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Welcome to The Service Game, where serves start the story. In this week’s First Serve episode, I discussed some of the news following the Australian Open. I gave my opinion on the Australian Open’s tournament director, Craig Tiley’s statement on women playing five-set matches. Following the Grand Slam tournament, the WTA tour had a 500 level in Abu Dhabi, and the men’s tour featured matches in the first round of David Cup qualifying. From Sara Bejlek's impressive run to the Abu Dhabi title from qualifying to nail-biting matches in the David Cup, I covered a lot that happened this week on the tour! Listen more to find out! Matches/Links mentioned: Women playing Five-Setters: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7012975/2026/01/31/australian-open-tennis-format-women-best-five-craig-tiley/ FULL MATCH Novak Djokovic vs. Jannik Sinner: FULL MATCH Carlos Alcaraz vs. Alexander Zverev: FULL MATCH Elena Rybakina vs. Aryna Sabalenka: Davis Cup Format Explained: https://www.daviscup.com/en/about/format Fabian Marozsan vs. Ethan Quinn: Jack Draper vs. Viktor Durasovic: Sara Bejlek vs. Clara Tauson: Hailey Baptiste vs. Ekaterina Alexandrova: Sara Bejlek vs. Ekaterina Alexandrova: Subscribe to ⁠The Service Game⁠ on your favorite podcast platform so you never miss an episode. For extended analysis and written Second Serve content, check out Ivy’s ⁠Substack⁠. 🎾 Thanks for listening—and let the serves begin! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theservicegame.substack.com

Welcome to The Service Game, where serves start the story. In this week’s First Serve episode, I discussed the stories that dominated this year’s Australian Open. Although many people online have deemed this year’s tournament to be lackluster, I found there to be quite a few interesting storylines. From Novak Djokovic’s jaw-dropping performance to Aryna Sabalenka’s struggles in Grand Slam finals, the Service Game got you covered! I also highlighted matches worth looking back on if you missed them! Finally, I introduced the three segments of my weekly podcast—the toss, the hit, and the follow through—listen more to find out! Matches/Links mentioned: Venus Williams vs. Olga Danilovic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zK_ppI7H92c Victoria Mboko vs. Clara Tauson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8SCY8gcTME Tomas Machac vs. Lorenzo Musetti: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U82bgeYFQ5M Lorenzo Musetti vs. Novak Djokovic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pR_gkDhc9BM Gael Monfils vs. Dane Sweeny: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sa15eG5srQ Stan Wawrinka vs. Arthur Gea: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5m_ZDcGigjI Carlos Alcaraz vs. Alex Deminaur: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUpaa3HNwFQ Carlos Alcaraz vs. Alexander Zverev: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYlFxO1HA_A Jannik Sinner vs. Novak Djokovic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDn5WfnV5g0 Novak Djokovic vs. Carlos Alcaraz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z99RntcbEtY Elena Rybakina vs. Aryna Sabalenka: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69CCqjPNc6o Aus Open 2023 Elena Rybakina vs. Aryna Sabalenka: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWPzUDJhP6Y Subscribe to ⁠The Service Game⁠ on your favorite podcast platform so you never miss an episode. For extended analysis and written Second Serve content, check out Ivy’s ⁠Substack⁠. 🎾 Thanks for listening—and let the serves begin! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theservicegame.substack.com

Welcome to The Service Game, where serves start the story. First Serve: Fast, weekly rundowns of the biggest ATP and WTA headlines, results, and momentum shifts Second Serve: Longer, investigative deep dives into player storylines, tactics, controversies, and the forces shaping professional tennis Whether you’re short on time or ready to dive deeper, The Service Game keeps you informed on what’s happening across the tennis world—and why it matters. Subscribe to The Service Game on your favorite podcast platform so you never miss an episode. For extended analysis and written Second Serve content, check out Ivy’s Substack. 🎾 Thanks for listening—and let the serves begin! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theservicegame.substack.com