The Tennis Tragic David Kalina, Matte Rocheford, and Alex Dawson

The Tennis Tragic #056 / The Guy Who Got the Walkover / The Roland Garros semi-final lineups have been established, and the Tragic Three turn their cybernetic camera eyes towards all (or most) of the action and drama. We share Jannik Sinner's enthusiasm at becoming World No. 1 while discussing the unlikelihood of Paolini's rise, Alex (and "Paul") de Minaur's devastating defeat to Zverev, Stef getting owned by Carlitos, optimism about Ons, chair umpires wearing camera headpieces, and the value of surround sound home theater setups. Matte and Alex also discuss the Luca Guadagnino film 'Challengers.' Bum-bum-buh-ba-duh-ba-duh-duh... allez!

The Tennis Tragic #055 / Carota Boys and the River Styx / At long last! The fifty-fifth Tragic episode! All three tragics are together again, to discuss the first few days of the 2024 French Open and related topics. Was the draw not rigged - setting up a disappointing Rafa finale versus Zverev - only in order to ensure future rigging? Should the Laver Cup be reconsidered as an event on a new surface, with a more existential purpose? How are the Carota Boys a perfect representation of late-stage capitalist machinery? How do we feel about carrots as vegetables? Are herbs vegetables or are they something else? What is the role of color in a dish, and how does it affect our feelings about the meal?

The Tennis Tragic #054 / Hang-Up / Coco dials up her first major trophy, Ben Shelton calls into his first major semi-final, Novak rudely hangs up on Ben, Matte calls for action on climate change (without gluing ones' self to level 4 of Arthur Ashe Stadium), and we get a busy signal when trying to find out what ever happened to Hyeon Chung. David and Matte also touch on the pleasures of legal coaching and male players with beautiful smiles, while looking ahead to the Men's Final between Disruptor Daniil and an increasingly genuine Djokovic.

The Tennis Tragic #053 / It Ain't Happening / It's happening! The Tragic Three have returned from a luxurious and restful break with a Double Slam Episode. We look back at Wimbledon and forward to the US Open. Does anything matter in light of the Novak-Carlos rivalry? Should we believe that Ons will eventually get to the mountaintop? Will we stop forgetting that Marketa Vondrousova exists?



Other topics include Marco Trungelliti and Nao Hibino updates, Cleveland's perception in the culture, Brad Gilbert and Coco Gauff's fearhand, the Tennis Knobs, Universal Tennis Rankings, the Eubanks Run, the Baez-Lehecka final in Winston-Salem, the returns of Wozniacki, Raonic, and Kei Nishikori, the excellence of the Cincinnati Men's Final, Jimmy Butler's all-court game, Jannik Sinner, Tatiana Maria, Jessica Pegula, Nick Kyrgios, Frances Tiafoe, Davidovich Fokina, and the return of the Upset Game.



Tragic on three... one, two, three...

The Tennis Tragic #052 / Ley Tay Hsieh and Wang / David and Matte unite to review Roland Garros 2023. Matte falls asleep, Alcaraz falls apart, and Novak’s date with destiny is rewarded with a special Spider Man jacket! Miyu Kato turns that frown upside down, and Muchova’s all-court game impresses David. What could Bianca Andreescu and Michael call their mixed team? Bianca Venusa? Andre-enus?  Vivi? Can players from Ukraine and Russia shake hands for peace? And is Tsitsidosa a heartwarming story of validation and acceptance, or a vomit-inducing social media entity? Sadly these are the questions that keep us up at night.

The Tennis Tragic #051 / The Multitude / The Tragic Three reconvene after a lengthy hiatus to dip our toes back into the great wide pool of tennis, in anticipation of the 2023 French Open. We belatedly discuss a range of topics - Rafa's sad absence from Roland Garros, Netflix's middling tennis docu-series "Break Point", justice for Simona and discipline for Alexander, the budding rivalry of Rune-Ruud, Andreescu's horrible injury and return, Gael and Elina's return to the court, Matte's Rafa-like legal record, Arthur Fils, Leolia Jeanjean, Marco Cecchinato, Martina Trevisan, Nicolas Jarry... and more! We also feature our first guest baby appearance, and spend a little time getting tragic about the NBA playoffs.