Side note: It feels we’ve been watching Madrid for a month already. I’m trying but I just cannot get used to the pace of that new M1000 format.

Remember chatting with him when he was playing RG juniors, thinking he had the game for this era, and then after he kinda fell off radars asking Belgian’s colleagues what was going on there. Well he’s def back on that track this year w/ coach Bemelmans. Impressive rise.

Okay, Blockx… Okay… Off to the semis after that 6-4,6-4 win against defending champion Ruud. Talk about a breakthrough!

Samsonova to add to the list in what’s turning into an outbreak in Madrid. Withdrew before playing against Noskova. And Gauff nearly got taken out too (doc on court and she confirmed after) but somehow fought through against Cirstea (4-6,7-5,6-1) ; she withdrew from doubles though. Damn.

Swiatek’s quotes from Madrid confirming there’s a bug making the rounds in the lockers these days. Says she played sick before and was able to get the win but this time was way worse than usual. Bad luck…

Damn. After Cilic’s food poisoning the other day… One might start to wonder if there’s a bug going on. Time to wash these hands on the regular again, people.

A plot twist would be to see her trying to getting a late spot into Strasbourg…

Swiatek is really going through it… Gonna need a good showing in Rome (if fit) if she’s to reach Paris with any kind of confidence. She could also gain it throughout the first week in Paris with a good draw but these days nothing seems for sure with her. A bit of a mystery, really.

Cilic on IG says he got food poisoning yesterday and hasn’t been able to recover on time for his match vs Fonseca today in Madrid. Bummer to see him withdraw because that could have been a good one.

Prizmic is starting to get going… Yet I didn’t have him taking out Shelton in Madrid. 👀

No surprise here as the timing couldn’t have been worst for Alcaraz to get a wrist injury. No Rome and, more importantly, no defending his Roland-Garros title. Glad he got reasonable on this one and hoping it’ll make him take a new look at his scheduling.

When you want to see what some champions are made of, a team event can be one of the best seats in the house. Exhibit A with Belgium v USA in Ostend. tennissweetspot.substack.com/p/not-everyb...

When you want to see what some champions are made of, a team event can be one of the best seats in the house. Exhibit A with Belgium v USA in Ostend. tennissweetspot.substack.com/p/not-everyb...

Omg. They’re bringing back Thranduil. Omg.

Not the first time that Alcaraz gets injured in Barcelona. Maybe he’s going to have to make a choice between Monte-Carlo and Barcelona in the coming years… Very few players can own a Rafael Nadal “clay schedule”… Even fewer should try…

HUNGARYYYYY!!! 🎉 🎉

*these three M1000 in a row

That loss might also end up being a blessing in disguise for Alcaraz as he’s back to chasing which might do well for his internal fire. The road to RG is a very long and tricky one.

Such a huge win for Sinner here. And despite some not ideal service stats, which will give him even more confidence as if he needs it right now. Back to World No.1, three M1000 title in a row which is a first since Djokovic 2015. Well he’s not Nole 2.0 for nothing… And the body is holding up.

« Nous attendons le conducteur du train… Nous quitterons Bruxelles avec un retard de 10 à 15 minutes. » Extraordinaire. Extraordinaire 😂 😭

Game on.

Ostende going all in. Bless. #BJKCup

Wim Fissette and Kirsten Flipkens for team Belgium. There’s some tennis experience there… ;)

Captain Davenport inspecting that clay. Each time I see her again after having crossed in a while, I go, gosh true she’s that tall. Kinda sure she can still hit some of those serves!

US team at practice in Ostende. Very nice stadium. Belgium’s session to follow soon I think. Draw around noon. #BJKCup

Perfect walk to tennis site is perfect. #Ostende

Bonjour Ostende ! First time here and loving it so far. The city is so cute. Also sea view in the morning, what else? :)

Stop electing lunatics. That’s all.

"Look at Iga Swiatek now, on a fascinating journey of her own: how do you get her back to her standards when those standards were to be unbeatable?" tennissweetspot.substack.com/p/so-sinner-...

About narratives for the vibes, why champions don't need to master all the skills but the right ones for them, wanting players to evolve for the wrong reasons, and how Swiatek and Gauff are the stories of the year. tennissweetspot.substack.com/p/so-sinner-...

Oh so there’s a crater on the moon named Carroll now. Ah! 👀

About narratives for the vibes, why champions don't need to master all the skills but the right ones for them, wanting players to evolve for the wrong reasons, and how Swiatek and Gauff are the stories of the year. tennissweetspot.substack.com/p/so-sinner-...

I guess the “Sinner is in crisis and needs to reinvent himself“ narrative has now been put to sleep. And the “Sinner is a robot“ one is back? When u think that after Doha, it was the “Alcaraz is now unbeatable“ one. Bless tennis.

Iga Swiatek parting ways with Wim Fissette had direct consequences for… French tennis. Why? Well, Iga now on trial with Francisco Roig who was… on trial with Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard. It’s this time of the year where u need to keep track of the coaching teams!

David Goffin announces retirement this year. Damn, time flies. Found myself covering his best years for Belgian newspaper La Dernière Heure at the time and he was always a class act. Very nice guy. Crazy good footwork and when he was on, he played PlayStation tennis.

That Alcaraz loss has me wondering if it’s 1) no big deal, really, move on, or 2) the real start of his Ferrero-less journey… U can get the benefices (or the issues) of your previous coaching for months after being done with them… Didn’t see his Double Sunshine coming so… Wait and see!

Fissette no longer coaching Swiatek and I don’t think anyone is really surprised after her Miami meltdown. Something kept not clicking. He still helped her to get a Wimbledon title and honestly it might have been the coaching feat of last year. So curious about what’s next for both of them now…

Oh, Darwin Blanch, nice to see! That (baby) lefty paw… But Iga, goodness gracious…

On the same theme, read coach Sam Sumyk’s take on working with teenagers who are already top high profile players: “Your support network is crucial. Humility is crucial. Remembering where you come from is crucial.” tennissweetspot.substack.com/i/190366243/...

There’s no need to hit the panic button about Mirra Andreeva. There’s also no need to refuse to address the obvious. Also hear from coach Sam Sumyk about the tennis prodigy path. tennissweetspot.substack.com/p/mirra-andr...

Side note: One of these rare times when I’m happy about the Oscars results. Except for Leo losing but the boy is used to it, already has one, and MBJ winning was a cute moment. Also very glad ballet and opera people had a chance to watch karma do its thing in real time.

There’s no need to hit the panic button about Mirra Andreeva. There’s also no need to refuse to address the obvious. Also hear from coach Sam Sumyk about the tennis prodigy path. tennissweetspot.substack.com/p/mirra-andr...

Goodness gracious, Svitolina is on a mission this year! Beats Swiatek to reach Indian Wells semis, 6-2,4-6,6-4.

Love the Derry Girls actors popping up. I just yelled Father Peter to the screen 😂

Starting How to get to heaven from Belfast and seriously everything sounds so much better with an Irish accent. Like… Please give me one…

4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3: Siniakova upsets defending champ Andreeva. Wow. I talked to her about nearly leaving Top 100 to get back to Top 40, hoping for Top 20. She praised new mindset & work on FH. « I changed a few points of view. I’m trying to enjoy it more…» tennissweetspot.substack.com/p/the-sincar...

4-6, 7-6(5), 6-3: Siniakova upsets defending champ Andreeva. Wow. I talked to her about nearly leaving Top 100 to get back to Top 40, hoping for Top 20. She praised new mindset & work on FH. « I changed a few points of view. I’m trying to enjoy it more…» tennissweetspot.substack.com/p/the-sincar...

Coco Gauff only retired once from a match in her career before this Indian Wells. Quite the streak. Bad news is that means that left arm pain / injury could be bad. Fingers crossed it won’t be.

Siniakova - Fernandez lasted 3h30!? Oof. 5-7,6-4,7-6(1) for the Czech. That’s a fight.

Arthur Fils is back, says @carolebouchard.bsky.social www.thesecondserve.com/arthur-fils-...