We review Challengers, the tennis romance film from Luca Guadagnino and Justin Kuritzkes starring Zendaya, Josh O'Connor and Mike Faist that has hit cinemas and taken the box office and tennis twitter by storm.

To unpack the film the Tennis Weekly threesome aren't asking for 'three tickets to Challengers please' rather four tickets as Culture Editor, critic and writer Sarah Carson of the The i Newspaper joins to keep them in check.

They discuss the tennis sequences, did we believe Zendaya as a top tennis player, was the film really about Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Mirka and ultimately was the film even about tennis? The delve into the topic of love triangles, pancake grips and bisexuality!

A fun Film Club edition and movie review that reveals what we really thought and allows tennis fans and the not so tennis invested to talk about the movie, what they liked and didn't like and ultimately how they rate the film.

ABOUT CHALLENGERS

From visionary filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, Challengers stars Zendaya as Tashi Duncan, a former tennis prodigy turned coach and a force of nature who makes no apologies for her game on and off the court. Married to a champion on a losing streak (Mike Faist – West Side Story), Tashi’s strategy for her husband’s redemption takes a surprising turn when he must face off against the washed-up Patrick (Josh O’Connor – The Crown) – his former best friend and Tashi’s former boyfriend. As their pasts and presents collide, and tensions run high, Tashi must ask herself, what will it cost to win.

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Nadal is making magic at the Caja Mágica in Madrid. He turned the tables on Alex de Minaur avenging his loss in Barcelona and Joel, Chris plus special guest Molly McElwee are on hand to unpack his comeback.

Elsewhere, Sinner and Swiatek have been making serene progress whilst Sabalenka and Tsitsipas have struggled at the Mutua Madrid Open.

They also touch upon Raducanu’s surprise straight set loss in round 1, after her return to form in previous weeks. Elsewhere there are talking points on WTA Finals as Daria Kasatkina comes out in support of the decision for the finals to move to Saudi Arabia and the Billie Jean King format change and the Davis Cup and ATP Finals clash.

Molly and Chris team up for Joel’s game and put in a strong performance - but can they get over the finish line?

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Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, plus email the show tennisweeklypod@gmail.com.

Purchase Tennis Weekly Merch through our Etsy store including limited edition designs by Krippa Design where all proceeds go towards the podcast so we can keep doing what we do!

***Please take a moment to rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your pods. It really means a lot to us at HQ and helps make it easier for new listeners to discover us. Thanks!***

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Joel, Kim and Chris are back to round up the latest clay court action from around the tennis world, as Casper Ruud gets revenge over Stefanos Tsitsipas to claim his first ATP500 title in Barcelona, and Elena Rybakina downs World No.1 Iga Swiatek en route to the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix trophy.

The trio also celebrate the return of Rafa Nadal to the tennis court, Emma Raducanu finding form in Stuttgart and Sloane Stephens’s first title on red clay in Rouen. They discuss how Jan Lennard Struff dispatched Taylor Fritz and the cold weather in Munich to clinch his first ATP trophy, debate how complicated the Olympic tennis selection criteria are, and reflect on the career of Garbine Muguruza as she bids farewell to life as a professional tennis player in her recent retirement announcement.

Joel also tests Chris and Kim on their knowledge of WTA Players with short stints at World No.1, and the trio make tentative predictions ahead of this week’s Madrid Masters tournament (Spoiler alert: watch out for Tomas Etcheverry!)

Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, plus email the show tennisweeklypod@gmail.com.

Purchase Tennis Weekly Merch through our Etsy store including limited edition designs by Krippa Design where all proceeds go towards the podcast so we can keep doing what we do!

***Please take a moment to rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your pods. It really means a lot to us at HQ and helps make it easier for new listeners to discover us. Thanks!***

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.