The US Davis Cup team has a new captain. Backlash from Reily Opelka’s hot take on the game of doubles in tennis.
Bob Bryan replaces Mardy Fish as U.S. Davis Cup captain. The U.S. Tennis Association on Monday announced Bob Bryan’s appointment as Davis Cup captain, replacing Mardy Fish. Bryan’s first matches in charge will come during the group stage matches in September. Full Story: ESPN
Pam Shriver’s Tennis Juggling Act. The 21-time Grand Slam doubles champion is doing four-way duty as a television commentator, a coach, an ally to sexual abuse survivors, and an agitator for changing the game’s culture. Full Story: The New York Times
Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula Are the Best Thing in American Doubles in Years. Reilly Opelka, a basketball-player-tall, lumberjack-bearded American tennis player, said recently that pro tennis should “get rid of doubles,” that there’s nobody watching. That’s true if what he meant was watching on television—doubles matches are seldom broadcast. But it couldn’t be further from the truth at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden, in the California desert southeast of Palm Springs, where the BNP Paribas Open is under way. Full Story: The New Yorker
Russian tennis player ‘formally warned’ by WTA for wearing Moscow soccer jersey. Russian tennis player Anastasia Potapova after she was seen wearing a Spartak Moscow soccer jersey ahead of her match against American Jessica Pegula at Indian Wells. Full Story: CNN
Iga Swiatek calls for more support for Ukrainian tennis players. Iga Świątek has called for more support for Ukrainian players from the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), adding that “everything we discuss in tennis is about Belarusian and Russian players.” Świątek’s comments on Tuesday follow incidents at the Indian Wells tournament, where Russia’s Anastasia Potapova wore a Spartak Moscow soccer jersey, and Ukrainian player Lesia Tsurenko pulled out of the tournament this week. Full Story: CNN
Son of Lindsay Davenport is an upcoming junior tennis player. Jagger Leach, the 15-year-old son of three-time major champion Lindsay Davenport, lost in the second round at the FILA International Junior Championships at Indian Wells Tennis Garden. Full Story: The Washington Post
At Indian Wells, the Players Have a Playground of Their Own. Many players’ favorite spot at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden is the one place where the tournament built nothing at all. It is the player lawn: a big rectangle of natural grass just inside the west entrance that can serve as an outdoor gym, social nexus, soccer field, meditation center, makeshift television studio and children’s playground — sometimes all at the same time. Full Story: The New York Times
Why a Recent WTA Private Equity Deal Isn’t Necessarily Bad for Women’s Tennis. It’s easy to spin this as a win. In rough financial straits, missing players like Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka and Ash Barty, facing increasing competition, and without a real home for the year-end finals, the WTA received an infusion of $150 million. It did so by partnering with a credible outfit that has a track record (no pun intended) in sports, most notably Formula 1. Full Story: Sports Illustrated
2023 US Open to Celebrate 50th Anniversary of Equal Prize Money. The USTA today announced that the celebration of the 50th anniversary of equal prize money at the US Open will be the central theme of the 2023 US Open, and will be bolstered by a number of significant events and a multi-media campaign that will cross linear, digital, and social media channels. Full Story: Racquet Sports Industry Editorial Note: I previously wrote about the much more interesting full story in “1973: The US Open Becomes First Major to Offer Equal Prize Money.”
This Week in Professional Tennis
| Date | Tournament | Tour/Level | Location |
| 3/21- 4/2 | Miami Open presented by Itaú | WTA 1000 ATP 1000 | Miami, Florida |
