Best Of Three

Serena Williams returns to Wimbledon at 44 with obvious physical questions—but also with advantages few comeback players possess. Alvin Owusu and Anastasia examine why her serve, return positioning, first-strike instincts and accumulated grass-court intelligence could still make her dangerous without requiring anything close to her prime form.

Her prospects may depend less on ranking than on matchup. A favorable early opponent...

Aryna Sabalenka remains the standard in women’s tennis, but the tour around her has changed. In this midseason WTA review, Alvin and Torrey examine whether Sabalenka’s consistency is still enough to separate her from the field—or whether the depth of the women’s game has finally caught up.

The conversation moves beyond power and ranking points into the structure of elite tennis: Sabalenka’s lack of a tr...

Alexander Zverev’s first Grand Slam title may look like a breakthrough, but the stronger explanation is consistency. He has spent years placing himself in major semifinals and finals, remaining physically prepared deep into tournaments and waiting for the opening that eventually appeared. Alvin and Patrick discuss why Zverev’s defining advantage may be availability—and whether lifting the burden of chasing a first...

Alexander Zverev is finally a Grand Slam champion. His five-set win over Flavio Cobolli at Roland Garros removes the largest remaining question from one of the most accomplished résumés in men’s tennis. The episode argues that Zverev’s title is not evidence of a sudden transformation, but the result of a player finally trusting his existing game long enough to finish the job.

Alvin and Torrey break down the dual nature o...

Mirra Andreeva is a Grand Slam champion, but the more interesting question is what the title actually proves. Alvin and Torrey argue that Andreeva did not suddenly become a different player at Roland Garros. She confirmed the level that had already been visible: heavy shape, backhand stability, controlled aggression, and enough variety to solve a complicated clay-court final.

The tactical center of the episode is Maja Chwalinska. Ra...

Jannik Sinner’s five-set Roland Garros loss to Juan Manuel Cerundolo leads the episode, but the conversation quickly moves beyond the upset itself. Alvin and Torrey examine whether the result was simply a physical failure from Sinner, or whether it reflects a broader shift in the men’s game: deeper fields, longer rallies, and more complete opponents who can no longer be dismissed as early-round obstacles.

The most detail...

Taylor Fritz and Jessica Pegula both exited Roland Garros in the first round, but this episode looks beyond the scorelines. Alvin and Torrey use those losses to examine a larger clay-court truth: players who rely on first-strike certainty are more vulnerable when opponents can absorb pace, change height, extend rallies, and force uncomfortable decisions.

The central framework is “time gained vs. time lost.” On clay, extr...

Roland Garros is rarely just a question of who has the highest level. On clay, every return game, long rally, and physical exchange changes the tournament before the second week even begins. In this draw show, Alvin and Torrey frame Paris as an attrition tournament — one where the draw itself becomes a defining opponent.

The strongest lens is Coco Gauff’s title defense. Rather than treating Coco as the same player who wo...

Auburn men’s tennis head coach Bobby Reynolds joins Best of Three for a deep conversation on the evolution of college tennis, player development, and the future of the NCAA system. Reynolds explains why college tennis is no longer a fallback option for aspiring professionals, but a legitimate high-performance pathway for players who need physical maturity, tactical clarity, coaching, and repeated high-level competition.

The di...

Jannik Sinner’s Rome title was not just another dominant week. It became a case study in what makes him so difficult to beat on clay: not only ball speed, but his ability to read early, move cleanly, and compress the opponent’s decision-making window.

Alvin and Torrey examine the tactical profiles that could actually trouble Sinner at Roland Garros. Medvedev’s recent match offers one version of the blueprint: chang...

Coco Gauff’s loss to Elina Svitolina in Rome is not a simple setback. It is a useful snapshot of where Coco’s game currently sits: more dangerous than before, more complete than many results suggest, but still in the uncomfortable middle stage between defensive excellence and first-strike clarity.

We discuss why Coco’s serve, forehand, and forehand return are trending upward, while her point construction is still c...

Jannik Sinner’s height is part of the story, but it is not the explanation. In this episode, Alvin and Torrey look at why Sinner has become such a difficult structural problem for the ATP: he combines elite movement, early ball-striking, return pressure, improved serving, and pattern discipline in a way that takes away an opponent’s preferred solutions.

The central tactical breakdown focuses on Alexander Zverev. Sinner d...

Rafael Jódar has quickly moved from interesting young player to serious ATP prospect, but the reason is not simply his size or power. Alvin and Patrick break down why Jódar’s game already looks unusually mature: a clean backhand return, controlled rally shape, natural movement, and the ability to build points without redlining.

The discussion compares Jódar with João Fonseca, Jakub Mensik, and Arthur Fils, focusing on the diff...

This is how pro tennis actually works.

Former ATP Top 30 player Chris Eubanks breaks down:

•  Why players don’t “just play bad” 
•  What separates Top 10 from Top 50 
•  How scouting reports actually work on tour 
•  Why fans misunderstand players like Medvedev and Ben Shelton 

If you’ve ever watched tennis and felt like you were missing something—this is the explanat...

This episode examines a significant developmental moment for two of the ATP Tour’s emerging contenders: Ben Shelton and Arthur Fils. Shelton’s title in Munich represents more than a milestone—it reflects meaningful progress in his ability to construct points on clay. The discussion focuses on his improved backhand stability, more disciplined rally tolerance, and the emergence of repeatable serve-plus-one patterns ...

This episode examines the latest installment in the evolving rivalry between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz following Sinner’s straight-sets win in Monte Carlo. Rather than isolating the result, the discussion frames the matchup as part of a broader tactical progression—one defined by incremental adaptation, tightening margins, and increasing familiarity between two elite players.

At the center of the analysis is the c...

Clay court tennis is often described as slower, but that simplification misses the deeper reality: the surface fundamentally reshapes how players manage space, construct points, and move through contact. In this episode, we break down the technical and tactical adjustments required to transition effectively from hard courts to clay.

A central focus is movement—specifically the difference between sliding into the ball versus sl...

Jannik Sinner’s Miami title completes a dominant Sunshine Double and reinforces his position—alongside Carlos Alcaraz—as one of the defining forces in men’s tennis. This episode examines not just the results, but the underlying mechanics of Sinner’s success: a blend of precise ball striking, improved serve efficiency, and real-time tactical adaptability that is reshaping what it takes to compete at the...

This episode examines the evolving matchup between Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka following Sabalenka’s Miami Open victory, using it as a lens to understand broader trends in the women’s game. Rather than framing Gauff as a player limited by technical inconsistencies, we position her as a uniquely constructed elite—an “overachieving counterpuncher” whose competitive resilience and adaptability allow he...