On Monday Match Analysis, Gill breaks down blowout wins over Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal by Alejandro Tabilo and Hubert Hurkacz respectively, at the 2024 Rome Masters. We'll analyze both matches, plus address the water bottle incident and Roland Garros prospects. Lastly, we'll take a fresh look at the Rome draw with the Round of 16 stage ahead.

00:00 Intro
02:53 Water Bottle Incident
05:20 Djokovic Concern Meter
08:40 Tabilo Match Analysis
18:40 Nadal-Hurkacz Analysis
25:55 Nadal Shortcomings
34:15 Rome Draw Notes

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On the Mailbag, Gill Gross unpacks Dominic Thiem's legacy and why the reaction to his retirement should be celebration, not regret. Then, we get to your comments: is Thiem quitting too soon, would Thiem have returned to peak form if the wrist injury never happened, are the injuries on tour a result of a poor calendar, who would be the Roland Garros Frankenstein, thoughts on Diego Schwartzman and Camilla Giorgi retirement developments, should excessive grunting be outlawed, what explains the decline in Daniil Medvedev's serve, why were top players so inconsistent at Roland Garros in the late 90s early 2000s? At the end of this podcast, we review the Challengers Movie.

00:00 Intro
00:55 Thiem's Legacy
16:30 Thiem's Decision
19:05 Imagine No Wrist Injury
26:14 Calendar and Injuries
34:20 RG Frankenstein
37:40 Schwartzman & Giorgi Retirements
42:10 Excessive Grunting
48:16 Medvedev Serve Decline
54:36 Early 2000s Inconsistency
1:03:35 Challengers Review

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On Monday Match Analysis, Gill Gross previews the 2024 Italian Open in Rome with dark horses, upset alerts, popcorn matchups and predictions. 6-time champion Novak Djokovic is the top-seed, followed by defending champion Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, and Madrid champion Andrey Rublev.

00:00 Intro
03:20 Djokovic Q
9:00 Zverev Q
18:50 Rublev Q
26:10 Medvedev Q
36:27 Final Weekend

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On Monday Match Analysis, Gill Gross breaks down Andrey Rublev's triumphant comeback win over Felix Auger-Aliassime in the 2024 Mutua Madrid Masters final. We'll talk about why Rublev called it the "most proud" title he's ever won. We'll discuss the key dynamic in the match: FAA's serve against Rublev's return. We'll cover the chances that Felix is primed to make another push towards the top-10. Lastly, we'll do the 2nd edition of the French Open Power Rankings which spoiler alert includes Rafael Nadal.

00:00 Intro
01:03 Proud Rublev
04:35 Felix Wins 1st
10:25 Rublev Returning
22:35 Felix Physical
25:45 Rublev's Baseline Edge
29:08 Felix Back?
32:20 Foot Faults
36:18 FO Power Rankings

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On the Mailbag, Gill Gross overviews Madrid men's singles storylines such as the avalanche of injuries, Rafael Nadal's best run since 2022, Jiri Lehecka's breakthrough and an Andrey Rublev vs. Felix Auger-Aliassime final. Then, he answers your comments, including: has Andrey Rublev peaked, how do players qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics, how do I rank the top teenagers such as Joao Fonseca and Jakub Mensik, is play quality down in Madrid, how should Nadal increase his fitness, what are the new expectations for Casper Ruud, is Jannik Sinner ready to break through on clay and is Corentin Moutet entitled to coffee?

00:00 Intro
03:35 Madrid Overview
14:37 Rublev Peak
20:43 Olympic Qualification
25:55 Youngster Rankings
30:55 Showing Injuries
34:22 Madrid Play Quality
35:50 Rafa Fitness Plan
37:15 Ruud's Goals
44:50 Sinner Clay
46:25 Etcheverry Progress
48:43 Country Stereotypes
51:42 Moutet Denied Coffee

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37-year old Rafael Nadal drew 16-year old Darwin Blanch in the first round of the Mutua Madrid Open. Gill Gross breakdown and analysis...

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On Monday Match Analysis, Gill Gross previews the 2024 Mutua Madrid Open ATP 1000. The top-seed is Jannik Sinner looking for his first big clay title, Carlos Alcaraz is the back-to-back defending champion opposite the draw, Daniil Medvedev and two-time Madrid champion Alexander Zverev round off the top seeds. Rafael Nadal opens against Darwin Blanch. Novak Djokovic withdrew from the event. Gill gives his quarter-by-quarter preview with dark horses, upset alerts, popcorn matchups and predictions.

00:00 Intro
03:21 Sinner's Quarter
08:45 Medvedev's Quarter
16:20 Zverev's Quarter
21:30 Alcaraz's Quarter
29:20 Final Weekend

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On Monday Match Analysis, Gill covers Casper Ruud's breakthrough victory at the ATP 500 in Barcelona, where he reversed his previous result against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final. We'll then move to Munich, where Jan-Lennard Struff beat Taylor Fritz for his first career title. Then, we'll take on Rafael Nadal's comeback effort in Barcelona, where he lost in the 2nd round to Alex De Minaur. Finally, Gill delivers the first intsallment of the 2024 French Open Power Rankings.

00:00 Intro
00:55 Ruud d. Tsitsipas
03:40 Ruud Aggression
12:10 Ruud Passing
16:13 Ruud Returning
18:26 Tsitsipas Performance
21:06 Struff d. Fritz Munich
27:30 Nadal in Barcelona
31:18 French Open Power Rankings

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On the Coach' Mailbag, Thread of Order author Hugh Clark joins Gill Gross to answer your questions about professional technique and various tennis topics. We'll start by discussing Stefanos Tsitsipas's one-handed backhand in response to the recent video by Intuitive Tennis claiming it's "not bad." Comments include: an argument that Casper Ruud's big match struggles are technical not mental, is it true peaking Carlos Alcaraz better than peaking Jannik Sinner while average Sinner is better than average Alcaraz, should coaches and players focus on strengths instead of fixing weaknesses, why do Americans serve bigger on average, what are the changes Alcaraz is making to his serve technique, what we would do if we were tasked with coaching Novak Djokovic, and much much more.

00:00 Intro
03:56 Tsitsipas Backhand
10:40 Ruud Mental vs. Skill
18:28 Peak Alcaraz & Sinner
21:45 Sinner Easy Power
24:30 Focusing on Strengths
30:25 American Serves
33:05 Alcaraz Serve Technique
37:10 Weird ATP Forehands
40:09 Stop Double Faulting
43:38 Footwork Importance
46:41 Coaching Djokovic

On Monday Match Analysis, Gill Gross dissects Stefanos Tsitsipas’s commanding win over Casper Ruud in the 2024 Monte Carlo final. We’ll talk about how the event has shaped the narrative of Tsitsipas’s career, why Ruud should be upset with his performance, who’s forehand is better between the two, what to make of the Norwegian’s finals record and why, although it’s uncomfortable to acknowledge, a poor lines call possibly cost Jannik Sinner a spot in this championship match.

00:00 Intro
00:30 Tsitsipas Monte Carlo
04:22 2nd Serve Domination
13:10 8/8 Break Points
20:25 Tsitsipas Backhand
21:38 Forehand Comparison
24:18 Tsitsipas Patterns
26:16 Ruud Finals Record
30:45 Sinner Controversy

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Gill Gross breaks down two high-billing quarterfinals from Friday's action at the Monte Carlo country club. Jannik Sinner faced Holger Rune in a rematch from last year's semifinal at the event. Plus, Novak Djokovic took on Alex De Minaur looking to reverse the result from this year's United Cup. At the end, we'll preview the semifinal lineup of Stefanos Tsitsipas vs. Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic vs. Casper Ruud.