Speaker 1: What have you got academically? What did you get at school?
Speaker 2: I got my basic GCSEs, so maths, sports studies, English, French.
Speaker 3: We don't talk about geography because they told me it
Speaker 3: would be about capital cities, and it was about.
Speaker 2: Meanders and river bends. You have got basically, I don't
Speaker 2: think I've got an A apart.
Speaker 3: From in sports studies, but I've got passes and the
Speaker 3: rest of the part of geography and chemistry.
Speaker 2: Chemistry is boring.
Speaker 3: Wow, geography was boring because it's about population density in
Speaker 3: China and meanders and river bends and soil sedimentary and
Speaker 3: so I don't remember.
Speaker 1: It everyone on a daily basis. I find this stuff
Speaker 1: pretty useful, to be honest.
Speaker 3: It helps me knowing about meander's when I make all.
Speaker 1: Right, let's do a podcast. Welcome to what You're talking about?
Speaker 1: Willis with at p. Sixty five Marcus Willis and me
Speaker 1: is mate Dave. The grass is cut, the strawberry sauced,
Speaker 1: the deck shoes ready, which means it's time for the
Speaker 1: greatest Grand Slam of the Year. On Grand Slam of
Speaker 1: the Year Eve, which I am right now. I have
Speaker 1: got Wimbledon fever and as Pete Sam Press says nothing
Speaker 1: comes close to Wimbledon. Nothing. Are you feeling a bit
Speaker 1: buzz by it?
Speaker 3: Willis very very excited.
Speaker 2: Or someone someone I.
Speaker 3: Say earlier the grass is always greener at Wimbledon.
Speaker 1: I've got three stories that I've just put together based
Speaker 1: on hits, but there might be a story where you're like, no, actually,
Speaker 1: you don't want to do that as well, because there
Speaker 1: was a couple that I didn't put in that you
Speaker 1: might want to talk about, like the BBC extending its
Speaker 1: coverage of women until twenty thirty one, or the fact
Speaker 1: this is last year we'll get Andrew Castle telling us
Speaker 1: exactly who is in the Royal Box and yeah, so
Speaker 1: there's other little stories. But I've got Dan Evans, Jack Draper,
Speaker 1: Serena Williams as my top three. Serena Williams the most
Speaker 1: famous forty four year old in the world. Because everyone
Speaker 1: has to go. Serena Williams, aged forty four, that's now
Speaker 1: become a quadruple barreled name for her gets a wild card.
Speaker 1: Now I get why Valencia WTA give wild cards to
Speaker 1: Serena Williams because they need to sell their stadiums out.
Speaker 1: Because when you watch the tour. It's empty, So I
Speaker 1: get why Venus and Serena and whoever's coming back that
Speaker 1: week gets a wild card. Bums on seats Wimwooden is
Speaker 1: sold out infinite. It's over sold out. You can't get
Speaker 1: more people watching it. You can't get more people in there.
Speaker 1: Why is Serena Williams getting a freebie into this tournament?
Speaker 2: What? I mean?
Speaker 3: She's one at multiple times, stands getting one as well.
Speaker 3: I think it's more about attention of the tournament as well.
Speaker 3: How many people are gonna be watching her first round,
Speaker 3: including myself?
Speaker 1: Would you if you were so, I'm going to give
Speaker 1: you a proposal that it's on Monday. Serena is playing
Speaker 1: on sense call right theoretically right, She's playing on tent
Speaker 1: to court and on court one. You've got two players
Speaker 1: who are thirty five and fifty five in the rankings,
Speaker 1: and you've got a ticket. Which court do you go to?
Speaker 3: I think everyone goes to Serena because it's the unknown.
Speaker 3: We don't know how well she's going to play. It's
Speaker 3: another chance for people that maybe haven't seen her play
Speaker 3: before to see her play. The atmosphere is going to
Speaker 3: be ridiculous. I think that's why women have done it.
Speaker 3: It's it's something amazing that you know, we'll be talked
Speaker 3: about and watched globally.
Speaker 2: But yeah, we don't know.
Speaker 3: It's kind of easier to answer after we see what happens,
Speaker 3: isn't it.
Speaker 1: Yes, Yeah, I mean there's an absolute blockbuster in the
Speaker 1: third round of Serena against Swanchek, isn't there? Like this
Speaker 1: is the I mean huge, what's that Thursday Friday that
Speaker 1: could happen?
Speaker 2: Could happen?
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean just I will open up a window
Speaker 1: and I would just shout Tennis out of it.
Speaker 2: I mean.
Speaker 3: Navratilova came back at forty seven and won her first round.
Speaker 2: It's all right.
Speaker 1: She did yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3: So it's not something that hasn't been done before.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's and.
Speaker 1: I think never twenty years ago this year or twenty
Speaker 1: two years ago this year, but yeah, yeah she did.
Speaker 1: She she came back and played in the French as
Speaker 1: well that earlier you know, the previous slam play play
Speaker 1: got pumped. Yeah, and then yeah one through sir volley
Speaker 1: she won. I want to say love and one.
Speaker 3: But yeah, I mean it's it's not unheard of, it's
Speaker 3: just it's rare. It's rare because you know, people come
Speaker 3: retire anything they're retired, like when Serena retired. I didn't
Speaker 3: think that would be it. Honestly, No. Oh, I don't
Speaker 3: think about a last one either, but again, you never know.
Speaker 3: But I didn't have the sense I would never see
Speaker 3: her again.
Speaker 1: What's Serena Williams percentage chance of winning Wimbledon?
Speaker 2: You're asking me? Are you asking bet three? Six five?
Speaker 2: I don't know.
Speaker 1: Well, I'm going to ask you and then are going
Speaker 1: to take everything I own to Ladbrooks.
Speaker 2: I don't. I don't think she'll win it. I don't.
Speaker 3: I don't think she'll make it past the third round.
Speaker 3: And this could be quoted everywhere.
Speaker 2: Okay, it'll be amazing if she does.
Speaker 3: And again if it happens, you go, okay, I mean
Speaker 3: it'll be unlikely when your first tournament back on a
Speaker 3: singles court to be someone top ten in the world,
Speaker 3: which is.
Speaker 2: What she's gonna have to do.
Speaker 3: Right, Yeah, of course, And if she does, it's it's
Speaker 3: is she amazing or is there a problem in women's depths?
Speaker 3: And I don't think it's the latter, based on what
Speaker 3: we've seen the French Open. I think it's exciting in
Speaker 3: the women's game. I think anyone could be at anyone
Speaker 3: on their given day, you know, within reason.
Speaker 1: Well, Serena gets a wildcard. Dan Evans rather unfairly doesn't
Speaker 1: get a wild card. Lots of the discourse I've seen
Speaker 1: online is about, you know that that's disrespectful to someone
Speaker 1: who basically for two decades now being our second or
Speaker 1: first best player, rather than talking about that. In particular,
Speaker 1: it's going to be Dan Evans's last Grand Slam. He's
Speaker 1: playing in the doubles. Tell me your first encounter with Dan.
Speaker 3: I don't know when it was, but I mean it was.
Speaker 3: It was good under fourteen, it was nationally good. We
Speaker 3: played each other a lot. Yeah, I know, had a
Speaker 3: lot of very good matches. I think the last couple
Speaker 3: he did me over when he was going on his
Speaker 3: going on his rampage to the top thirty in the
Speaker 3: world and I was kind of slowing down a bit.
Speaker 3: He beat me in prequelity six and six. For the
Speaker 3: time before that, I think he beat me five and
Speaker 3: two somewhere. But before that there was a lot of
Speaker 3: six and the thirds, a lot of six and six.
Speaker 3: There's some great matches because our styles were. I don't know.
Speaker 3: It made for some great matches, but I mean we
Speaker 3: had battles ever since we were thirteen fourteen, I want
Speaker 3: to say.
Speaker 1: And he just strikes me. I don't know him at all.
Speaker 1: He strikes me as such a character. Yeah he is.
Speaker 1: Is he Larry?
Speaker 3: Yeah, there's not a filter. He doesn't lie, he doesn't
Speaker 3: hold back. If he thinks something, he says it. But
Speaker 3: he's often right about stuff. Yeah, he's funny, like when
Speaker 3: he's around, you know about it, you know about it,
Speaker 3: and he's Yeah, he's pretty witty with his humor as well.
Speaker 3: So yeah, has there it's interesting. It's not knowledge of
Speaker 3: the games incredible as well.
Speaker 1: Right of course. Yeah, No, I mean he's got great
Speaker 1: views actually, and he's going to be one of these
Speaker 1: people who you kind of eternally wish that a governing
Speaker 1: body would get him involved. But he's going to ruffle
Speaker 1: some corporate feathers. I would say, which could you know,
Speaker 1: cut his nose off despite his face a little if
Speaker 1: he's looking.
Speaker 2: But he won't care about that.
Speaker 3: He won't. It will never change because that's just who
Speaker 3: he is and it's refreshing.
Speaker 1: And what have you two ever butted heads on call
Speaker 1: off court. Has there been.
Speaker 2: We've had some drama. Yeah, we've had a few words.
Speaker 3: The stuff, but it's heat at the moment, stuff like
Speaker 3: it's always fine five minutes after all.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3: We used to have play fights all the time and
Speaker 3: slap each other about a bit and it was all
Speaker 3: in good spirits.
Speaker 2: It's just funny. It's just it was just it was
Speaker 2: just fun.
Speaker 3: It was honestly some of the most fun times I've
Speaker 3: had as he's been there.
Speaker 1: And at the Aussie Open this year he was in
Speaker 1: the same locker room as you, wasn't He was in
Speaker 1: the opposite you for a little bit in the qualifying
Speaker 1: like you were. He was in the qualifying And is
Speaker 1: it going to be a shame that from Wimbledon onwards
Speaker 1: it's just another one of your stable mates that you
Speaker 1: won't be knocking around with every now and then and
Speaker 1: bumping into.
Speaker 2: Yeah, no, it will be.
Speaker 3: It's there's not many guys that play like him. He
Speaker 3: was always great to watch. If ever I was playing
Speaker 3: a match and he was on the telly, I'd stick
Speaker 3: it on because I like watching him play. You know.
Speaker 3: He came to the Netty volley where he was brave.
Speaker 3: He defended really where I've read the game, well, you know,
Speaker 3: got really stuck into matches as well.
Speaker 2: So I'll miss watching him play. I missed.
Speaker 3: I think he'll still be around a bit. I think
Speaker 3: he's coaching. Coaching a little bit, is what I think
Speaker 3: he's doing.
Speaker 1: Will he make a good coach, Yeah, I think so,
Speaker 1: very good on his knowledge base.
Speaker 3: Yeah, but knowledge base, but there's actually the ability to
Speaker 3: get stuck in. And his mentality was very very good.
Speaker 3: I know sometimes people saw him snap or whatever, but
Speaker 3: he he was a very very good fighter, and I
Speaker 3: think some of some of the people he'll be coaching
Speaker 3: will need that.
Speaker 1: So do you think he's going to end up with
Speaker 1: a younger British player something like that?
Speaker 3: And I don't know who who will end up with,
Speaker 3: but I think he'd be a waste of knowledge and
Speaker 3: experience if he didn't end up on the toy yet.
Speaker 2: Well, and fun as.
Speaker 1: Well if he was in your team.
Speaker 3: The off court stuff is fun as well, oh mad
Speaker 3: little games you play in the players lounge and and
Speaker 3: and the commentary of that. Yeah, I hope to see
Speaker 3: I'd like to like to see him around.
Speaker 2: I think I think he'll stay in the game.
Speaker 1: I hope so well. I mean I've always really admired him.
Speaker 1: As I said, don't know him at all, but admired
Speaker 1: him as a player. And as you said.
Speaker 3: Get him on here, We'll get him on here to
Speaker 3: come on. I'd love to play, but not talk about
Speaker 3: his game.
Speaker 1: I couldn't care less about that. But schwang ko wang
Speaker 1: with Dan Evans, I mean he's got it's perfect. I
Speaker 1: feel it's good. YEA one person who has transitioned into
Speaker 1: coaching is with Djokovic last year. Is Andy Murray's now
Speaker 1: with Jack Draper. From your time around British tennis as
Speaker 1: the grandfather of British tennis, what did you always think
Speaker 1: Andy Murray is going to end up as a coach.
Speaker 3: He's always going to add value to the game at
Speaker 3: some point after his career. Yeah, it would be silly
Speaker 3: if someone didn't tap him up.
Speaker 1: He seems to me like analytical super process. Yeah, like
Speaker 1: he just he always had the air almost like when
Speaker 1: you see a footballer like Jordan Henderson. Now you think
Speaker 1: Henderson's going to be a manager in two years, I
Speaker 1: can see it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, And I think if he's not playing the next
Speaker 2: World Cup.
Speaker 1: Yeah of course, of course. Yeah, adding that ten minute value.
Speaker 1: But the yeah, I can see that with Murray. And
Speaker 1: I'm not surprised that Jack Draper's got Andy Murray in
Speaker 1: his corner, are you.
Speaker 2: Not one bit?
Speaker 1: No?
Speaker 2: I think they'll do well to go.
Speaker 1: I just think Murray's playing with him, as in, is he.
Speaker 3: Hitting hitting with him? I saw him hitting the other day.
Speaker 1: Yet you were there?
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, I.
Speaker 3: Was at Eastbourne and he was hitting, hitting with him.
Speaker 3: He's still obviously outrageous.
Speaker 2: At the sport.
Speaker 1: Really, so where are you caught next to him?
Speaker 3: I'm walking down the hill and I see him. I'd
Speaker 3: just see a back end just hit the middle of
Speaker 3: the strings ten times in our own director where he.
Speaker 2: Wants kind of thing. Yeah, yeah, one of those guys.
Speaker 1: Yeah yeah, yeah, I'm only on nine, but yeah ten times.
Speaker 1: Yeah that's Murray. So yeah, because he's like a hands
Speaker 1: on because I noticed that, you know, having been around comps,
Speaker 1: some coaches just are racket off, aren't they. They're down
Speaker 1: the end giving that little hug to the racket as
Speaker 1: a hitter gets involved. But yeah, I can see Murray
Speaker 1: wanting to to get the Torner grip on.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 3: I think it's it's but it's nice like it's a
Speaker 3: nice feeling hitting balls. That's what you've done all your life.
Speaker 2: Isn't it.
Speaker 1: Yeah?
Speaker 2: Yeah, So why wouldn't you and.
Speaker 3: Why wouldn't you as Draper want and he's back and
Speaker 3: coming back at you.
Speaker 1: Yeah, of course, of course. Well, I mean there's some
Speaker 1: of the bigger stories. There's plenty more because it's Wimbledon,
Speaker 1: it's the biggest Grand Slam of the year. After the break,
Speaker 1: I want Britwatch, which gives us a chance to play
Speaker 1: Bruce Faulsyth just just holding that there. This is what
Speaker 1: you're talking about, Willi's this is section two. This is
Speaker 1: britt Watch, which means next year is going to be
Speaker 1: a big breakthrough year for Bruce Fasythe. Yeah, I'm backing Brendy.
Speaker 1: We're all backing ready, So.
Speaker 3: The feelings going, so let's keep it going.
Speaker 1: The good time to bowing out. Then the music goes
Speaker 1: in there he is. Do you like Bruce Fullscythe Yeah.
Speaker 3: He's good a way, doesn't don't man personally?
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's past tense now obviously.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 1: I love I love Bruce, I love game shows. I
Speaker 1: like Bruce. I like everything about him. Big Bruce, Yeah,
Speaker 1: Big Bruce.
Speaker 3: Job kept the Tash all his life as well, which
Speaker 3: I've got a respectful.
Speaker 1: A lot of respect and a wig.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: Fantastic, Yeah, yeah, fantastic. Okay, I've got the Brits here,
Speaker 1: that's why we've got the brit watch music on. I'm
Speaker 1: going to rattle through it and I would love you
Speaker 1: to tell me everything you know from that vast NASA
Speaker 1: computer of a brain that you've got. Okay, So Radakano Rusick.
Speaker 2: I think she lost last time she played to her, So.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think okay there if she's physically fit, I
Speaker 3: think she's hitting and I'm not sure.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think she'll be all right.
Speaker 1: There always questions about her fitness, and there's stories in
Speaker 1: the paper today. Of course, she's just got to the final,
Speaker 1: isn't she. You know, she just got to a grad
Speaker 1: school final and a second round match potentially against Harriet Dart.
Speaker 1: That's yeah, that is that's a blockbuster. So we're saying
Speaker 1: Radocanu a okay on that one.
Speaker 2: I think.
Speaker 1: So. Now, Katie Boltera loves the grass. She's playing Katerina
Speaker 1: grant Italian. But can get tight? Can't she bolt up?
Speaker 1: Can start that ball toss and all sorts of suddenly
Speaker 1: things look nervy. I think she's gonna have too much here, you.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think yeah.
Speaker 3: Again, I've not seen many players that don't get tight sometimes.
Speaker 3: I just think it's more obvious when the bulltoss goes
Speaker 3: with some people, but for other people they'll start pushing,
Speaker 3: or they'll.
Speaker 2: Start slapping on the feet, will start.
Speaker 3: But I think with Katie, when something has historically gone,
Speaker 3: it's been a server of bortos, and that's more obvious
Speaker 3: for everyone. Can you see someone throw the ball up
Speaker 3: the wrong way you go?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think yeah.
Speaker 3: No, I think she's confidence playing well Ribekina a couple
Speaker 3: of weeks ago.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. She likes the out crowd as well.
Speaker 2: She does.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 3: I mean there's a lot of pressure for Britt's playing
Speaker 3: women and that people will never realize.
Speaker 2: As well.
Speaker 3: Grass season is great, fun to play at home, but
Speaker 3: there's this expectation that if you play anyone within your
Speaker 3: ranking you should win. Otherwise it's a disaster. So you know,
Speaker 3: she's playing a qualifiers one. Three matches not easy. Yeah,
Speaker 3: I think you know, if she gets out of them
Speaker 3: and plays the best game, sure win.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: Now. Harriet Dart, aforementioned potential second round opponent of Emma
Speaker 1: Radakanu is playing Oster Penko. So I live four miles
Speaker 1: from Wimbledon. There's a chance Oster Penko nails a ball
Speaker 1: into the corner of the court. There's a chance it
Speaker 1: might hit my house.
Speaker 2: Yeah, so.
Speaker 3: Four miles is well within that radius.
Speaker 1: Good luck predicted this one, mate, What you're saying.
Speaker 3: I think she's brilliant panker. Yeah, I can't predict that.
Speaker 2: I can't preget that. It's just unpredictable.
Speaker 1: Rue, I'm gonna go six love love six six love,
Speaker 1: I don't think, but I don't know where. Okay, but
Speaker 1: I'm saying who knows? Who knows? Right, I'd like to
Speaker 1: see a British second round match, So let's see now.
Speaker 1: My favorite backhand is Diane Parry. Sweet as a nut,
Speaker 1: isn't it. She takes on friend Jones.
Speaker 3: Tough again, tough Yeah, Frank and Frans a hell of
Speaker 3: a competitor. Diane's incredibly talented, as we know. But yeah,
Speaker 3: it's not one I don't know with that.
Speaker 2: I don't know that.
Speaker 3: I know Frans better on clay historically. But it's not
Speaker 3: like it's not like grass is playing unbelievably quick nowadays either.
Speaker 2: So yeah, it'll be a scrap I.
Speaker 1: Think, yeah, I think, I I do my little uh
Speaker 1: tennis YouTube history has a lot of dying Barry's backhands
Speaker 1: in it, so fair enough, delete cookies and stop all the.
Speaker 2: Pop ups and move on, Harry Backham.
Speaker 1: Katie Swan against Bego what do you think? Like? Yeah,
Speaker 1: go on?
Speaker 2: What do you think that begs?
Speaker 3: Beggo's very experienced, been around for a while now, Yes,
Speaker 3: I'm thinking of Yeah, Katie's obviously playing well injury free. Uh,
Speaker 3: great competitor, likes grass again.
Speaker 2: I'm just gonna do a.
Speaker 3: Lot of fences with these matches because I generally don't know.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 1: I think what we are seeing with Katie is that
Speaker 1: it's the road back to the kind of being in
Speaker 1: a big time, isn't it. You know, she's she's on
Speaker 1: the route upwards again, and that's not always a smooth road.
Speaker 1: There are bumps in that, so, like finding consistency and
Speaker 1: things like that is always tough, and playing against someone
Speaker 1: who's experienced and yeah, I mean it's going to be
Speaker 1: like some one's going to need patience minimum. But it's
Speaker 1: a tough to all, really tough.
Speaker 3: She's a good competitor. Yeah, I don't think that would
Speaker 3: be an issue. It's just yeah, can she go over
Speaker 3: the line? I think she can, but it's not it's
Speaker 3: not one of those because she's not playing a seed.
Speaker 2: It's easy, it's it's a hard match.
Speaker 1: Well, Hannah Klugman has a former Grand Slam champion, of course,
Speaker 1: just one of them. So we've got Hannah Klugman, Mimiso
Speaker 1: and Mika Steuslervich. And these are our three. You know,
Speaker 1: we spoke about them on the podcast a few weeks ago,
Speaker 1: this kind of class of two thousand and eight or something.
Speaker 1: It seems about twelve minutes ago for me, but I
Speaker 1: mean that these are seventeen eighteen year olds, and how
Speaker 1: do you see all of their hopes? Generally it is
Speaker 1: winning around huge success for all three of these players.
Speaker 3: Considering the draws they got them, Yeah, it would be yeah, yeah,
Speaker 3: it's it's not nice. I've seen their drawers, but it's great.
Speaker 3: It's a valuable experience regardless of the result. It really
Speaker 3: is playing you know, ex Randslam champions, X Grandslam finalists,
Speaker 3: very good players. You go out there and see where
Speaker 3: your games at, see how hard you can push them.
Speaker 3: See if you can win. But yeah, they win one
Speaker 3: of those matches and they'll be looking at the second round.
Speaker 3: It's not you know, it's dramatic for an hour after
Speaker 3: the match and then you know, straight into the next one.
Speaker 2: It just it doesn't.
Speaker 3: I don't think it defines their career one match, but
Speaker 3: they can give them a lot of confidence.
Speaker 1: When you were seventeen and you were stepping out there, Willis,
Speaker 1: did you play with more nerves less nerves? Could you
Speaker 1: remember what your seventeen year old brain was like? Barely mind?
Speaker 1: Your brain now is about six years old. Can you
Speaker 1: just picture what a seventeen year old brain is like?
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean I wasn't playing Maine to a woman
Speaker 3: in that age, but but yeah, it was nerve.
Speaker 2: It was I.
Speaker 3: Felt more nerve then than I do now because I
Speaker 3: was less experience. But yeah, it's it's difficult. These girls
Speaker 3: have got far more experience than I did playing at
Speaker 3: the highest level. But you know, playing junior Windwood and
Speaker 3: when I was that age, it was nerve wrecking. It
Speaker 3: was a lot more dramatic in my head than it
Speaker 3: was in real life. Right, Yeah, you start thinking, oh
Speaker 3: this this matches everything, and you know it was and
Speaker 3: I played World. I'm a third round two years in
Speaker 3: a row, a year youngest for that. But little did
Speaker 3: I know, I had no kind of You know, if
Speaker 3: you win this ornament, it's there's there's been junior woman
Speaker 3: and champions that now don't play tennis anymore.
Speaker 1: Yes, of course, yeah they've got.
Speaker 3: Jobs and less so in Roland Garras, but you know
Speaker 3: they've got their careers ahead of them. I think they
Speaker 3: all do very well. They're very talented. It's just they
Speaker 3: might not win this year, and they might and I
Speaker 3: don't think it makes a huge difference into their development,
Speaker 3: to be.
Speaker 1: Honest, because you hear, don't you Some people say when
Speaker 1: they were young they played without fear, and then others
Speaker 1: say the opposite, Actually they grew into playing without fear
Speaker 1: and kind of.
Speaker 3: Having I don't believe any one who says they play
Speaker 3: without fear but you don't play fear free ever, No,
Speaker 3: I don't. I can't relate to that. It's just you
Speaker 3: might think there's nothing to lose, but I think as
Speaker 3: you get better, there is stuff to lose. As you
Speaker 3: realize you're at the level where you are, you start thinking, okay, no,
Speaker 3: I can beat this. Player, and I think when you're
Speaker 3: inexperience and young and you've got nothing to lose, Yeah,
Speaker 3: it's still very different when you're five four and you've
Speaker 3: got to serve it out. You're telling me you've got
Speaker 3: no nerves. Then I don't think that's true.
Speaker 1: No, No, Perhaps it's all just stuff that sits well
Speaker 1: in quick quotes and newspaper articles and yeah, that kind
Speaker 1: of thing as.
Speaker 2: Opposed to the actual performance.
Speaker 1: I mean, Hannah won, Hannahkogman won the first WTA main
Speaker 1: draw win in Nottingham last week. Mimis you did that
Speaker 1: last year. Meeker is national champion last year. But as
Speaker 1: you said, they're playing Grand Slam champs, plainly big champs.
Speaker 1: You know, Christ they've got tough drawers. But you've got
Speaker 1: to cut your teeth, and you're like, these are the
Speaker 1: people that they presumably want to be that themselves. So
Speaker 1: now they get to go and see what the difference
Speaker 1: is and hopefully come in with a little bit of
Speaker 1: an upset there.
Speaker 2: Yeah, you never know, you never know.
Speaker 1: Now a name that I don't know, I don't know
Speaker 1: much about Alicia Doudney, do Denny?
Speaker 3: Yeah? I think that, Yeah, I think that's how you say,
Speaker 3: American College. She goes to American College, won a lot
Speaker 3: of matches in the you know, since she's the pro,
Speaker 3: I don't know a lot about her as well.
Speaker 1: Isn't it funny that that American college scene, how these
Speaker 1: players can from the age of eighteen, they disappear for
Speaker 1: four years from British rankings, ratings tournaments and they go
Speaker 1: and play absolute top class tennis out there and kind
Speaker 1: of come up the radar, and then all of a
Speaker 1: sudden they're back in like a Jacob Fernley that you know.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it's what a lot of people are doing. And
Speaker 3: it's nice to see the girl side as well. It's
Speaker 3: happening happening as well. And yes, been playing the top
Speaker 3: events last few weeks, picked up a couple of wins
Speaker 3: and he's playing a list of parks.
Speaker 1: All right, that's right, huge.
Speaker 3: Huge, big hitter, you can win that. Seeing her play
Speaker 3: play a bit, it's good.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's going to be absolute banger. I would
Speaker 1: say they they might not be a rally in the
Speaker 1: first four games, That's what I'm going with. I'm going
Speaker 1: with Lord Bangleton's no rallies, not for the first four games.
Speaker 2: Yeah, what what classifies the rally to.
Speaker 1: You, I think you need both need a plus one
Speaker 1: so four yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3: Okay, yeah, So a rally for me is like six
Speaker 3: six shots minimum.
Speaker 2: Wow, Well, you.
Speaker 3: Could go serve, return, approach and stretch miss. That's not
Speaker 3: a rally.
Speaker 2: It's just a serve and a forehun.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Okay, what do you remember your greatest rally?
Speaker 3: No, I couldn't.
Speaker 2: I couldn't put that.
Speaker 3: As I told you earlier, I've got tembules max, I've
Speaker 3: never I've never seen the eleven.
Speaker 1: No.
Speaker 3: No, actually, when I trained with Smithy there was more
Speaker 3: than that.
Speaker 2: That.
Speaker 1: All right, let's move on to the men's side. Did
Speaker 1: we do this one first? Jack Draper against Taylor Fritz Boom.
Speaker 3: It's fen sitting, isn't it, Because I actually don't know.
Speaker 3: It's best of five. Jack's got some matches in him now,
Speaker 3: I don't know. Fritz is just very very good as well.
Speaker 1: He's good at tennis, isn't he.
Speaker 3: He's very very good and good on grass and it
Speaker 3: seems to play quite loosely.
Speaker 2: But it's not going to be easy either way. I
Speaker 2: think I think if Jack's got to win it, it's
Speaker 2: got to be in three or four.
Speaker 3: But again quote that because Jack can win five sets,
Speaker 3: is incredibly fit. I just don't know. He hasn't played
Speaker 3: a lot of tennis. It's quite hard to track.
Speaker 1: I wonder if we'll get that little bit of different
Speaker 1: bounce under him, you know what I mean.
Speaker 3: Yeah, he's not got a physical problem of fitnesses in
Speaker 3: terms of lasting a long time. It's it's more he
Speaker 3: hasn't done it for a while, right, He hasn't played
Speaker 3: the best office the match since first round of US Open.
Speaker 2: So so I don't know.
Speaker 3: I'm obviously really looking forward to it. I think it
Speaker 3: will be Tuesday afternoon.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think head head says for it, heart says
Speaker 1: Jack for me. But there's a bit of push pull
Speaker 1: in that.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Yeah, there is a bit of push for.
Speaker 3: Like on paper, if you look at everything and you
Speaker 3: don't know Jack, then you go our for Richard win
Speaker 3: that because there's a player here who's been out for
Speaker 3: a while and blah blah blah.
Speaker 2: But it's Jack.
Speaker 1: It's going to be a huge one. That's tea time.
Speaker 1: That's got a tea time Tuesday written all over it,
Speaker 1: isn't it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'll be tucking into something.
Speaker 1: Then we're canceling the news to continue with that.
Speaker 3: Yeah, sorry, guys, Draper's sending rockets down still on the
Speaker 3: weather for a bit. It's going to be art.
Speaker 2: I could do. I could do all that stuff.
Speaker 1: Cam Norri against Michael Sheng now twenty twenty two, since
Speaker 1: Noriy got to the semi finals at Wimbledon a while ago.
Speaker 1: But he is Cam nor right, I.
Speaker 3: Mean Michael Sayings did very well in college and come
Speaker 3: with qualities as well.
Speaker 2: That's not a nice first round. It looks like a
Speaker 2: nice one, is not.
Speaker 1: You don't think like Cam is just too steady.
Speaker 3: Maybe, yeah, but you've got someone who's used to playing
Speaker 3: matches under high pressure.
Speaker 2: He's got three matches under his belt. Good player.
Speaker 3: Norri's first match at Winburden, it's not I don't think
Speaker 3: it will.
Speaker 1: Be a rolling nothing to lose, well, no, not.
Speaker 2: Nothing to lose, but I just don't think it.
Speaker 3: I'll be surprised if Nori won two to two and
Speaker 3: two or something, or you know, easily and straight sets.
Speaker 2: I'd be surprised he can.
Speaker 3: But I think the depth and in tennis's there's not
Speaker 3: many easy draws for anyone out there anymore. No, no,
Speaker 3: I expect one or two of the sets to be tight.
Speaker 1: Yes at least yeah, yeah yeah, Yan joined Ski came
Speaker 1: Caprieva your man, I mean vis yeah, mate, pronounce it.
Speaker 1: So choine Sky's just cracked the he got into the
Speaker 1: top hundred.
Speaker 2: He did playing for Vitamin K first round.
Speaker 1: Yeah kay, I mean I wonder like this is a
Speaker 1: huge moment for him in terms of he's got a
Speaker 1: winnable match first of all, and that paycheck comes in
Speaker 1: and you've just got into the top hundred. This propels
Speaker 1: you again, doesn't it. This is the there's a lot
Speaker 1: of ingredients here where you go.
Speaker 3: Points wise, I don't think it's that it's like forty
Speaker 3: or fifty points for first round win.
Speaker 2: Yeah, but it's good, but it's not.
Speaker 3: Yeah, financially very good and second round of women and
Speaker 3: blah blah.
Speaker 2: But for someone hundred, someone just about top hundred.
Speaker 3: It doesn't mean they're going to stay in top hundred
Speaker 3: forever if they just win the first round.
Speaker 1: No, no, no, But.
Speaker 2: Yeah it's winnable for VI as well. It's good.
Speaker 3: Think Yeah, he's a good player, better on clay. But
Speaker 3: as I said, I can't stress enough. Now you can
Speaker 3: jump off a c plate, a cray a clay caught
Speaker 3: onto a grass court in two three days and be
Speaker 3: feeling all right.
Speaker 2: It's not that different nowadays they've slowed everything down. I'm
Speaker 2: I'm you don't eat it one volley to when I'm at.
Speaker 1: I'm I'm thinking, this is uh not easy. But I
Speaker 1: think this is a he's got a real shot. He's
Speaker 1: a real shot. Okay, so.
Speaker 2: I think he does as well. But but yeah, I would.
Speaker 3: I if it goes four or five or bit wins,
Speaker 3: I wouldn't be like overly.
Speaker 1: Shot Jacob Fernley against Alex Michelson.
Speaker 3: Yeah, Michaelson's good, good or rounder, smart player, loads of weapons.
Speaker 2: Jacob's prey good as well. It depends how if.
Speaker 3: He goes and execute as well. But I think that'll
Speaker 3: be a good match. Not going to be much slow
Speaker 3: hitting balls going on.
Speaker 1: Both both ex college as well. Both come from that scene,
Speaker 1: haven't they, I think?
Speaker 2: So I don't know where Mechason went. Sure, did he
Speaker 2: go anywhere?
Speaker 1: Yeah, I've got I've got his college that he was
Speaker 1: a college guy. So yeah, Jacob, Yeah, yeah, I think
Speaker 1: it's possible to be both there. Mate, he can be
Speaker 1: young and you can be old. I'm very excited for so,
Speaker 1: I think Jacob Ferley that I saw him in the
Speaker 1: fourth round against Jokovic. Was it a couple of years
Speaker 1: ago when he really kind of burst onto the scene
Speaker 1: for a lot of bridge tennis fans, And yeah, I
Speaker 1: think he's going to have a little bit too much here. Yeah,
Speaker 1: Billy Harris.
Speaker 2: Let me trumpet qualifier against Kashanov.
Speaker 3: Yeah again, there's not gonna be much nudging of the
Speaker 3: ball going on there.
Speaker 1: I mean, you know Billy so well, right, So.
Speaker 3: I've been Karen player a few times. He doesn't mind
Speaker 3: giving it a thump repetitively, regressively.
Speaker 1: So what is Billy going to do against Karen.
Speaker 2: Kashanov probably hit it quite hard as well.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, it's good.
Speaker 2: I mean that'll be a great match. That'll be a
Speaker 2: great match. I don't know.
Speaker 3: If Billy goes out and executes, he can beat a
Speaker 3: lot of good people. Yes, And they say, well, I
Speaker 3: don't know if kashov Is best surface is grass, but
Speaker 3: he's obviously very good on it still because he serves
Speaker 3: at one thirty and lasers balls from both sides.
Speaker 2: But no, I think we're in for a good match there.
Speaker 2: I'm looking forward to that.
Speaker 1: I think don't you think that the crowd are just
Speaker 1: on the on the Billy Harris kind of train, like
Speaker 1: I think people who've known him like proper tennis people
Speaker 1: in Britain. He's a real kind of cult hero for him.
Speaker 3: I think he's always been a hero to me though.
Speaker 1: Ah and of course many many years ago now he
Speaker 1: actually came onto this podcast as well, thought of talked
Speaker 1: about his fry upright and eating tuna for seven months
Speaker 1: or whatever.
Speaker 2: Yeah McDonald's car parks for Wi Fi.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, Arthur Ferry somebody that you've played alongside, but
Speaker 1: that hasn't let him hold himself back. You know he
Speaker 1: learned from that.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Well, a lot of people it's fight or flight, isn't.
Speaker 3: That You come away from that and go, I never
Speaker 3: want that happen again. I better apply myself in singles.
Speaker 1: Uh, he's playing Jim, tell.
Speaker 2: Me I'm a good combat that people.
Speaker 3: We'll see fairies form and go that it should be
Speaker 3: easy on paper, but he is a good comester and
Speaker 3: very quick. We'll fight for every point, as I say,
Speaker 3: no easy drawers. I think, yeah, I think that'll be
Speaker 3: a great match to watch as well. I think Arthur Arthur,
Speaker 3: we'll have too much for him, but I don't. You
Speaker 3: can't write him off. That's an animal.
Speaker 1: Yeah, look but fairy is what he's got. Guyle, he's crafty,
Speaker 1: he's clever, knows wimbled, and he's played it so much
Speaker 1: as a junior whos played loads of grass court stuff.
Speaker 1: I've seen him play there for years in various forms.
Speaker 3: Very good and yeah, her kind of rises to that
Speaker 3: as well. Some of her likes a scrap. He likes
Speaker 3: being the underdog will like. I think he'll play some
Speaker 3: of his best tennis as well. But if Arthur plays well,
Speaker 3: he can be. As we see in at Queens, he's
Speaker 3: very very good as well.
Speaker 1: Do you think either one of them are thinking about
Speaker 1: second round? Ben Shelton?
Speaker 2: You never knows.
Speaker 3: Shelton obviously his top tennis is very top, but if
Speaker 3: he's not confident on something he can he's not had
Speaker 3: the consistency yet to guarantee him into the second week
Speaker 3: of a Slatin. I don't think on his on his
Speaker 3: on his top day, Yeah, play Shelton on grass and
Speaker 3: he's feeling it.
Speaker 2: Good luck.
Speaker 1: So what I want to do now, we've got about
Speaker 1: five or six matches to go, five or six players
Speaker 1: I just want you to pick out one or two
Speaker 1: of them that you think that is the match that
Speaker 1: if you had the popcorn, you're going to be sitting
Speaker 1: and watching that. We have got Jack p J Jack,
Speaker 1: Pennington Jones, Toby Samuel, Felix Gill against your door.
Speaker 2: All right? Is Pennington Jones playing against.
Speaker 1: Who he has got Nakashima? Yeah, Toby Samuel's got men sick. Yeah,
Speaker 1: We've got Max, Max Basing and Harry Wendelken.
Speaker 2: So who's Wender? Can play?
Speaker 1: Of these guys? He's got Royer, Valentine Royer. Okay, I
Speaker 1: know Grueling, the winner of Wendalken as well, could go
Speaker 1: on to play as Verev in the second round on
Speaker 1: the center obviously, because he's gad.
Speaker 3: Wend Royer will be a good match. Felix Gill against
Speaker 3: will be a good match.
Speaker 1: I mean, that's got just It would be lovely to
Speaker 1: play Jodan, now you know what I mean, like just
Speaker 1: to just to see what all the fuss is about?
Speaker 1: Almost a yeah, yes and no, yeah, yeah I'd rather
Speaker 1: not I'd rather play me. But you know what I mean,
Speaker 1: what's it all about? It could be one of those
Speaker 1: things where he's not got any grass call experience. This
Speaker 1: is his first time blah blah blah, and you could
Speaker 1: get a good win, you could get like the career win.
Speaker 1: Oh yeah I beat him mate, Yeah yeah.
Speaker 3: I mean Phelix is a great combetor and he's had
Speaker 3: some matches on grass course. Just what I would say again,
Speaker 3: I'll reiterate it. I can't stress enough how the speed
Speaker 3: of the grass is not much different to that other
Speaker 3: hardcore or so it won't be the speed that catches or.
Speaker 2: The height of the ball. It's all very similar. Yeah.
Speaker 3: I think I think there's going to be fewer upsets
Speaker 3: at Winwoldon now than there ever was.
Speaker 1: Yeah, which is a shame. And yeah talk about players.
Speaker 3: I guess for players, they turn up and it's not
Speaker 3: that uncomfortable anymore, and you get a better level of
Speaker 3: tennis all around the year because upsets me.
Speaker 2: And someone's having a shocker really most of the time.
Speaker 1: Well, the shocking drawer Toby Samuel against men Sick. I
Speaker 1: mean like, uh, he's going on to big things, Mensick
Speaker 1: and Samuel's playing ever so well and has really rafted
Speaker 1: and climbed the ladder and stuff. But yeah, he's gonna
Speaker 1: have to play the match of his life. Really, isn't
Speaker 1: he to.
Speaker 2: To beat him?
Speaker 1: But again experienced grass, call player, home crowd, et cetera.
Speaker 2: Again, they're not very nudging it around.
Speaker 1: Any of these matches in particular where you're you're thinking, right,
Speaker 1: that's the one for me, either in the women's side
Speaker 1: or the men's side. Is there a match, let's both
Speaker 1: choose a popcorn match.
Speaker 2: Mine's obvious, so.
Speaker 1: Of course I'm going to go dark Ostapenko.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's also a good one.
Speaker 1: That's gonna be mine. So I just can't wait. As
Speaker 1: we said, wimble them fever, it's here. We wait all
Speaker 1: year and it's finally here. So there's plenty more to
Speaker 1: come from the words you're talking about Willis Podcast. We're
Speaker 1: going to be talking regularly, whether you want us or not.
Speaker 1: In fact or not, is what you do want and
Speaker 1: we're still doing it anyway.
Speaker 3: Our payment model is going to be very different to
Speaker 3: most people. You actually have to pay us to stop.
Speaker 3: We just keep podcasting, sending it out, and then you
Speaker 3: have to subscribe for us to not do one for
Speaker 3: a week.
Speaker 1: Ye can't wait to talk about your mate speech soon.
Speaker 3: Victor baronco on trombone, Sergeant Major Craig Frederick on the
Speaker 3: trumpets and the composition.
Speaker 1: The Army Blues walked back down