Alcaraz Is Out, Jodar's Fast Start and Trying Times for College Tennis
Plus: Did Andy foreshadow Madrid's shrimp taco fiasco?
Context-free soundbite: “It’s much more of an eat-what-you-kill world.”
This week on Served, Andy, JW and Producer Mike read the tea leaves on Carlos Alcaraz’s injury and the University of Arkansas cutting tennis. Both topics are rich with complexities, making for two fascinating conversations. Plus: The arrival of Rafael Jodar.
Regarding Shrimpgate, we don’t know whether the sickness sweeping through Marid is food poisoning or a virus, but Andy did say the place looks like a Chipotle…on Taco Tuesday.
Coming Up This Week on Served
Love All on Wednesday with a fan Q&A
Q&Andy on Thursday
5 Setter on Friday
Enjoy the new episode and this week’s bonus stories.
The latest stories that matter right now
Atmane’s Cramp-a-Rama Controversy
Terence Atmane defeated Ugo Humbert 7–6, 7–6 on Saturday in Madrid in one of the most surreal matches of the season. He then lost to Alexander Zverev yesterday, but the cramping episode is something to behold.
Down 5–2 in the second-set tiebreak, Atmane collapsed on the clay, writhing in full-body cramps, barely able to stand. Then he won five straight points to take the match. This is just a portion of the scene:
Some accused Atmane of exaggerating his pain to buy time to recover, as he went well over the 25 seconds allowed between points. Afterward, Atmane said it was like “getting through hell” to win the match.
Jim Courier, calling the match on Tennis Channel, said Atmane should have received a time violation and possibly a subsequent penalty. Humbert’s coach, Jeremy Chardy, had to be physically restrained in the tunnel afterward, reportedly telling the chair umpire, “You should be ashamed of yourself.” According to L’Equipe, the ATP Tour is investigating the incident.
Atmane apologized to Humbert at the net, saying, “I can only apologize, because obviously this isn’t what I wanted.” From his press conference:
Terence Atmane
🎤 “You have to ask the umpire why he didn’t give me a time violation. I have nothing to do with it. I’m not collapsing on the ground on purpose. It’s just that I really can’t stand anymore.”
Evidently, Atmane lashed out at the medical staff trying to help him. His coach, Guillaume Peyre, called him out for his behavior to L’Equipe.
“I didn't even congratulate him. I wasn't happy with the way he spoke to the physio and the doctor,” Peyre said. “He actually went and apologized to them."
The Slide Show: Clay Standouts and Storylines
In today’s episode, Andy and the crew talk extensively about Rafael Jodar’s breakout performance in Madrid this week. Here’s what else has our attention this week.
Both Madrid draws are lopsided.
Jannik Sinner was the heavy favorite once Carlos Alcaraz withdrew, and nothing has changed through the first three rounds. Aryna Sabalenka’s path cleared when Elena Rybakina, Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek all lost. Mirra Andreeva is the only other Top 10 seed left in the women’s draw.
The women’s bottom half is wide open.
Karolina Pliskova will play Anastasia Potapova, who beat Rybakina 7–6, 6–4, and Marta Kostyuk will face Linda Noskova, who took out Gauff 6–4, 1–6, 7–6. Pliskova, a former world No. 1 and 2019 Rome champion, is back in her first WTA 1000 quarterfinal in two years.
Kostyuk is on her best winning streak.
The Ukrainian made it nine dubs in a row when she beat Caty McNally 6–2, 6–3 yesterday, following a title run at the WTA 250 in Rouen, France, last week. Not only that, Kostyuk is dominating the scorelines with seven bagels and breadsticks.
The Aix-en-Provence Challenger is stacked.
A function of the calendar and geography, the ATP Challenger starting today in France features four Top 50 players and other marquee names:
Cameron Norrie
Alex Michelsen
Alejandro Tabilo
João Fonseca
Stan Wawrinka
Grigor Dimitrov
Zizou Bergs
Ethan Quinn
Plus, Matteo Berrettini, Mariano Navone, Hubert Hurkacz, Nuno Borges and Adrian Mannarino are playing the ATP Challenger in Sardinia this week.
Sabalenka Hits “Shot of My Life”
Bad news for the WTA field: Aryna Sabalenka is finding new ways to beat people. She pulled off a heretofore-unseen one-handed backhand pass against Jaqueline Cristian in Madrid’s second round.
In the press conference after her straight-set win, Sabalenka said that she has been practicing a one-handed backhand in every session.
Aryna Sabalenka
“To hit it [in] the match, and to hit it as a winner, probably that was the shot of my life. I’m waiting for Roger [Federer] to comment any tips for me!”
At the beginning of the year, Sabalenka said that she is trying to introduce serve-and-volley to her game at the right times. If she is trying to channel Fed, what’s next, the SABA—sneak attack by Aryna?
Perfect Delivery: Swipe Left on Clay
If Coco Gauff played Kiss, Marry, Kill with tennis surfaces, we found out which one she would kill when she talked to Tennis Channel in Madrid.
🎤 Coco Gauff
“Clay is like the good guy that treats you nice—the chemistry is just not there.”
The reigning French Open champion explained that the slippery stuff isn’t reliable enough for her taste. “I have a lot of icks with the clay. My socks get dirty, I’m always falling, I have a little cut from today. It’s never completely, like, true. Sometimes I just need stability in my life,” she said.
Win a Slam on it and still won’t commit. Clay is officially in Coco’s friend zone.
24
Consecutive Masters 1000 matches won by Jannik Sinner, No. 3 all-time
Jannik Sinner has not lost a Masters 1000 match since October 2025 (and that was a retirement). He has run the table through the Paris Indoors last year, Indian Wells, Miami, Monte Carlo and, so far, Madrid’s third round. That’s enough to pass Rafael Nadal for third-most all-time.
Extra impressive? Sinner accomplished it across three surfaces—indoor hard, outdoor hard and clay—a testament to his ability to adjust his game to the conditions.
Record Watch: Sinner trails Novak Djokovic (streaks of 30 and 31) and Roger Federer (29) on the all-time list. Sinner will hit 32 if he wins Madrid and makes the semifinals in Rome.
In today’s episode, Andy talked about the one element that can take Sinner down.
Quick Hits
Arthur Fils interviews are becoming must-watch TV. This one involves his fitness coach’s helpful, expletive-laden advice.
People reported that Taylor Fritz and Morgan Riddle ended their six-year relationship despite Riddle’s apparent denial last week. So Craig Shapiro was right.
The French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open will tighten player privacy rules this year, following the Coco Gauff incident caught on camera at the Australian Open. Of course, Wimbledon has to be different.
Jakub Menšík and Red Bull attempted to smash a world record for the highest overhead. We would have let this one bounce.
Mirra Andreeva had a weird fourth-round match. It involved a foul smell, a mini outburst and victory tears.
Ben Rothenberg said on Bounces that Italy will host the ATP NextGen Finals this year. Milan was the original location before the event moved to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Leon Bridges and Iris Copperman will perform for the Andy Roddick Foundation at Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater in Austin on May 8. Score a 25% off code.
Jannik Sinner doesn’t need a dating app, duh. ⬇️
PADEL: International Padel Federation president Luigi Carraro proclaimed—before the European Parliament! last week—that “no sport in history has grown and spread as rapidly as padel,” now up to 35 million players worldwide.
TABLE TENNIS: As the 100th World Table Tennis Team Championships kick off in London today, The Guardian has a great read that involves MI6 and argues that table tennis is the largest sport in the world.
PICKLEBALL: Pro pickleball has its first official rulebook—71 pages covering everything from a new card system for on-court behavior to (yes, this is real) blowing the ball over the net. Read the six biggest changes.
SQUASH: Malaysia’s Sivasangari Subramaniam won the Grasshopper Cup in Zurich this weekend, coming back from 2–1 down in the final. She will rise to world No. 5 on Monday, becoming the first Asian player in the top five since Nicol David eight years ago. Egypt’s Karim Gawad won the men’s title.
BADMINTON: The BWF membership approved a new 3-by-15 scoring system (three games to 15 points) to shorten matches. The reasons? More drama, easier logistics, player health. Sound familiar?
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