June 9, 2023

Here’s your roundup of the five most interesting things I’m enjoying or thinking about this week in tennis.

1.) Djokovic vs. Alcaraz

Buckle up! Today Carlos Alcaraz will face off against Novak Djokovic for the second time in the semifinals at the French Open. They first played last year at the Madrid Masters, with Carlos winning, so it’s likely to be an epic battle. Casper Ruud and Alexander Zverev’s semifinal match will follow – play won’t kick off for either before 8:45 am EDT.

2.) Miyu’s Redemption

On Sunday, Miyu Kato & Aldila Sutjiadi were disqualified from the French Open due to Miyu accidentally hitting a ball that struck a young ball girl, catching her off guard. However, despite the setback, Miyu went on with overwhelming fan support to win the mixed doubles title with Tim Putz. It’s worth noting that Miyu would have been disqualified from the entire tournament under normal circumstances. However, the powers that be looked into the situation and allowed her to compete. That fact wasn’t lost on Tim and Miyu, offering thanks in their press conference.

Tim Puetz’s EN closing statement ❤️ he summed it up by thanking the tourney, Grand Slam board & whoever was involved, the standard procedure was to take him & Miyu Kato out of XD but they considered what happened, hence they stayed in XD (& took it all!).pic.twitter.com/34NJ7uhD6A https://t.co/0GmP896WTk

— stateofsport21 // raz (she/her) (@eretzsport022) June 8, 2023

3.) Rafa’s Hip Surgery

Last weekend, Rafa underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left psoas tendon while simultaneously revisiting an older injury to the labrum of his left hip. According to reports, the surgery went well, with doctors expecting at least a five-month recovery period.

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A post shared by Rafa Nadal (@rafaelnadal)

4.) Bodygaurd.ai

For years, tennis players have suffered from a barrage of never-ending hateful comments on social media, with female tennis stars often dealing with some of the worst. To help, the French Open teamed up with Bodyguard.ai to offer players an app that filters out toxic criticism. According to the company, they found about 10% of comments aimed at players are hateful, and the app successfully screened out 95%.

5.) Zverev’s Insulin Issues

At 3, Alexander Zverev was diagnosed with type-1 diabetes, so he regularly injects insulin to maintain his blood sugar levels. If you’ve watched enough of his matches, you may have seen him do it on the court. However, officials have wanted him to leave the court at the French Open, saying he needed to use one of his limited bathroom breaks for the injections and claiming it looks “weird.” Needless to say, the tournament’s actions have caused a stir in the tennis community, with broad support for letting him do what he needs to in public.

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If you have a moment, I’d love to hear your feedback. Which topic is your favorite? What would you like to see more or less of each week?

Share your thoughts in the comments below, and have a great weekend.