WEBVTT - Zero Cups 0:00:16.440 --> 0:00:19.040 Hi, everybody, Welcome to the Renee Stunstam's podcast. 0:00:19.239 --> 0:00:21.520 I'm here in New York with Kate Thompson. 0:00:21.800 --> 0:00:24.520 We have recovered from the US Open, have we? I 0:00:24.520 --> 0:00:26.880 mean I was down for the count for like a 0:00:26.920 --> 0:00:27.480 solid week. 0:00:27.720 --> 0:00:28.560 You know what did me? 0:00:28.640 --> 0:00:31.320 And actually we didn't discuss this after the US Open 0:00:31.400 --> 0:00:34.000 because we were still like high on the supply of 0:00:34.200 --> 0:00:34.960 the US Open. 0:00:35.720 --> 0:00:38.440 But what did me in was the first week? Can I? Yeah, 0:00:38.680 --> 0:00:41.640 the extra week really grant to tweet dust. 0:00:41.920 --> 0:00:44.159 Well, also you had all those great things going on 0:00:44.200 --> 0:00:47.360 with racket down at the pier, the seaport, and and 0:00:47.440 --> 0:00:50.320 so I did stuff there, and I was like back 0:00:50.320 --> 0:00:52.599 and forth from the city and to this. I mean, 0:00:53.680 --> 0:00:56.880 so I'm going to confess something, Caitlin and to our viewers. 0:00:57.240 --> 0:00:58.440 This happens from time to time. 0:00:58.480 --> 0:01:02.160 But so so, I don't know when Coco played Isla Tomlanovitch. 0:01:02.240 --> 0:01:04.000 I think it was a Monday night. Was it Monday night? Yeah? 0:01:04.040 --> 0:01:04.679 I think that's right. 0:01:04.720 --> 0:01:07.960 So I actually had I stay out the I stayed 0:01:07.959 --> 0:01:10.880 out at LaGuardia Hotel. I won't say which one because 0:01:10.920 --> 0:01:12.440 I don't want any stock is coming to find me. 0:01:12.520 --> 0:01:14.000 But here's not that many. 0:01:14.160 --> 0:01:17.399 But anyway, I stay at LaGuardia during the time during 0:01:17.440 --> 0:01:19.440 the US Open because it is literally a ten minute 0:01:19.440 --> 0:01:21.880 car ride from there to the court. So if you 0:01:21.920 --> 0:01:25.880 are a tennis fan, honestly and you really dearly only 0:01:25.920 --> 0:01:28.040 want to go to the tennis and you don't, you're 0:01:28.080 --> 0:01:31.440 not listen. I stayed in LaGuardia. 0:01:31.520 --> 0:01:31.880 I see. 0:01:31.959 --> 0:01:34.000 I thought this was if you're a tennis fan and 0:01:34.080 --> 0:01:35.680 you want to starck your favorite athletes, And I was like, well, 0:01:35.680 --> 0:01:37.640 you're prospecting, You're an anti staking. 0:01:37.360 --> 0:01:38.560 You stock your athletes. 0:01:38.600 --> 0:01:40.200 You need to be in the city, but the athletes 0:01:40.280 --> 0:01:41.920 in the city, but the But if you're a tennis 0:01:42.000 --> 0:01:42.720 nut and you'll. 0:01:42.800 --> 0:01:45.240 Commentator, stay in the Warrior, that makes sense. So I geah, 0:01:45.280 --> 0:01:46.960 I guess you're right. You could just commute ten minutes 0:01:47.000 --> 0:01:48.800 instead of literally totally. 0:01:48.840 --> 0:01:51.920 So anyway, my point in telling you this is I 0:01:51.960 --> 0:01:54.200 do live in the city. Of course, we're sitting in 0:01:54.200 --> 0:01:57.240 my apartment. But I was able to go home a 0:01:57.240 --> 0:01:59.640 bit this year because our schedules allowed us. And the 0:01:59.680 --> 0:02:04.280 first I always stay at home, and so I didn't 0:02:04.320 --> 0:02:06.120 have to work on Monday night and I didn't have 0:02:06.120 --> 0:02:07.880 to work until a little bit later on Tuesday, so 0:02:07.920 --> 0:02:08.959 I was like, oh, I'm going to go home. 0:02:09.000 --> 0:02:10.440 I mean, who doesn't want to sleep in their own bed? 0:02:10.520 --> 0:02:10.640 Right? 0:02:11.240 --> 0:02:12.240 So I come home. 0:02:12.880 --> 0:02:15.799 I'm watching Cocos match with Eyler. I am so fucking 0:02:15.880 --> 0:02:19.040 tired from the from the fan week, yeah, and the 0:02:19.200 --> 0:02:21.720 you know Stars of the Night or whatever Stars at 0:02:21.760 --> 0:02:23.640 the Open and you know all the things that happened. 0:02:23.840 --> 0:02:25.840 It was one all in the third set and it 0:02:25.880 --> 0:02:28.359 was like literally nine point thirty and I went to bed. 0:02:28.520 --> 0:02:29.840 No, I didn't even watch the third set. 0:02:30.600 --> 0:02:33.560 I just got on you so unlike me and I 0:02:33.600 --> 0:02:35.920 work because I'm literally up till midnight or one. Like, 0:02:35.960 --> 0:02:37.880 I text you at like midnight, and I know I'm 0:02:37.880 --> 0:02:39.360 going to get a text at seven in the morning, 0:02:39.360 --> 0:02:41.200 which I'm not going to read until like eight thirty. 0:02:41.280 --> 0:02:42.440 I'm traily six fifteen. 0:02:42.520 --> 0:02:44.079 But I don't even know why I text you, but 0:02:44.120 --> 0:02:45.679 I want you to have it at seven in that 0:02:45.680 --> 0:02:46.040 that's good. 0:02:46.080 --> 0:02:48.000 We have her own system of communicator. And when you 0:02:48.000 --> 0:02:49.720 don't hear from me until like nine am, you know, 0:02:49.840 --> 0:02:50.760 or she just woke up. Yeah. 0:02:50.880 --> 0:02:52.640 So anyway, my point in telling you is I was 0:02:52.680 --> 0:02:55.200 wrecked up the first week of fan Week and I 0:02:55.280 --> 0:02:57.600 fell asleep, didn't even watch Cocos match, woke up the 0:02:57.600 --> 0:02:59.320 next morning, watched the third set, so I knew what 0:02:59.320 --> 0:03:03.079 the hell had happened, and but I got about ten 0:03:03.080 --> 0:03:04.880 hours sleep that night, and I was I was back. 0:03:04.960 --> 0:03:07.000 Oh, I was back for two weeks after that, and 0:03:07.000 --> 0:03:09.760 then what happened, I was pretty good. Like the schedule 0:03:09.840 --> 0:03:13.160 was not crazy. We didn't have Uber late nights this year. 0:03:13.240 --> 0:03:15.480 I had the one o'clock in the morning match of 0:03:15.480 --> 0:03:18.440 Osaka and Anissam over and everyone's asked me, what was 0:03:18.480 --> 0:03:21.840 your favorite match? That For me, that was the best match. Yeah, 0:03:21.880 --> 0:03:24.840 it was just drama. And as I said as a commentator, 0:03:24.880 --> 0:03:27.040 you're I was like, oh man, that first semi was 0:03:27.080 --> 0:03:30.240 so good. Damn mine's not going to be as good. 0:03:30.320 --> 0:03:34.000 And then it was better. Yeah. So anyway, so I 0:03:34.000 --> 0:03:35.600 don't even know why we got into the USO. Oh, 0:03:35.640 --> 0:03:37.400 I was on the plate. I was. I had the 0:03:37.400 --> 0:03:39.480 plague for like five days. You did, and you still 0:03:39.520 --> 0:03:41.560 sound a little stuffy. I know I'm still a nantibatic, 0:03:41.840 --> 0:03:43.560 so fuck, but I didn't give it to me. When 0:03:43.600 --> 0:03:44.119 you came over. 0:03:44.560 --> 0:03:48.400 I think I am you attempted to me. I sort 0:03:48.400 --> 0:03:51.960 of did a caughe you or something. Anyway, I I 0:03:52.080 --> 0:03:54.360 just went too hard for too long and now we're 0:03:54.360 --> 0:03:56.640 back aout now, I will say, and I want to 0:03:56.640 --> 0:03:57.360 sort of get into this. 0:03:57.800 --> 0:04:00.720 I love tennis. We both do. We have tennis so 0:04:00.720 --> 0:04:02.480 so much. We have a podcast about it. 0:04:02.520 --> 0:04:04.200 We have a podcast about it, one of the longest 0:04:04.280 --> 0:04:07.000 running tennis podcasts now in history. Because we do have 0:04:07.040 --> 0:04:08.440 to talk about some of the newcomers, which I'm very 0:04:08.440 --> 0:04:10.400 excited about. It's always fun when new people get into 0:04:10.400 --> 0:04:14.240 the mix. I don't care about any tennis that's happening 0:04:14.280 --> 0:04:16.680 right now, and I want to know. And I there 0:04:16.680 --> 0:04:18.880 are people that I like, and I'm like, oh, Emata Kona, 0:04:18.920 --> 0:04:21.080 I've enjoyed her whole season. I'm glad she won her 0:04:21.160 --> 0:04:23.280 match in Korea. Maybe I'll put it on later in 0:04:23.279 --> 0:04:25.440 the background because it obviously happened overnight. 0:04:25.160 --> 0:04:27.960 And egos Ciontech is playing in Korea. Egish Fiantech does 0:04:28.000 --> 0:04:30.000 not need to be playing in Korea. She must be 0:04:30.080 --> 0:04:32.800 getting so much money to go there. I guess appearance phase. 0:04:32.880 --> 0:04:36.160 But I just, you know, I wanted to talk about 0:04:36.160 --> 0:04:38.839 this because I think one of the things that's so 0:04:38.960 --> 0:04:41.440 fantastic about this year in tennis, and you know, the 0:04:41.480 --> 0:04:44.279 mix the US US have been got sort of the 0:04:44.320 --> 0:04:49.120 diehards were sort of I think, I don't say alienated, 0:04:49.160 --> 0:04:51.160 but the diehards felt like, oh, okay, well now we've 0:04:51.200 --> 0:04:54.039 like fully given this tournament over to the newcomers, which 0:04:54.600 --> 0:04:56.799 I get their point. There's a lot of people taking selfies, 0:04:56.800 --> 0:05:00.240 not paying attention to the tennis. The grounds are act 0:05:00.279 --> 0:05:02.120 because USTA just sells so many tickets. 0:05:02.240 --> 0:05:04.360 Some would say, you know, they're shaking the seating next year. 0:05:04.880 --> 0:05:06.120 Well, before we get into that, I just kind of 0:05:06.120 --> 0:05:08.839 want to make the larger point that, like with the 0:05:08.839 --> 0:05:13.480 influx of new fans and the record viewership and record 0:05:13.480 --> 0:05:15.719 ticket sales and record sales of Honeyduces and all this 0:05:15.760 --> 0:05:19.159 stuff and TV writings and TV ratings, like, it's all 0:05:19.640 --> 0:05:22.640 for me net positive. Sometimes it comes maybe at the 0:05:22.640 --> 0:05:24.600 expense of people who are diehards who like to have 0:05:24.720 --> 0:05:26.599 you know, the grand stand to themselves. But I think 0:05:26.600 --> 0:05:28.280 this is a good problem to have. It means the 0:05:28.279 --> 0:05:30.760 sport is growing. And I also want to encourage people 0:05:30.760 --> 0:05:32.680 who only go to the US Open or only see 0:05:32.800 --> 0:05:36.240 this one tournament to go to other ones because a 0:05:36.279 --> 0:05:38.960 lot of them are much much much better now. 0:05:38.839 --> 0:05:40.239 In different ways, in different ways. 0:05:40.360 --> 0:05:42.880 Yeah, it's not just slight the US Open, but nothing 0:05:42.920 --> 0:05:44.640 based spanning, not very beatsks. 0:05:44.920 --> 0:05:49.839 I will say this, nothing beats the the. 0:05:49.160 --> 0:05:51.760 Manic, crazy light, crazy shit that. 0:05:51.720 --> 0:05:53.960 Happens unless you're in a nosebleed seating. You can't move down. 0:05:53.960 --> 0:05:56.640 Oh my god, you're there. Well, this and Nash Stadium 0:05:56.720 --> 0:05:58.600 is the worst. It's not a great stadium in the world. 0:05:58.640 --> 0:06:00.400 Now again, my point I'm bringing this up is not 0:06:00.440 --> 0:06:02.640 to debate the pros and cons of the US Open, 0:06:02.760 --> 0:06:06.440 but rather to say, you know, we have this fantastic 0:06:06.680 --> 0:06:11.000 culmination of a summer series. We go from Australia into 0:06:11.400 --> 0:06:13.479 you know, the Middle East, the South America, we go 0:06:13.520 --> 0:06:15.400 all these places, we go to Europe for a time, 0:06:15.640 --> 0:06:16.560 then we come back to the States. 0:06:16.560 --> 0:06:17.480 We have this hardcourt series. 0:06:17.520 --> 0:06:19.320 We have amazing matches, and then the US Open happens 0:06:19.320 --> 0:06:24.720 and it's like amazing. Caroll Bouchard, a French writer on 0:06:24.760 --> 0:06:28.080 her sub stack, made the very very excellent point and 0:06:28.120 --> 0:06:30.960 framing it as you know, if you go to a play, 0:06:31.279 --> 0:06:33.680 a three act play, you don't want all the action 0:06:33.800 --> 0:06:35.640 to happen in the second act and then the second 0:06:35.680 --> 0:06:37.760 act be the big exciting stuff, and then what's happening 0:06:37.800 --> 0:06:41.159 in the third act, and it does feel like tennis 0:06:41.200 --> 0:06:43.839 is now having the third act of the season, where 0:06:43.839 --> 0:06:46.839 there's exhibitions, there's some tournaments in Asia. 0:06:46.680 --> 0:06:50.560 There's Billy Jing King cupsky Sa Billaging King Cup, I've 0:06:50.560 --> 0:06:52.800 a Cup, Labor Cup. Who like even cares about Labor Cup? 0:06:53.800 --> 0:06:57.880 And so is this the best and most exciting third act? 0:06:57.960 --> 0:07:00.400 And some would say, while we've got the two finals 0:07:00.400 --> 0:07:02.120 and everyone cares about that, And I would say, do 0:07:02.200 --> 0:07:04.360 they some people care about that. I get that there's 0:07:04.360 --> 0:07:05.839 a lot of money involved in it. Obviously it's not 0:07:05.839 --> 0:07:07.440 a new topic because we've talked about this before. But 0:07:07.440 --> 0:07:09.800 I just I think she raises a good point, which is, 0:07:09.960 --> 0:07:13.440 especially with the influx of new fans, what is keeping 0:07:13.440 --> 0:07:16.440 them around and what is the sort of follow up 0:07:17.200 --> 0:07:18.520 dessert course. 0:07:18.440 --> 0:07:20.840 Of the US Open? And if this is it, then 0:07:21.000 --> 0:07:23.360 I think we have to rethink it. Not only because 0:07:23.360 --> 0:07:26.320 the players are all you know, dead and bloodied and 0:07:26.320 --> 0:07:28.480 buried along the way kind of thing, because they're all 0:07:28.560 --> 0:07:30.400 exhausted and a lot of them are doing this out 0:07:30.440 --> 0:07:33.400 of either appearance fee or national pride. Right now, we're 0:07:33.400 --> 0:07:37.800 watching Paula Badosa play Elina Spadelina, you know, to a 0:07:37.840 --> 0:07:41.679 crowd of tens in Shenzen for Billageing King Cup, and it's. 0:07:41.520 --> 0:07:45.240 Like, well, I love those players, but what are we doing? 0:07:45.960 --> 0:07:47.640 So I don't know that I have the answer to that, 0:07:47.640 --> 0:07:51.040 but it does feel like it's an emergency. 0:07:51.160 --> 0:07:53.200 I think this is more than ten Let's just be honest. 0:07:53.640 --> 0:07:54.800 This this actually. 0:07:55.160 --> 0:07:57.559 Brought ten people. But my point is it's not a packed, 0:07:57.640 --> 0:07:58.560 rollicking stadium. 0:07:59.200 --> 0:07:59.440 Yeah. 0:07:59.440 --> 0:08:01.360 Well, it's hot to see how many people are there 0:08:01.360 --> 0:08:04.080 because they don't show the full stadium, and from what 0:08:04.160 --> 0:08:06.560 I can see, there's an entire box on the right 0:08:06.600 --> 0:08:09.720 that's got one person in it. But the first ten 0:08:09.800 --> 0:08:12.480 rows look pretty full. It's just what's after that. 0:08:14.040 --> 0:08:16.880 I think it's hard to say that this is probably 0:08:16.960 --> 0:08:19.680 drawing the in prison crowds that it deserves. 0:08:19.920 --> 0:08:21.240 Yeah, we couldn't argue that. 0:08:21.320 --> 0:08:27.200 Well, I mean, listen, yeah, it's we've talked about this 0:08:27.320 --> 0:08:31.920 a lot in the pod over the years, and it's 0:08:32.000 --> 0:08:35.240 like after the US Open, everyone does think that tennis 0:08:35.280 --> 0:08:38.640 is over. You know, from a from a macro standpoint, 0:08:39.840 --> 0:08:43.920 I think we tennis players it's not a joy to 0:08:44.040 --> 0:08:46.199 like schlap over to Asia and spend like a month 0:08:46.240 --> 0:08:49.040 over there, because you just feel like you're so far 0:08:49.160 --> 0:08:52.120 from everything unless you're Asian. Unless you're Asian, it's amazing. 0:08:52.280 --> 0:08:54.560 Like for Chinese players or you know, any of the 0:08:54.600 --> 0:08:56.560 Asian players, it's great. They can fly like two hours 0:08:56.559 --> 0:08:58.840 and they don't get that opportunity. As an Australian, I 0:08:58.840 --> 0:09:01.040 get that, and I understand out of and it's not 0:09:01.080 --> 0:09:05.000 great and it's not easy. But yeah, I mean, but 0:09:05.120 --> 0:09:07.080 how do we solve this because you know, the amount 0:09:07.120 --> 0:09:09.240 of money that Billy jan Kin Cup is offering now 0:09:09.280 --> 0:09:11.320 is enormous. Like God, when I played, if I was 0:09:11.320 --> 0:09:14.000 getting like five grand I just represent my country and 0:09:14.040 --> 0:09:16.560 like take away prize money, I was having a good day. 0:09:16.920 --> 0:09:19.839 Now they're winning hundreds of thousand, thousands of dollars to 0:09:20.120 --> 0:09:24.079 play in it. So the fact that Gainbridge and all 0:09:24.080 --> 0:09:25.960 these great sponsors and Billy and Alana have done an 0:09:26.000 --> 0:09:28.120 amazing job with all these sort of like sponsors to 0:09:28.120 --> 0:09:31.640 come in and support support the w to support the 0:09:31.720 --> 0:09:35.800 Billy Jean King Cup. But it just it just maybe 0:09:35.840 --> 0:09:38.440 if they continue to have it, there becomes like something 0:09:38.480 --> 0:09:40.720 that and I do, like I said this to you 0:09:40.800 --> 0:09:43.120 before we start the pod, I do like the fact 0:09:43.160 --> 0:09:46.240 that it is in Shenzen for one reason only all 0:09:46.240 --> 0:09:48.679 the players are going to Asia, They're going to Beijing, 0:09:48.880 --> 0:09:51.000 They're going there, and so this is a way for 0:09:51.040 --> 0:09:55.320 them to start the Asian tour. So I like that 0:09:55.440 --> 0:09:58.160 concept a lot. The problem is, you're not going to 0:09:58.200 --> 0:10:00.400 get people from Spain going to Shenzhen. You're not going 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:02.439 to get people from Ukraine going to Shenzen. 0:10:02.480 --> 0:10:03.160 You're not going to get. 0:10:03.040 --> 0:10:06.240 People from the Czech Republic really going to Shenzen. So 0:10:06.520 --> 0:10:09.440 who are you, you know before? Who is this for 0:10:09.679 --> 0:10:10.440 homo spectators? 0:10:10.640 --> 0:10:12.400 But I mean, I think part of my point is 0:10:12.440 --> 0:10:14.560 maybe the location, which I get, and I think that 0:10:14.600 --> 0:10:16.199 you're right, you're making a good point about the time 0:10:16.280 --> 0:10:19.680 zone and acclimating to you know, that. 0:10:19.600 --> 0:10:20.199 Part of the world. 0:10:20.520 --> 0:10:23.160 I actually mean it less because I think, you know, 0:10:23.240 --> 0:10:24.960 I was watching some of the Davis Cup, which was 0:10:25.480 --> 0:10:28.280 other places in the last few weeks, and it's it's 0:10:28.320 --> 0:10:31.360 also not it's it to me. It has more to 0:10:31.360 --> 0:10:32.880 do with a calendar than it has to do with the. 0:10:32.800 --> 0:10:35.320 Location the finals. At least it's true. 0:10:35.320 --> 0:10:38.920 But this is the BJK Cup is the finals right now, 0:10:38.960 --> 0:10:41.320 so it's going to be done right right, whereas the 0:10:41.320 --> 0:10:43.720 guys are not done until like freaking November. 0:10:43.760 --> 0:10:44.360 It's a joke. 0:10:44.520 --> 0:10:48.120 I just I'm sort of challenging the notion because I 0:10:48.120 --> 0:10:50.520 think I am somebody who wants tennis in Asia, I'm 0:10:50.520 --> 0:10:52.480 somebody who wants tennis in Latin America. I'm somebody who 0:10:52.520 --> 0:10:55.040 wants tennis a lot of different places, because I think 0:10:55.080 --> 0:10:56.600 that's one of the coolest parts of our sport is 0:10:56.640 --> 0:11:00.120 we have players and fans all over the world. I 0:11:00.160 --> 0:11:04.599 don't think that the tournament in shinzen Is is not 0:11:04.679 --> 0:11:08.760 a good idea because of fanship and sponsors. Although you know, 0:11:08.800 --> 0:11:10.720 you can always have the conversation, I think it's a 0:11:10.760 --> 0:11:13.040 bad idea because it's hard to care about anything after 0:11:13.080 --> 0:11:15.640 the US Open, including the tour finals, which you know, 0:11:15.760 --> 0:11:17.440 you could put in the same category, which is like 0:11:17.760 --> 0:11:20.080 you know, the piff rankings and everyone who the race 0:11:20.120 --> 0:11:23.520 to the thing, and it's like, well, do if any 0:11:23.520 --> 0:11:25.880 player on the tour still if you say you could 0:11:25.920 --> 0:11:27.640 be number one at the end of the year, or 0:11:27.800 --> 0:11:30.559 you could win a slam, yeah, they're going to say 0:11:30.640 --> 0:11:34.280 slam one of the players, Yeah, Yanny. 0:11:34.280 --> 0:11:36.000 People that say they don't want to win a slam. 0:11:36.120 --> 0:11:38.480 Wheelchair got to number one in the world and didn't 0:11:38.480 --> 0:11:40.120 get a slam, and didn't get a slam. I'm sure, 0:11:40.160 --> 0:11:43.880 like you know, uh, Carolina Pliskova. 0:11:43.400 --> 0:11:46.160 Carolina Pliskova, or I'm thinking about uh, you know the 0:11:46.280 --> 0:11:49.679 Russian player, uh with this crazy serve. 0:11:49.760 --> 0:11:52.560 Remember her, she wanted silver medal at the Olympics. They 0:11:52.760 --> 0:11:53.600 got to number one. 0:11:53.800 --> 0:11:58.400 Was a Serbian friend, who oh, Yolena Yankovic Jankovic, who 0:11:58.400 --> 0:11:59.160 can forget Ilena? 0:11:59.240 --> 0:11:59.960 Yeah, That's what I'm saying. 0:12:00.400 --> 0:12:04.280 They would absolutely like like Eva Mayoli won the French Open, 0:12:04.320 --> 0:12:05.959 didn't get to number one, I think she would take 0:12:06.040 --> 0:12:06.800 the French Ope. 0:12:06.800 --> 0:12:08.800 And I've been getting to number one. I think so. 0:12:08.800 --> 0:12:10.319 So I think there is. 0:12:10.720 --> 0:12:13.360 I mean, they're both amazing, but I think you don't 0:12:13.360 --> 0:12:14.400 want one without the other. 0:12:14.720 --> 0:12:17.640 I think what why this feels pertinent to me this 0:12:17.720 --> 0:12:20.680 year more than past times when we've talked about it 0:12:20.720 --> 0:12:26.600 and it has remained true, is that now tennis, very 0:12:26.679 --> 0:12:31.319 clearly from a outside in perspective, has been succeeding in 0:12:31.440 --> 0:12:34.920 on the upswing, both recreational and people spectating the pro game. 0:12:35.480 --> 0:12:40.440 From a institutional standpoint, I think a lot of these stakeholders, 0:12:40.559 --> 0:12:45.000 the Grand Slams, the marketing, the brands, the athletes themselves 0:12:45.200 --> 0:12:47.200 have embraced the idea that there are a lot of 0:12:47.320 --> 0:12:50.800 there's an influx of new eyeballs and new participants and 0:12:50.840 --> 0:12:52.920 new people who care about it. I think that's wonderful. 0:12:52.920 --> 0:12:54.839 That's what we've sort of been waiting for. And when 0:12:54.840 --> 0:12:57.000 I started record a decade ago, it was like, why 0:12:57.000 --> 0:12:58.560 are you doing tennis? It's a sport that's dying, And 0:12:58.559 --> 0:13:00.679 I was like, not to me. Now I don't have 0:13:00.720 --> 0:13:02.319 to make that case anymore. I don't have to explain 0:13:02.360 --> 0:13:04.080 why this is relevant and why people care about it 0:13:04.080 --> 0:13:06.400 and why it's a larger addressable market than just people 0:13:06.440 --> 0:13:08.320 who buy rackets, because there's so many people who just 0:13:08.360 --> 0:13:11.480 want to experience the lifestyle of it. Great, So what 0:13:11.520 --> 0:13:13.720 are we doing from a product standpoint that's helping them? 0:13:13.880 --> 0:13:15.760 And this isn't it? Yeah? 0:13:15.840 --> 0:13:18.160 Well, I mean some people might argue that Asia is 0:13:18.200 --> 0:13:21.400 a huge, clearly huge market and they're getting tennis there 0:13:21.480 --> 0:13:25.840 and they're going to have tennis grow in that part 0:13:25.840 --> 0:13:29.720 of the world. I don't know, but it is difficult. 0:13:29.720 --> 0:13:32.520 We've talked about it at nauseum. I think that all 0:13:32.559 --> 0:13:39.000 the other exhibitions dilute the product. I would love to see, frankly, 0:13:39.000 --> 0:13:41.599 i'd love to see combined. I think Davis Cup and 0:13:41.600 --> 0:13:43.760 Fed Cup, Billy Jean King Cup. It's so hard for me. 0:13:44.040 --> 0:13:46.640 I played Fed Cup for like twenty years. But the 0:13:46.679 --> 0:13:52.040 BJK Cup and Davis Cup are so important to the 0:13:52.080 --> 0:13:56.720 grassroots of sport of tennis in every country. There's nothing 0:13:56.760 --> 0:13:59.400 like representing your country. It was my favorite weeks of 0:13:59.440 --> 0:14:04.200 the year was playing in BJK Cup for Australia. There 0:14:04.240 --> 0:14:06.280 were some of the most memorable weeks. So these weeks 0:14:06.280 --> 0:14:08.880 are great. But and you do have a team bonding, 0:14:08.880 --> 0:14:13.439 it doesn't really matter where you are, so I think 0:14:13.440 --> 0:14:15.480 it's really important. I just think we need to as 0:14:15.520 --> 0:14:17.679 a as a as a sport really come up with 0:14:17.720 --> 0:14:21.280 the best product and whatever that means. And I think 0:14:21.800 --> 0:14:25.960 a mixed event would be amazing. Whether you know, Hopman 0:14:26.000 --> 0:14:28.120 Cup was great at the start of the year. I 0:14:28.160 --> 0:14:30.480 think that's an opportunity to do it. I mean, we do, 0:14:30.640 --> 0:14:32.520 they do have a Hopman Cup. It was again earlier 0:14:32.560 --> 0:14:35.160 this year. Nobody remembered it or knew about it. Italy 0:14:35.200 --> 0:14:37.360 won it in Italy and it was crazy crowds and 0:14:37.400 --> 0:14:39.400 it was amazing, But the only people that cared about 0:14:39.400 --> 0:14:42.080 it were Italy in Italy because nobody else saw it 0:14:42.160 --> 0:14:44.520 unless you were like glue to it. On Tennis channel 0:14:44.520 --> 0:14:46.920 and not. I mean I'm a tennis fan and I 0:14:47.000 --> 0:14:48.560 forgot about it. I didn't even know what was happening 0:14:48.560 --> 0:14:51.000 because it was after Wimbledon, so everyone's like, Okay, what's next, 0:14:51.040 --> 0:14:51.640 yous Open? 0:14:52.280 --> 0:14:53.920 So that's sort of the problem. 0:14:54.000 --> 0:14:57.880 And then we're having issues like after Wimbledon, people are 0:14:57.880 --> 0:15:00.400 pulling out of the Canadian tournaments like Sinner and our 0:15:00.480 --> 0:15:03.600 Carez and you know, Sablanka and all this, and then 0:15:03.880 --> 0:15:05.680 you know, we also wanted to talk about the fact 0:15:05.720 --> 0:15:09.400 that like Sabalalanka is pulled out of Beijing, that's not tomorrow, 0:15:09.480 --> 0:15:11.480 that's like it's in two weeks. You know, the fact 0:15:11.480 --> 0:15:12.000 that she's. 0:15:11.840 --> 0:15:15.120 Already decided that she's essentially shutting down a chunk of 0:15:15.160 --> 0:15:15.920 the season. 0:15:15.720 --> 0:15:17.880 And she said for a minor injury. So what does 0:15:17.880 --> 0:15:20.760 that even mean? So she just here's the deal. These 0:15:20.760 --> 0:15:23.240 players have decided, and she's going to take a zero 0:15:23.280 --> 0:15:26.200 point there. She doesn't care she's gonna have to pay 0:15:26.200 --> 0:15:28.160 a fine. Oh no, she might not have to pay 0:15:28.160 --> 0:15:31.080 a fine because she isn't a quote unquote injury, right, 0:15:31.560 --> 0:15:34.360 So but she's not playing there. Eager is pulled out 0:15:34.400 --> 0:15:37.640 of Korea, you know, Anissimova pulled out of Korea as well, 0:15:37.680 --> 0:15:39.880 because these tournaments are too close to a Grand Slam. 0:15:40.080 --> 0:15:42.200 And I feel sorry for those tournaments because they literally 0:15:42.240 --> 0:15:44.920 are putting on their one event all year and spending 0:15:44.920 --> 0:15:46.480 a lot of money and trying to get the sponsors. 0:15:46.520 --> 0:15:48.520 And it's hard to continually get sponsors if the top 0:15:48.520 --> 0:15:50.360 players pull out. And I get the whole big picture, 0:15:50.800 --> 0:15:53.760 but I mean, these players are their own bosses and 0:15:53.800 --> 0:15:55.440 they have to take care of their own body and 0:15:55.440 --> 0:15:56.040 their own mind. 0:15:56.120 --> 0:15:57.640 Yeah, and it's a lot fucking season. 0:15:57.720 --> 0:16:00.320 Yeah, I think all to me, all of this, Yes, 0:16:00.360 --> 0:16:02.160 we can innovate around the mix. I think that's a 0:16:02.160 --> 0:16:05.720 great idea to mix BJK and Davis. It's not the 0:16:05.720 --> 0:16:07.640 first time that's been suggested. I think it's a brilliant idea. 0:16:07.680 --> 0:16:10.360 I think it again leans into the thing that is 0:16:10.360 --> 0:16:12.640 the most exciting about our sport, which is that that's. 0:16:12.440 --> 0:16:15.080 An opportunity to have a week ten day event instead 0:16:15.080 --> 0:16:18.080 of these mustas and WT at one thousands having a 0:16:18.080 --> 0:16:20.600 ten day event, I'm just ruining the calendar. 0:16:20.680 --> 0:16:24.280 The schedule is broken. Because the schedule is broken. It's broken, 0:16:24.320 --> 0:16:24.800 and it's broken. 0:16:24.800 --> 0:16:26.720 It's broken, and the amount of time and you know, 0:16:26.800 --> 0:16:28.520 I see the tennis world from a little bit of 0:16:28.520 --> 0:16:31.520 a different perspective because I see all these like pitch 0:16:31.640 --> 0:16:33.680 decks circulating for people trying to raise money for new 0:16:33.720 --> 0:16:36.000 business ideas, which is exciting and cool. And don't get 0:16:36.040 --> 0:16:37.600 me wrong, like I love the fact that tennis is 0:16:37.600 --> 0:16:40.520 now being identified as a place where there's growth possible 0:16:40.560 --> 0:16:42.040 again for the same reasons I was just talking about, 0:16:42.040 --> 0:16:44.160 where people are like, oh, it's dying. Who cares, I'm 0:16:44.160 --> 0:16:46.200 going to invest in pickleball instead. It's like cool, good, 0:16:46.360 --> 0:16:49.640 have fun with that, reaching a down market audience with 0:16:49.680 --> 0:16:52.080 a dying dumb I believe you even brought that. We 0:16:52.800 --> 0:16:55.960 with a you know, with a dying populace of participants. 0:16:56.000 --> 0:17:00.680 But I do think the you know, the business opportunity 0:17:01.040 --> 0:17:02.040 isn't exhibition. 0:17:02.160 --> 0:17:03.280 It's not more exhibitions. 0:17:03.320 --> 0:17:05.240 It's like, I know, we'll get an exhibition and we'll 0:17:05.240 --> 0:17:07.800 put on the calendar and we'll get the best players available. 0:17:07.840 --> 0:17:11.920 It's like, well, respectfully, like labor Cup is happening right now, 0:17:12.760 --> 0:17:15.240 does Roger Feder have to go to it to make 0:17:15.320 --> 0:17:18.159