news. Iga Swiatek is serving a one-month ban after testing positive for trimetazidine or TMZ, a banned metabolic modulator Simona Halep, Nick Kyrgios and D…
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Will Andy Murray be a decent coach for Novak Djokovic?
1:28:50
1:28:50
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1:28:50James Gray, George Bellshaw and Calvin Betton get round the microphones again and wonder if there is anything to talk about this week... Andy Murray has agreed to join Novak Djokovic's coaching team for pre-season the Australian Open at least, just three months after retiring from playing (James wrote this piece for the i paper if you're interested…
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Why 2024 was the year of Jannik Sinner (+ unpicking the Fritz-Zverev H2H, BJK Cup madness and Tiafoe's $120k fine)
1:15:12
1:15:12
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1:15:12Uh oh, Calvin is not a happy man... but why? Listen on to find out as George Bellshaw and James Gray do their best to keep him in hand while discussing... Jannik Sinner dominates ATP World Tour Finals, not even dropping a set en route to the title in Turin Taylor Fritz moves to a career-high ranking after reaching the final, and continuing his domi…
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Calvin Betton calls in from the ATP World Tour Finals in Turin to help James Gray (inews.co.uk) and George Bellshaw (his flat in north London) discuss the latest in tennis Coco Gauff wins the WTA Finals in a dramatic - but not necessarily high-quality - final victory over Zheng Qinwen John Wertheim is forced to apologise for comments about Barbora …
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The last dance in Paris, Rybakina hires Goran and WTA's Saudi debut
1:28:37
1:28:37
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1:28:37Calvin Betton is in Helsinki but that doesn't stop him dialing in to Tennis Unfiltered; George Bellshaw is in north London but that doesn't stop him struggling with tech; and James Gray is now married and didn't get into a scrape with Elena Rybakina. We answer your questions on LTA funding and doubles end-of-year tournaments, plus... Alexander Zver…
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Draper wins in Vienna, Djokovic is done for 2024 and Kyrgios's pyramid conspiracies
1:20:40
1:20:40
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1:20:40Calvin Betton, George Bellshaw and James Gray are all in England at the same time, a genuine rarity this year, but are still all sitting in their respective living rooms refusing to actually spend time together. Instead, they talked about... Jack Draper's second career title, beating Karen Khachanov in Vienna to move up to No 15 in the world Novak …
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Swiatek's new coach, the 'Six Kings' of Saudi Arabia and James's wedding reviewed
1:17:08
1:17:08
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1:17:08Calvin Betton calls in from Vienna, James Gray from honeymoon and George Bellshaw... is here also. We started by answering a listener email from Blair, who asked: “I'm taking a few too many long haul flights in the next couple of months, and am looking for distraction recommendations. Which matches from the past 30 years would you recommend I downl…
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Rafael Nadal's legacy and why Frances Tiafoe deserves a ban
1:29:12
1:29:12
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1:29:12Calvin Betton dials in from Antwerp to join James Gray. George Bellshaw is, unforgivably, on holiday. Rafael Nadal announced his retirement this week, causing Calvin to ask whether he is actually the most underrated or perhaps most influential player of all-time ...and whether he will sign off on a high by winning the Davis Cup The full decision fr…
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Sinner vs Alcaraz or Federer vs Nadal?
1:31:18
1:31:18
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1:31:18It's the clash of the eras this week as Mats Wilander's comments on Eurosport spark an intense debate about whether Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have already eradicated the legacy of the Big Four. Carlos Alcaraz beats Jannik Sinner, who had chances of his own, to win the China Open and wrestle control of their head-to-head in an increasingly st…
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