Unlike others in the comments, my problem with their takes is not that it is too left/ liberal. Rather, it is a boring White/ Western perspective. Which is why, honestly, I wish they would stick to talking about tennis. They are funny and knowledgeable about the sport and should focus on tennis.
Instead, they offer self-satisfied, simplistic rants about sporting events in Saudi Arabia. My point here is not to justify Saudi Arabia but “human rights” is a stick that is used only against the non-West… and when someone points that out, it’s dismissed as “whataboutery.” Not unlike colonialism that was justified by describing “the other” as uncivilized and savage, neoimperialism has relied on the concept of human rights. The West has controlled the movement of capital, justified war, by pointing to the poor human rights record of the non-West whenever convenient. In any case, there is Saudi money so deep in Western pockets, that I don’t understand why their money in sports is uniquely upsetting. Honestly, for players and audiences from Asia, they are probably more accessible events.
In the same vein, the podcast hasn’t spoken up against the genocide in Gaza, which they don’t need to, but what they choose to mention and what they choose to omit is revealing. They didn’t even report how Ons Jabeur has repeatedly tried to draw attention to the cruel deaths in Gaza, and was deeply affected by it. Maybe it even affected her tennis, and her decision to take a break.
Their reporting on the incidents of racism during the China swing too, if you pay attention to it, is narrated in third person. They don’t condemn it themselves, in their own voice, but draw attention to how the Chinese were really upset and it’s unwise to upset them.
The feminism on the show too is just White, liberal, feminism. I remember one time when Pam
Shriver tried to draw attention to how Eastern European women feel discriminated against. But they just reverted to talking about how “women” (in general) are compelled to present as likable. Not considering the specifics of how patriarchal expectations of women are shaped by race, ethnicity, etc. It’s such lazy commentary.
