Novak Djokovic won his opening round match at Roland Garros on Monday without too much fuss, but he sparked a potential political row after writing the phrase ‘Kosovo is the heart of Serbia’ in the customary post-match camera signing. We discuss what he was referring to, why it's a controversial statement, and the rest of what he had to say in the Serbian part of his press conference.

Elsewhere, Catherine, David and Matt discuss throwback wins for Sloane Stephens, Stan Wawrinka and Elina Svitolina, as well as sad times for Felix Auger-Aliassime, Jack Draper and Dominic Thiem. There’s also exhilaration at Carlos Alcaraz’s performance and exasperation (again) at the night session scheduling. 

WIN WITH WILSON!

We have teamed up with Wilson, providers of the official ball at Roland Garros, to give away fantastic packs of Roland Garros limited edition products to two Tennis Podcast listeners!

The prize packages will include:

1 Roland Garros Bag for 9 racquets 1 Roland Garros Edition racquet (either a Blade 98 or Clash 100) 1 pack of Luxilon Roland Garros String 2 cans of Roland Garros Clay Court balls.

To be in with a chance of winning this amazing pack of Wilson gear, ENTER https://forms.wilson.com/gb_thetennispodcast_rolandgarros_2023/?

ON LOCATION:

This edition of The Tennis Podcast is brought to you in association with On Location, the premium hospitality and experience provider. On Location took us to Indian Wells in March so we can vouch for the brilliant experiences they provide at tennis tournaments. They provide packages via Steve Furgal’s International Tennis Tours to all of the four Grand Slam tournaments, including the US Open, which is on sale now, with fantastic seats, hospitality and hotel packages available for the year’s final major event at Flushing Meadows in New York. Go to OnLocationEXP.com/TTP to see what they have to offer. 

OUR LINKS:

Become a Friend of the Tennis Podcast to help us to produce the show year-round, and receive exclusive access to bonus podcasts throughout 2023, including Tennis Re-Lived, listener questions pods, and Grand Slam review shows. Friends also get a 5% discount on Steve Furgal's International Tennis Tours.

Sign up to receive our Newsletter (daily at Slams and weekly the rest of the year, featuring Matt’s Stat, mascot photos, predictions, and more)

Follow us on Twitter

Follow us on Instagram (@thetennispodcast)

Subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Check out our Shop

Read our New York Times profile

Tennis Podcast Terminology

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.