The Body Serve

It's that time again: you submitted tons of great questions for our mailbag, enough to fill two episodes! In part one, we talk about our happiest ever moments as tennis fans; all-time favorite Bravo shows; and the trickiness of navigating players' missteps while learning which hills are worth dying on. 

3:05 Favorite of the 3 Slams we’ve attended

7:30 Tips on navigating the busy US Open

16:25 Our happiest moments as tennis fans

19:20 Worst kits of all time

26:20 Favorite Bravo shows: all-time and current

36:35 A question about race, identity, and how much it’s fair to expect from players

It turns out the stick shoots more than once a year. Elena Rybakina snatched the #1 ranking and the US Open title from Aryna Sabalenka with her suffocating, nearly nonchalant power game. On the men’s final Sunday, we witnessed the first match between two openly gay ATP players, as Mika Brunold and Joao Reis da Silva faced off in Austria. Also, yes, That Guy won his second major by defeating a revelatory Ben Shelton. We also chat about kits, the ickiness of an official “prediction market partnership,” and the best quarterfinal day in a long time, featuring a generous gesture from Frances Tiafoe and an epic that played Sabalenka into form.

1:20 Elena Rybakina sewed up #1 and never looked back 

15:40 Aryna Sabalenka’s sour grapes

20:40 Other notes from the women’s draw: the top 4 seeds reach the semis

25:15 The real men’s final: Mika Brunold d. Joao Reis da Silva

28:40 There are no asterisks (unfortunately)

33:55 Ben Shelton breaks through

46:30 "Just let it go" … no 

54:00 Throw it back into the ocean

58:15 A partnership with Kalshi: why this stinks

Jonathan is back from the US Open with stories to share. What is it like attending the US Open now that it's allegedly overrun by influencers? We talk about the difficulty of paying attention to tennis on the sport’s biggest court. Plus, we hear about the experience of seeing Venus and Serena play doubles, staying up with Novak and Venus for the tournament’s latest ever start, and cold green beans and caviar. As for the tennis, the top women have mostly survived and the race for #1 is still on, while the men are offering precious little when so much is at stake. 

1:00 The Louis Armstrong virtual queue

5:40 The women’s round of 16: Zheng, Osaka, Gauff, and more

17:40 Waiting around for Venus vs Kenin

20:00 Venus & Serena doubles: Venus was great!

24:35 Watching tennis in Ashe is not for the easily distracted

29:30 Men’s results: say goodbye to the top half 

44:25 Consider me uninfluenced

53:25 Other stuff from the grounds: lotharios, palomas, and caviar

One of us is heading to New York for the 2026 US Open as we speak. On our preview episode, we talk about the first real fight for the women’s #1 ranking in a while; the surging Gauff, Swiatek, and Pegula; the absolute state of the men’s draw without Jannik and with a questionable Alcaraz; and those poised for huge breakthroughs if things shake out right (Fils? Eala?). We discuss the wild card snub and later non-snub of Stan Wawrinka. Later, some reflections on the mixed doubles exhibition – fun ‘til it wasn’t – and the joy of seeing Muchova and Mensik win and the extroversion twins Carlos and Serena hang out together.    

1:30 Coco & Arthur take Cincinnati

7:50 The race for #1 and other WTA storylines 

10:35 Women’s draw

24:05 Wild cards are not meritocratic (and they’re not supposed to be)

30:10 Men’s draw: Carlos is back, Jannik is not

42:05 The mixed doubles exhibition

51:10 The Roger Federer Laser Light Show

54:30 Remembering Dolly Parton

Bring back the US Open Series! The summer hard court swing continues on its confusing cadence. We spent a few nights at the National Bank Open in Toronto – James unwittingly sat in Iga Swiatek Country and witnessed her return to form (ok, I’ve already said too much). The other biggest stories in tennis these days are: Alex Eala, Rafa Jodar, injuries, and the innumerable opinions on the Williams sisters. Should Venus ******? Should Serena take that wild card? I don’t know man, I’m just trying to enjoy the waning days of summer <sob>. Finally, Nick Kyrgios got ahead of the story and announced that he’d tested positive for cocaine in Mallorca, which is a substance of abuse under WADA guidelines. This means if it’s in-competition: very very bad; out of competition: meh.

1:10 Our visit to the Canadian Open in Toronto

9:05 A few more ball kid photoshoots should do the trick

12:25 Jannik out, Carlos in as injuries derail the North American hot boy summer

18:45 Was the Serena comeback always a lark and we all just took it too seriously?

24:20 Checking in on Cincinnati

29:05 Kyrgios and cocaine: looking for empathy, not always finding it

45:00 Funny like I’m a clown? Like I amuse you?

47:10 Kingston, Jamaica has a Challenger event!