Best Of Three

Indian Wells offered more than just two championship matches — it provided a revealing snapshot of how the tactical hierarchy of professional tennis is evolving.

In the women’s final, Aryna Sabalenka’s victory over Elena Rybakina became a study in modern power rivalries. Both players generate elite pace and serve at the highest level, yet they apply pressure in fundamentally different ways. Sabalenka compresses time by striking earl...

Recorded during the middle of the Indian Wells tournament, this episode explores one of the most overlooked tactical questions in modern tennis: where should players actually stand on the court relative to their skill sets?

Alvin Owusu and Torrey Hawkins begin with a coaching-level discussion of court positioning and time management. The ability to take the ball on the rise is often described as aggressive tennis, but the hosts expl...

In this episode of the Best of Three podcast, Alvin Owusu and Torrey Hawkins sit down with Jean-Yves Aubone, Director of Player & Coach Relations for the Intense Tennis League. The conversation explores why a new format has emerged in response to longstanding structural challenges within professional tennis—from declining viewership to fragmented governance and unpredictable match scheduling.

Aubone explains how Intense Tennis i...

With Miami approaching, we assess three players at very different stages of leverage.

Jack Draper, now 24, already owns a Masters 1000 title and deep Slam credentials. The gap between him and sustained Top 5 status is narrower than it appears. This episode breaks down the marginal gains conversation — specifically how one additional free point per service game alters ranking math, physical load, and match control. Talent is not the ...

Carlos Alcaraz’s Doha title signals more than form — it signals evolution. We analyze how his depth control, tempo manipulation, and backhand assertion are redefining his dominance. His ability to gain time without sacrificing position may be the clearest modern separator at the top of the men’s game.

Jessica Pegula’s Dubai win presents a different model of excellence. Her “net-neutral” construction — no wasted movement, no volatili...

The WTA Doha 1000 wrapped up with one of the most satisfying storylines of the season. Karolína Muchová wins her first WTA title in six years, Vicky Mboko announces herself as a top-10 player, and the next generation keeps forcing its way into the conversation.

Alvin Owusu and Torrey Hawkins break down what we learned from Doha, why Muchová’s all-court game still causes matchup problems at the top of the game, and what makes Mboko s...

The Australian Open is in the books, and we’re joined by Patrick Parr for a wide-ranging post-AO conversation that goes well beyond the scoreboard.

We unpack Alexander Zverev’s durability and why the French Open may represent his clearest Grand Slam opportunity, examine Carlos Alcaraz’s unmatched in-match adaptability, and break down why Jannik Sinner’s loss doesn’t change his long-term trajectory.

We also dive into the next generati...

The Australian Open is in the books, and we zoom out on what actually mattered.

In this episode of Best of Three, we break down what the 2026 Australian Open told us about the state of both tours — from Aryna Sabalenka’s continued dominance and the growing depth of the WTA, to Carlos Alcaraz’s separation at the top of the men’s game and what this tournament revealed about Alexander Zverev, Jannik Sinner, and the next generation.

We a...

Carlos Alcaraz defeats Novak Djokovic in four sets to win the Australian Open and complete the career Grand Slam before age 23.

In this episode of Best of Three, we break down:

• Why this wasn’t a simple passing of the torch
• How Alcaraz adjusted tactically after a brutal first set
• The height, depth, and footwork changes that flipped the match
• Why Djokovic still forced Alcaraz to play his absolute best

This wasn’t about flash — it ...

Elena Rybakina is your 2026 Australian Open Champion, defeating Aryna Sabalenka in a razor-thin three-set final (6-4, 4-6, 6-4).

Alvin and Torrey break down one of the highest-level women’s finals in recent memory:

• why this match truly was a coin flip (92 points apiece)

• first-strike tennis vs high-tempo rally dominance

• the tactical adjustments that swung the third set

• what this result means for the WTA hierarchy heading into the...

Novak Djokovic delivers another reminder at the Australian Open, surviving an all-time semifinal battle with Jannik Sinner, while Carlos Alcaraz ALSO outlasts Alexander Zverev in a five-set war.

Alvin Owusu and Torrey Hawkins break down belief, execution under pressure, break-point math, serving patterns, and legacy implications—plus what this all means heading into the men’s final.

This wasn’t just tennis. This was history knocking.

...

The women’s side of the Australian Open is delivering heavyweight tennis.

We break down:

• Sabalenka’s dominance and why she’s in a class of her own

• Elena Rybakina surviving Pegula and setting up the final we’ve been waiting for

• Coco Gauff’s loss to Svitolina – what’s real, what’s fixable, what matters long-term

• Why 18-year-old Eva Jovic is very different from the usual “next American” hype

• What Jessica Pegula’s consistency reall...

We break down the men’s quarterfinals at the 2026 Australian Open and preview the semifinals.

Topics include:

• Djokovic vs Musetti (and what it says about Novak in 2026)
• Sinner vs Shelton and the “wrong generation” problem
• Alcaraz vs de Minaur breakdown
• Zverev vs Tien
• Why Alcaraz and Sinner are separating from the field
• What kind of player can actually disrupt them

🎾 Hosted by Alvin Owusu & Torrey Hawkins — former players, lon...

The Round of 16 is in the books at the 2026 Australian Open, and now the real fun begins.

Alvin and Torrey break down the women’s and men’s quarterfinal matchups, starting with Aryna Sabalenka’s form and the rapid rise of Eva Jovic, then moving through Coco Gauff vs Elina Svitolina and the evolving ceiling of Mirra Andreeva.

On the men’s side, we dig deep into Carlos Alcaraz vs Alex de Minaur, what “changing gears” actually means at ...

We break down the first two rounds of the 2026 Australian Open on both the ATP and WTA tours.

From why the top seeds largely survived, to what the early exits of several Next Gen players really mean, to the subtle differences between tour professionals and rising talent — this episode goes deep on what actually matters after Week 1 in Melbourne.

Topics include:
• Why Grand Slams expose young players differentl...

The 2026 tennis season is officially underway, and we’re kicking it off with our full Australian Open Draw Show.

In this episode of Best of Three, we break down:

• The women’s draw first – contenders, dangerous floaters, and early-round landmines

• The men’s draw second – blockbuster first rounds, brutal sections, and who really got tested

• Which seeds are vulnerable

• Which unseeded players could blow things up

• And what the draw tell...

American women’s tennis is quietly stacked—and complicated.

In this special State of the Union episode of Best of Three, Alvin Owusu and Torrey Hawkins break down where US women’s tennis really stands heading into the new season.

They dig into:

• Coco Gauff’s evolution into a consistent Grand Slam force (and what still limits her ceiling)
• Amanda Anisimova’s comeback year, mental toughness, and why her pedigree matters
• Jessica Pegula’s...

American men’s tennis looks stable at the top — but stability isn’t the same as momentum.

In this State of the Union episode, Alvin and Torrey take a wide-angle look at where U.S. men’s tennis stands heading into the next season. They break down the established core (Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Frances Tiafoe), assess Ben Shelton’s rapid ascent, and ask the harder question: what happens after this generation?

The conversation spans cei...

Why does Jannik Sinner feel inevitable—especially indoors?

In this episode of Best of Three, Alvin Owusu is joined by Patrick Parr for a deep dive into what actually separates Sinner from the rest of the ATP field. This isn’t about forehands or backhands. It’s about skiing, pressure, stillness, and why tennis feels slow to him.

We unpack:

• How Sinner’s elite skiing background shaped his movement, balance, and mental calm
• Why indoor ...