Advertise on podcast: Perfect Match?

Love, 15, 30, 40: Music to tennis fans' ears and seemingly more complicated than A.P. Calculus to non-tennis people. This week, we attempt to explain how to explain tennis scoring. Bryan takes particular joy in this exercise as a man who loves to explain things (they should have a word for that!). Can tennis scoring be explained, or must it be lived? Also, Elf and Polymarket are running the latest annoying Tennis Channel adsThe history and possible future of the tiebreak in tennisSend us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michele is out of town this week, which happens to also be Bisexual Awareness Week. I kept myself occupied by recording this short, (I believe) thoughtful essay on bisexuality. For all our bisexual listeners, you are awesome 💜 Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On Sunday, we had a Brodown: (Total Bro) Ben Shelton battled (Toxic Bro) Alexander Zverev, not for the title of Top Bro but for the adjacent title of 2026 US Open Men's Champion. This week we break down Bros in Tennis: the Total Bro, Partial Bro, Nouveau Bro, Not a Bro and Toxic Bro. We feel that these entirely made up categories of bro-dom are a useful framing device for Men's Tennis in 2026. Or are they? Also: Sabalenka is a sore loser at the US Open FinalTwo out gay male players compete in a final in a Challengers match for the first time 🏳️‍🌈 And other stuff... Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this extended episode we talk about the emerging Gay Sports Romance genre and nerd out on behind-the-scenes library stuff with New York Public Library Senior Librarian and Cataloger Julia Lubey! How do books get tagged as Queer Fiction vs. Bisexual vs. Young Adult? What about The Open Era, which is perhaps all of the above? Also: Alcaraz' nipple slip shirt 👀Djokovic's mysterious long-COVID-like condition 🤢The USTA's decision to make the Open unaffordable 💰💰And more! Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The US Open Fan Week: loud, crowded, disorganized, chaotic! But we got a chance to see Serena and Carlos play doubles as well as the return of the one and only Roger Federer. Michele refrained from putting them on the glass for Roger, and Bryan remained relatively sober despite spending ~$200 on booze. Only at the Open! Also, The Arthur Ashe stadium renovation that reflects the disappearing middle classZohran Mamdami shames the US Open into providing some more affordable ticketsThe book talk for Finding Renee Richards, the new autobiography of the only trans pro tennis player in history by Julie KliegmanSend us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

No sooner did we record an episode about Carlos' cornrows than he took them out (and pulled out of Cincy 😞). Regardless, there's a history of white people adopting/appropriating(?) black style with mixed results. We were initially becringed by the cornrows, but a new generation of social media users has put the whole topic into grey area. Also: Jessie Pegula is hard to root forThe ticket scalpers buy another year of profiteering"The Dink": the Pickleball movie with a heart of goldWTA sex testing update Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jannik Sinner made headlines last week because he passed on a potentially unprecedented and historic opportunity: win all Masters 1000s tournaments in a single year. Nobody has ever done it. With all the talk about how maladapted, weird and lazy Gen Z is purported to be, we wondered if there's a generational theme here (spoiler: they said the exact same things about Gen X, but no one remembers anything about us). Also, The DC Mubadala tournament's noble origin storyPlayer boycott of the US Open Mixed Doubles event: still happening?And more... Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Women's Tennis Association, arguably the most progressive sports association in history, has decided to require every female professional tennis player to prove that they are a woman. What certification will be acceptable to pass this new test? Oh, it's something called an SRY test, which checks for the presence of Y chromosomes. Funny story, the man who discovered the SRY marker thinks that the test shouldn't be used this way. Good times! Special shout out to Ben Rothernberg for breaking this story. Read his piece here. Also: Alcaraz is coming back!Aussie Open to limit cheap ticketsThoughts on (partially read) new gay tennis romance novel "The Open Era" Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Men's tennis is failing us, in our view. It's top priority should be preventing Zv*r*v and Djokovic from winning a Grand Slam, and with Carlos out, the only one up to the challenge is Jannik Sinner. This is unsustainable! This week, Michele puts on her HR hat and puts Men's Tennis on a Performance Improvement Plan, complete with milestones and actionable goals (sorry I just barfed a bit in my mouth typing that). Also: Alcaraz is on the mend 💪Paige Lorenze is now Paige Paul 💍Alex DeMinaur and Katie Boulter got married the day of the Wimbledon Men's Final 🤔New tennis movies 🎬 And more! Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Serena's comeback at Wimbledon was impressive, adequate, or perplexing, depending on who is commenting on it. This week, we take on Serena's choice, as well as the odd circumstances around her dropping out of doubles at the last minute. What is all this really about? Does Serena herself even know? Also, The danger on the men's side (a Djokovic or Zverev win 😱)We will have a new champion on the women's sidePlayers fail to stage collective action around prize moneyNo dogs allowed at WimbledonAnd more! Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Michele predicted in the first episode of this season, Serena Williams will be playing singles this year at Wimbledon. But don't call it a comeback (as they say), for she is insisting she doesn't care if she wins: she's just wants her daughters to see her play. Hard to believe. Also: Tennis.com has stopped publishing content entirely (boo!)Paula Badosa calls her former relationship with Stefanos Tsitsipas "toxic" (we called that one too!)Corentin Moutet's $40,000 fine for dropping multiple f-bombsDanielle Collins is giving Valerie Cherish vibes on TC Live ("I don't wanna see that!")And more! Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The bonkers 2026 French Open has concluded with the most disappointing Men's Final since Wimbledon 2019 (if you know, you know). The "deeply polarizing" winner (as the NY Times put it) has become a symbol of society's inability to properly address domestic violence allegations, leading to the emergence of the #anyonebutzverev hashtag when he became the favorite to win the tournament. Michele refuses to speak his name in this episode, and Bryan chooses to only use commentator mispronunciations (McEnroe's "Zah-VER-ev" and Agassi's "Zah-REV"). Dark times. Also: Maja Chwalinska's fairy-tale runTownsend/Siniakova win the women's doubles (setting up Taylor Townsend for the Career Slam at the US Open)Rafa praises David Ellison (but we forgive him)Trump ruins another sporting event, but Go Knicks! And more! Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we marvel at the surprises the French Open has produced so far. Is it weird that we are enjoying the Sincaraz absence? And we get early exits on the Women's side to mix it up? This is shaping up to be one of the most interesting Frenches (?) in a very long time. Also: Bryan apologizes (sort of) to unhappy listenersThe French Open's woman problemThe electronic line call that didn't matter (quel triste, Casper!)Serena is BACKThe Rafa documentary 👍😢#fonsecafever And more! Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we're all over the place (or lieu, if you must), going back and forth about the French Open. Alcaraz not playing Wimbeldon 😢No one is going to beat Sinner at the French Open 😕Heat wave in Paris 🥵An emergency "medical timeout" 💩Naomi Osaka's outfit is 🔥 And...the TV Coverage, the "boycott" and ticket scalping. Okay! Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Before we talk about the current issue of players threatening to boycott a slam, let’s go back in time to 1973 when an historic boycott of Wimbledon by the top men’s players completely changed the power dynamic between the grand slams and the players. Also: We got blocked by a Bluesky user. We have arrived.Joao Fonseca admits that his Brazilian fans annoy him tooAn 11-year-old kid flips off Tommy Paul at the Rome Open Support the pod. Keep the faith 🙏 Send us your hot takes at [email protected] As always tell your friends, rate this podcast in your app, and send us feedback at https://www.perfectmatchpodcast.com/ You can also follow us on Bluesky at @perfectmatchpodcast.com or @shellsteak Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.