Served 5 Setter
Craig Tiley, rage rooms, pickleball's experiment and more.
Welcome to your weekly 5 Setter, an express roundup of all things racquet sports with Producer Mike. In this episode:
Craig Tiley makes it official
A new Indian Wells kickoff
Barbie honors Serena and Indian Wells invites Venus
Raducanu’s kit and coaching news
Rage rooms at tournaments are real
Tiebreak Trivia
Click below to watch today’s 5 Setter on YouTube, and come back here for this week’s bonus stories.
The Hidden Toll of Tennis
Daniil Medvedev returning to his winning ways means more mic time in press conferences, and we all win when that happens. His latest truth bomb came after his first-round win in Dubai this week, when he offered unflinching insight into the physical grind of tour life.
🎤 Daniil Medvedev
“What people don’t see is the toll the travel plus competition brings,” said the former world No. 1, citing constant changes in beds, pillows, food, balls and courts up to 40 times a year. He noted that upsets often stem from invisible factors: “You got food poisoning, which is not big enough to retire, but big enough to make you in a bad shape. Everyone is going to be like, What the hell? You are just [having] food poisoning.”
Medvedev handles it well—with his Dubai run, he has reached 64 ATP Tour semifinals, more than any active player except Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev.
Pickleball Tests Smaller Singles Court
The PPA Challenger Series debuted a shrunken court for singles last weekend. The new dimensions bring in the sidelines one-and-a-half feet on each side, reducing the court width to 17 feet.
Player reactions were mixed.
“It gives us the ability to showcase some more creativity, some more shot selection,” said Zoey Weil, while Christopher Crouch praised the “cat and mouse” gameplay. But Jada Bui was blunt: “I couldn’t play my best. I wouldn’t want it for the future.”
PPA Challenger VP Tanner Groff defended the trial, positioning the Challenger tier as pickleball’s innovation laboratory, akin to our Next Gen ATP Finals. The narrowed dimensions continue at the Tampa Bay Challenger next week.
Just keep those extra lines off public tennis courts, please.
Quick Hits
JW sat down with Arturo Coello, the biggest padel star on the planet, for Sports Illustrated.
Stefanos Tsitsipas said the quiet part out loud about appearance fees.
Boris Becker is auctioning off signed MacBooks for charity.
Jack Draper ran back Carlos Alcaraz’s buzz cut and Taylor Fritz’s wardrobe fail.
Not everyone finds Alexander Bublik amusing.
Love to see it, Damir Dzumher ⬇️
Q&Andy Recap
Following his discussion on GOAT ATP servers with Chris Eubanks on Tuesday, Andy answered reader questions about the most important shot in tennis. He covered platform stance versus pinpoint, his own dubious match versus Gael Monfils at the French and the WTA’s best servers.
📮Submit a question by emailing askandy@servedmediagroup.com or send it through our website or social media.
Love All Recap
This week, Henley’s Headlines connected the dots between a new $20 million lawsuit against the WTA and the ATP tournament in Acapulco removing meat from its menu. Plus, Kim and Blair reviewed Carlos Alcaraz’s clash with an umpire in Doha, what makes Alexandra Eala’s game dangerous and how crowd dynamics can shape a match.
🚨BTW, has anyone seen Kim’s phone?
The Weekend Draw
Acapulco, Mexico
Semifinals: Fri., Feb. 27
Final: Sat., Feb. 28
Dubai, U.A.E.
Semifinals: Fri., Feb. 27
Final: Sat., Feb. 28
Santiago, Chile
Quarterfinals: Fri., Feb. 27
Semifinals: Sat., Feb. 28
Final: Sun., March 1
Austin, Texas
Quarterfinals: Fri., Feb. 27
Semifinals: Sat., Feb. 28
Final: Sun., March 1
Merida, Mexico
Quarterfinals: Fri., Feb. 27
Semifinals: Sat., Feb. 28
Final: Sun., March 1
Full international WTA and ATP broadcast lists
Tiebreak Trivia
In today’s 5 Setter, we let you know that Serena Williams will be honored soon with the inaugural Barbie Dream Fest Icon Award. But she wasn’t Mattel’s first Barbie tennis player. Who was?
Answer: Billie Jean King. Mattel released her doll in its 2020 Inspiring Women Series. Since then, Serena, Venus, Naomi Osaka, Evonne Goolagong Cawley and Ash Barty have received the Barbie treatment.
📝 We’ll be back Tuesday with a new episode. In the meantime, join us on Substack during the weekend’s biggest matches.
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