Andrea Petkovic on Qinwen Zheng's Gold Medal, A Sinakova/Machac Rom-Com and More| Inside-In Podcast

all right welcome everybody to another episode of Tennis Channel insight and on the tennis channel podcast Network Mitch Michaels from the Santa Monica Studio this is always a treat always a pleasure every time she comes in town I have to track her down and you know she's always receptive but Andrea Pekovic everyone's favorite tennis player turned an out her is back in California right from the Olympics welcome to the show Andrea thank you so much um you always check me down even though I try and hide to hide and seek but um but no you always seek me out good they're always you know you're a popular person to have on this show um for the takes and then also the fashion outfits too which we're seeing in the video side but the other thing too is and I know it's like not really telling people telling things that people don't already know but you call matches here there's a tough break there's a lot of just stuff you have to do beforehand and I saw you literally sprinting down the hallway get in a bathroom break she called tennis for like over four hours today yeah I did called it for four and a half maybe 5 hours and we have the 90 seconds that the players sit down um that's the 90 seconds you have to run to the bathroom so I have to Sprint it's good I always get really fit at Tennis Channel because um I do that Sprint a couple of times a day we were saying like get everybody out of the way you know when their talent needs to use a bathroom and also calling matches again you've had a bunch of different partners but Mark NES I just expect the worst now on court after that Paul Fritz match years ago it's so so true every time Mark and I call a match something absolutely tragic in the best possible way happens not in the in a bad way um today it was we thought it was going to be more dramatic because we had Buck Shelton I thought that was going to be really exciting but Shelton was too good today he made short process he was we're certainly going to get to Canada in a little bit I wanted to kind of recap back with some of the Olympic stuff also your trip and your journey out there too calling International matches not quite all the way in at the center of the meca Olympic Village and all that but what was your experience like covering tennis the Olympics it was really different this time it was different because um I was now part of the media not part of the Olympic Village which is different it's also fun because everyone in media is excited about the Olympic Games it's a big deal not only for the athletes but also for everyone covering it and it's a lot of fun because we to on the media side sometimes get complacent and take things for granted but nobody takes the Olympic Games for granted that was great on the other hand I did call many matches from the international broadcast Center the IBC as they call it which is not in Paris know it's it is an hour outside of Paris so that was not as fun as being on side but still it was a great experience being in a town where the Olympics are happening do you feel like your national pride I mean everybody this time of year seems like this is what or this every four years they feel like this is the time when it's the most national pride where you're rooting for for in your case all the German athletes you see someone win a gold medal from your country it's like this euphoric uplifting feeling it really is and I mean we had this um feeling three years ago in Tokyo in 2021 when Alexander zif won the gold medal which was incredibly exciting and it really propelled him into a different kind of stardom in Germany winning that gold medal and um so that was really exciting this year the focus was more on Angela Kerber just because she had announced right before the Olympic gam started that it was going to be her last tournament so from a German perspective and that's always beautiful to see I think inside the tennis world everyone appreciates Angie Kerber for what she's done but sometimes on the bigger scale in Germany people forgot how amazing and incredible her career was because stepy graph was right before her so everyone just compared everything to Stephie and so it was so nice I really I get goosebumps when I think about it it was so nice calling those matches everyone tuning in and just wishing her the best because they you know sometimes you start to appreciate things when they when they fade away what a great run for her again it was on Clay not known as her surface given all that she's been through just to get back after having a kid and at her age the miles that she's put on her tennis body but to go out fighting the way she did and to lose to the eventual Champion I thought it was just a phenomenal book end to a career that as years go by I mean you know this it's going to be more and more appreciated because what she did winning those three grand slams year end number one is an elite elite company absolutely and I'm pretty sure I mean 100% sure she's going to be inducted into the Hall of Fame 110 110% I was like I'm pretty sure I'm sure I'm sure she's and I think when that happens people back in Germany will also understand even more what she actually has done for not only German tennis but German Sports in general having somebody compete at one of the most challenging Sports out there at the very top is incredible and you said it exactly right she went out the way she had contested her entire career she was fighting till the last Point she was running for everything she was sweating she was crying she it was incredible uh the last match she played against Jang chin Wen I was calling it for German TV and I don't think you heard me say a word for the last three games I was like half crying half amazed at what she was doing still at that age and and against one of the upand cominging stars who would end up win the winning the gold medal it was just so incredible phenomenal stuff you mentioned it too I mean it's the one of the highlights of the tournament I know jokovic on the men's side but young chin Wen winning that gold medal China had never had a gold medal champ and never had a medalist in tennis before she wins the gold she beats Egan the semifinals beckage in the final this was somebody on a lot of people's radar Andrea for a long time as the next player up seems like this was the moment the jumping off moment she gets that gold medal she does it playing tremendous tennis there's a lot to like about what she did and what she's capable of going forward I really think so and you can't forget she saved Match Point against Emma Navaro in the last of in the round in the round of 60 we can talk about that too yeah that that match was interesting and and you know what I think she reached the Australian Open final earlier this year everyone thought this was going to be the jumping off point and then she struggled after that which is normal there was such a huge hype around her back in China she really became a Star Overnight playing the final at Yan open in the 10year anniversary since nalii had won it so it was a lot of things coming together and I think just now she settled into what people expect of her into being a top 10 player into being a big champion and she showed her class it was incredible she really up her game match in match out and played the best match in the final and against EA probably which was incredible she's a real fighter out there is what we're seeing in the EEG match she won in straights that second set she was down by a lot came all the way back to win it uh really great and also you mentioned the the stardom thing everybody and yourself included you get to a point where more people notice you you're kind of getting name recognition it's hard for anyone to really replicate or understand what she specifically went through being from a country like China and having that run seemingly overnight where was a double digit seat into a major final so handling that and you can even talk to that a little more handling the fame side of things as you become a pro and become better is a tough task yeah I I I really think so I never been at that stage that uh chin Wen is now but just also watching her closely and she has that Charisma right she has something around her that um makes her into a star she is not afraid of the camera she speaks very well she's very well spoken she's smart and uh and as you mentioned she's a fierce competitor and I think these two things combined really Propel somebody into some on a diff to a different level and we saw it with Naomi Asaka similar where she's so softs spoken and shy and interesting and then on the court she's one of the fiercest competitors and I think these two things combined really make make Superstars and so I'm sure it was really difficult for her I called um her matches at the Olympic Games it was full of Chinese people and they were yelling at her and on the one it's uplifting on the other it's a lot of expectations coming from a lot of people from your whole entire country and her being able to handle that was very impressive so next time you interview her it's probably going to be karaoke That's like her thing that's she loves Ki I know uh that was impressive as was have to give a shout out silver medalist donic the run she made to the final the cuk match was incredible we were glued to it over here just two players you know hitting winner after winter but Don ofage proving again not to you know take that step back makes that Wimbledon run gets to the semis and then we wonder what's going to happen how she's going to manage the surface change fights her way tooth and nail to the final runs out of steam them but for Donna veic it was another great result it's another example of how hard she works and how much she battles much like chin Wen how she fights out there to get as far as she possibly can she really does and I always when I was still playing would always seek out Donna as practice Partners just because she um the way she goes about her practices is exactly the same way she goes about her matches when you play a practice set with her you know she will try everything to win and that's always how I like to practice as well so I think you can really see that and I talked to Pam Shriver yesterday and she told me that she really put an emphasis or they as a team put an emphasis on mindset with Donna because she's such a perfectionist she gets down on herself and we've seen her really bounce back from difficult moments you mentioned the kostuk match where both players had match points um there were there were matches and moments in the in at Wimbledon when she beat Paula badosa in a match that started at 11:30 a.m. and ended at 7:30 p.m. because of the rain so you can see that the focus on mindset has really um helped her and that she's gone through difficult moments and and came out on top of them and now semi-final finalist in Wimbledon finalist at the Olympic Games that's some incredible track record and I'm really excited to see because I think on the quicker US Open hard courts I really think if she stays healthy and fit because she's played a lot of tennis I really think she can do some damage seems healthy right now given where she's been given that she had the injury history it's been a couple year climb to get back to this Elite level and maybe get to the best point in her career uh another yeah shout out to Pam Shriver doing another tremendous work there and the bronze IST was igus fiant which she's been pretty open about which is one of the things that you know I think people are liking to see her starting to open up a little more she was not satisfied with bronze it took her a couple days as you know as the comp competitive juices wear off a little bit okay I can appreciate what I did it wasn't the result she looked for but still a medal for Poland in tennis which hasn't happened yeah absolutely and it was so beautiful to see when they came on the podium IGA was beaming she was honestly happy gen L happy and I think for her it was probably the most difficult going into this Olympic Games nobody in Poland has ever won a tennis medal before and IGA was the clear favorite playing on her favorite surface on her favorite court at Philip chatrier where she had such a great run just earlier this year at Roland Gar so I think there were a lot of expectations placed on her and you know Poland is doesn't really have competitive Billy Jee King Cup matches because they are not in that group where you play the best countries in the world and that's where you get a glimpse of what it might feel like to play the Olympic Games so it was a new situation for IGA and it was really beautiful to see that despite that loss that perhaps surprising loss she was still so happy and just it was so nice to see that moment of the trio on the podium with Donna chin Wen and and eega everyone looking so happy with their medal is it was really special it certainly was Poland having a little bit of a bump with magdal Linette and fretch who made a final recently but yeah egoa being the star there there's just a different type of Olympic pressure too I think that's part of it and not having that traditional clay buildup where she's able to round herself into form it's tough there is you know no shame in losing to Chin Wen but um still got the bronze medal and it's tough to get yourself back onto the court the last thing on women's singles though interesting one for the American woman would you say yeah interesting how was it taken here in in the state I I it was taken with uh some heat I would say but I I would stress individuality three different incidents happened I think they're all unique yes um starting with I think what was you know maybe not egregious at all but how Coco golf handled the vage point which was not the reason she lost we went over the rule a couple weeks ago it's unfortunately a bad break I wouldn't say she got cheated or anything that's something I think she knows she needs to work on like I need to just move on a little bit and you can you can speak to that a little bit like it's tough to overcome whether it's a bad call or a bad break in a tennis match I think that rule specifically has caused problems over and over and over so would you say just automatic replay if there's any doubt I think either way but you think I think you have to make a clear ruling because right now the ruling is I mean you've talked about it a couple weeks ago but right now the ruling is it's up to the chair umpire and it's hard it's hard the Call Comes the opponent because he did get it right but yes that's been messed up a lot too a lot exactly so I think in that moment coko is feeling all the moments of the matches before where it got messed up because this is the one thing that gets messed up all the time and I think either you need to allow a replay and then Koko would have moved on because she would have seen I was wrong um or you have to make it an automatic replay no matter what when this happens because other that's the one rule where I see constantly problems and troubl so I think that's for her and I think there was a lot going on um I think the reason there it's not a coincidence all of this is happening at the Olympic Games because the pressure is different it's not an individual pressure it's the pressure of your teammates of a country possibly other athletes sitting in the uh in the stand and all of this adds to to a different component of pressure and I think that's why we saw these outbursts let's go to the next one what is the next one yeah the next one would be Danielle Collins it was pretty I don't want to say on brand I don't think it was much it was just the comment after uh to EA you don't have to be fake about it when when I wish you well so there was that one and then the third one was probably the most egregious I don't think it was anything too personal but the EM andaro basically saying to chinwan I don't respect you as a yeah that was was a little aggressive um I get it like heated things happen in in the field of play and you're not always proud of it which is probably why I wouldn't mik these players up live which is a different discussion but I do think that there was some uh incidents that were a little out of I don't want to say line out of pocket a little bit but you just move on and learn from them and go from there yeah I think I'm still viewing a lot of these incidents as a player I've been retired for two years but I can still feel myself go into the player personality so I kind of understand all of it because I had these moments I will say for Emma Navaro I think I know because I saw it with Donna who got a bit annoyed with chinwan in the final as well and I I realized what I think was going on and just a very pragmatic very German approach to this what I think happened is chinwan has changed her Ball Toss right if you remember at the Australian Open she had that Quirk where she almost turned the hand completely around and now she's not turning it completely around but still turning it around a little bit and I think they are in the transition of getting rid of their Quirk so she has been tossing up balls over and over again and I think it's just a transitional period for her right now and it's probably felt as an oppon o cuz I know I've been in the situation it felt like she's messing with you that's another one that could be a rule at some point that's been much discussed how many ball tosses should be allowed if it keeps going uh no I think look I I I don't think it was too egregious I heard Mary cillo who I'm a fan of too say these American girls are kind of running wild at the olypics so I love that running wild well you know what um standing up for yourself good for you even even when you're maybe not in the ride all the time also shout out to uh before I forget the Italian doubles team of Jasmine palini and Sarah Irani palini is just on a tear having her best year doing it in doubles too Irani completes the golden double Slam by winning this Olympic so someone that's still involved in the game has still made the most out of it and is still a very elite doubles player very elite doubles player and I think sometimes people underestimate how talented she is just because she is a more defensively minded player when we remember her as a singles player where she would track down a lot of balls defend really well and so I think um people underestimate how good she actually is and in doubles she can really show that side of herself the her skill set at the net and her feel for the lobs and you know what was really interesting in the beginning of the year they said we are playing together because we want to win the gold medal and putting those expectations on themselves from the very beginning of the year and then holding up to the pressure was really really impressive are you jealous of jazz pini's just ability to be positive all the time so je you know when you get annoyed with somebody because they do it so well and so right I I at the at Wimbledon I called that semi-final between her and Donna and she was just come on Forza Forza Forza and I was like amazing I if I had had 10% of that I would have had a much better career it's incredible more with Andrea Pekovic here on Tennis Channel inside in recapping Olympics talking somewhere hardcore I did have one more Olympic story and I want to go to the video wall because I need your opinion on these two oh our tennis favorite ROM so yeah so okay for those out there listening or watching you got cine akova and Thomas mahat check Double's team they won the gold medal they did were or are in a in a relationship they reports that they had broken up beforehand they win it's emotional some kisses were shared now people are wondering they're saying we're not going to tell you guys so just your assessment of what we saw this tennis romcom as you said in czechia I loved it it was my favorite moment so they played in the first round um alexanda verif and laara zamon so we did that match for German TV and they were in the best communication I've ever seen and we knew they were broken up and I said at one point I didn't want to go into the private lives too much but I said at one point this is really amazing how well they are communicating with each other and how in harmony they seem to be so whatever is happening this is my favorite story of the Olympics I think and we have Novak jokovic who is maybe the most amazing story of all the Olympic Games not only in tennis but still I am a sucker for romcoms and this just caught my heart and more power to them no matter what they decide to do I love them together I think they are incredibly cute whether that is as friends or as lovers I leave it up to them couple things one being she's the best doubles player in the world right now 100% right like it's insane also in that first photo his shorts were shorter than hers to go back to it so I love that I've been saying this for months ever since he shut up on the scene and has been playing so well this uh this uh season I've been saying more players on the ATP Tour should wear their shorts like Tomas mahaj it was very hot in Paris he kept rolling them up yes that's all I'm saying is yes well that was an interesting take on everything uh for sure so we'll monitor that we'll see if the storyline Gods give us some more uh before we go to the summer hardcore so I did want to Circle back to Wimbledon because you were there you were covering the tournament you also played in the Legends event and one of the players there was ashb back on court so what was that experience like she made her broadcasting debut you and was it RAR rova yeah correct played against her and Casey Del Aqua what was that experience like getting back on court with the Wimbledon champ well first of all I have played on every single centa cord in the world except for Wimbledon and then they schedule our Legends match on centa cord after I had been broadcasting for 6 hours I was not able to warm up and I walked into the locker room to change clothes and take my makeup off my TV makeup they're like ah Andrea you're expected on Santa Cod I was like excuse me so uh mind you I was more nervous for this match than I've ever been in my professional career just because of the of preparation and it was really great Ash and Casey were amazing we played a good doubles and we both mugda my partner and me we commented on it we said if Ash practiced a month we think she could do third round at Wimbledon if she practiced three months we thought she could really play for the title that's how good she still is that's how fit she still is and how well she hits the ball so yeah I think I don't think she wants to but um but there is still some some real good qu going on in that little body of hers she looked the same which is clear even after having a a kid and then also we know that she's just a natural athlete it hasn't taken her long to adjust so it's cool to see and yeah you can cross another thing off your bucket list not much left yeah now now I have played I think on all senta Cuts in the world yeah well getting into this current season now it's tough to make the transition some players are going to wait another week till Cincinnati others have already hit the ground running or didn't play the Olympics at all but we go to Canada two tours on different cities Montreal Toronto staggered with the guys in Montreal this year and the women in Toronto but as we look to the story lines we look to these players that are coming in I get the sense that we're going to kind of Judge them a little differently CER and sa Lanka two of the Premier players favorites this week didn't play the Olympics maybe coming a little rested do you see it that way and do you see some of these Olympic athletes maybe having to adjust a little bit well that's a very good question I was wondering how Tommy Paul would fair to day for example who just came off as bronze medal um Double match with Taylor Fritz and he did okay you could see that he needed some time to adjust but he did okay I think it is going to be very taxing on the players body especially those who have played the Olympics this is the only sport where we change surfaces it is so challenging by itself already and this year they've done heart clay grass clay heart within a span of six months this is really and I just hope that we will won't see any injuries I think that's my biggest hope that players will feel somewhat fine I don't think they will be at 100% physically but you don't need to be at 100% physically cuz everyone else will not be at 100% either right I watched Saban last week and I thought she got what she kind of needed out of that first tournament back I know she didn't win it and it's unfortunate but had a couple matches looked okay had some Rust to work out I think she's coming in locked into this tournament you know and that that's kind of where I'm going to be judging yanic sinner because I think cner is someone that has had some things had the tons solitis has had some some issues Wimbledon of course I do feel like he won't take as much time to adjust because he usually just comes out playing well and it's put in a lot of time that we haven't seen right and this was his breakthrough last year in Toronto he won his first Master's 1000 title and that's where things really took off for him it seems like that's when he seemed all of a sudden Invincible at times and um and yeah he struggled with his with some physical issues lately but I do think that sabalenka and sinner should go in as favorites somewhat favorites is always dangerous to say but just because they had that extra time on hard courts and also to rest which is really important and uh and I'm excited to see how Yanik will go about defending his title even though it's in a different city that's a good point not going right back to the city that you want in on the men's side Center is the favorite by margins it's zov and MV zov slightly ahead of MV so two different players zov has had the major success hasn't ended well a lot in these Majors but meev is going back to where it all began for him this is like going home it's like going away to just visit someone now you're back home yeah when when meddev steps on the hardcourt it seems like he becomes a different player he's just like all the tension in his body melts and he seems to be so comfortable and I have to say I've Alexander zif in the first three rounds of Wimbledon I've never seen him play this well I thought really honestly he's going to win Wimbledon he looked the strongest of all then he had this really nasty fall he injured his knee a bit and ever since then he's been struggling physically a bit he had some dizziness in Hamburg now at the Olympic Games he was struggling with the heat he has diabetes so there are a lot of issues coming said's tough to play I mean he's playing really well that was he's playing really well but he was just struggling with some physical issues so he went back home to take a few tests to take a few blood tests and see how he's feeling so that's going to be interesting to see with him whether he can be 100% physically because I think his tennis has really gotten to another level this season and I think he is a different player and I think he goes differently about the the major tournaments and I think he really believes he can he can be a contender I was looking at the other men in this field again an opportunity like we saw in DC with Sebastian Cordo winning and then Paul bedos on the women's side but men that could step up whether it's an American like Tommy Paul Taylor Fritz Ben Shelton and the match you called today Americans could use this bump to kind of get to that level it's a opportunity of those names or is there anybody else you think could make a move on the men's side in Canada I think Ben Shelton looked really good today I was very impressed because I think with Ben Shelton I called a lot of his matches and the one thing that drives me insane is when he becomes very wild and has no patience and he can afford to some extent to do that because he has this big weapon of a surf but today he was very patient he built the point up he brought the intensity point in point out and that's always something I look forward to because in Wimbledon he played really well but he needed five sets in every single match so by the time he played Yanik sinner he was worn out already he had already been on court for 25 hours basically and if he can minimize that because playing grand slam tournaments is a different animal it's twoo we we it's best of five for the men it's really challenging so you need to maintain and manage your energies and I think Ben looked really really good today the way he went about it cuz it's not easy playing Buck I mean he's a wild card this one Devil's Partners in this yes my favorite agent of chaos as I framed it that that was a good it's a good way to put it I'm also curious about hoger too because you know the coaching breakup happened again and he's looking for another opportunity to put his name I mean he really believes that belongs at the very top of the sport results haven't happened this year with no alcarez and Joe you think this could be an opportunity it took him three sets against Batista good who was a lucky loser in the draw but if he can put it together the the weapons and the game is there the weapons and the game is there and I think we've been saying it for for years it feels that now that hogar Runa should be one of the top Stars he should be a top five player with him I feel like he's lacking similar also a bit of discipline and it doesn't mean dis IPL in terms of practicing it mean discipline in terms of structure in the game and percentage tennis we saw Novak jovic now in the final at the Olympic Games he's the Perfection of percentage tennis which doesn't mean it's boring when he needed to in the tie break he got those highlight real shots he got the little bit of extra you can have both when he needs a big serve and just a easy point he can just do that exactly exactly and then when he needs to he can also hit a crazy great running for and uh and the winner and that's what I mean and I feel sometimes with hog he wants the highlight real but he doesn't want the cheap points and he needs both in order to be a contender for these big ones but he knows he won a master's title before in Paris he knows how that goes and so I think he just needs to find a bit of more structure and it will be fine for him the last thing on the man I had a question for you we talked about the two ends of it right two ends of the spectrum Jasmine palini is super positive I wanted to ask you about Andre ruv because since he won the Madrid Masters he's seven and seven on the year and I looked up on tennis abstract shout out to that site the average ranking of the losses is 72 oh so I know he's been temperamental and by all accounts a great guy everybody likes him but what advice would you give to a player that's going through it and trying to find the right footing specifically on the mental side well with Andre it really hurts me because you can see that he is hurting himself right you can see that there is a lot of pain on the inside that he is a lot of self-loathing and just annoyance with himself and it it pains me to to watch it really to be honest and in Madrid and I just wish he could tap into that energy in Madrid he was very sick I called all the matches he was really really really sick which took away the energy from the self-loathing right CU he was so focused on trying to get through the matches that he didn't have time to to use it up for for getting angry and getting annoyed and he won the tournament he played the best tennisy played all season and I just wish if he can't do it or if he can't manage it by himself that he will get help to help him out with this with this obvious vicious circle that he's found found himself in and I I was a very emotional player myself I know how that feels I was very big on the on the self-loathing myself so maybe that's why I also feel with him but sometimes you need a little bit of outside help and you can't do everything by yourself even though you're a tennis player and you think you should we hope he gets there uh really obviously one of the better guys in tennis so hope to see that happen on the women's front we mentioned it sabalan favored in this tournament slightly over Coco golf really curious to see how Coco comes back to it wasn't obviously a great ending at the Olympics or wimbl then but here she is summer hard courts where she dominated last year won the US Open does she feel Comfort or do you think maybe she feels some pressure too I hope it's the Comfort over the pressure I do think she will feel some pressure cuz those those uh there are a lot of points to defend for her just remember one Washington one Cincinnati final of Montreal last year for the ladies and then won the US Open a lot of points to defend so I do think there will be some pressure I just hope that she can pair the pressure with the good memory she had from last year how she felt and how she played and tap into that energy and just remember last year she lost in the first round of Wimbledon everyone was questioning her what's the form of Coco and she came back and on an abute tear so she has it within to turn everything around but it will be definitely a difficult moment for her the forehands going to be the hot button talking point and yes it's manageable now it doesn't need to be fixed will it be it's a big time project if it does I think we can kind of all agree in the tennis community that she's in her best position to manage it on these hard courts yeah 100% And I always I'm a proponent I know sometimes people laugh at me when I say it I don't think think it is necessarily a bad shot because I practiced with her a lot when I was still playing and the most uncomfortable thing about playing Coco go is the backand comes at you so fast and flat and then the forehand jumps on you it's kind of slow but it jumps on you and you have to lean on it and the difference of these two paces and these two ground strokes is really difficult to manage what can't happen is that she gets it in her head and starts to miss right that can't happen but if she can just like last year make it frequently and use it to open the court and then use the backand to attack it's very difficult to play her and so I really think you might call me crazy but I don't think it is necessarily a bad shot it just needs to be managed as you said and last year she did manage and she only lost one match in the entire us Series so that's pretty good in my book to be honest was that Pula right who Ed up I mean yeah who's back healthy and hope she can make a run to somebody to watch out for uh also I had check the score so as we're recording this Naomi Osaka on shabor Osaka's up a break in in the first set there looks like she's got the first sight in control she was somebody that after how close she came to beating EIG Rowan garos we were all kind of waiting for this point right Nai back on hard courts could be a real Factor definitely I mean I think everyone has been talking about it already I want to say since Miami where she looked really good already she beats folina there in a really impressive two set match then lost to Garcia but ever since then I've been kind of waiting for her to break through and then we went on the surfaces she hates most in the world clay and grass but it played as you said one of the best matches I've seen her play since her comeback against IGA was just the point away so I think she will go very confidently into this us series and into the hardcore summer I think somebody to definitely keep on your when we get away from Kay when we get away from Kay and it's not eager with the Strang hold Liga still at the top when she returns but you have Koko won the US Open Saban's won a couple Aussies I don't think rachan will be bad pagul has played well Osaka this is maybe the most open time of the year for the women's field I really hope so I'm always excited you know I will tell you one anecdote at the French Open um a few journalists asked me can we ask you some question about the state of women's tenness I was like sure the first question was do you think it's boring that IGA Shian is dominating the French Open I gave my answer two weeks later in Wimbledon when EA was out again the same journalist asked me like hey can we ask you some question I was like yeah sure and then they asked me like isn't it weird that the seventh year in a row it will be a new Wimbledon champion and I looked at them I was like are you serious right now do want what do you want you were the same guys who asked me two weeks ago whether it's boring that e guys went you pick aaine I don't care which one but pick one and I'll give you my answers to it so I personally I always like when there is excitement and when you don't know what's going to happen but I also really enjoy players going on a tear and dominating the whole thing I guess I just love tennis so I don't mind who wins I just enjoy the emotions well that's that's the perfect attitude to have wrapping up with Andrea Pekovic here on Tennis Channel inside in we've gave you a thorough breakdown of the Olympics and North American hardcard swing but right now I want to get your thoughts on the other Endeavor in your life so if you want to look at what that screen says if you can read out what the first line of that is that you wrote oh that's so good who wrote that I don't know I think it says watching the Olympic Games is the most fun a girl can have without taking her clothes off that's so good I'm a great Rider no I'm just kidding because I obviously yes I stole that quote from F Scott Fitzgerald I wish I was that good of a writer but uh yeah that's my blog that's my substack you can subscribe to it I write every Friday I send out a newsletter and uh last week's newsletter was currently watching the Olympic Games what about you so the the substack writing that you've been doing and it's been great to have your thoughts and outlining everything especially getting in the mindset of a tennis player but how does that differentiate how does that feed a different creative side than the actual like writing a novel portion of what you've done uh so it's a lot easier on one hand and so much um harder in a sense because I underestimated that you have to come up with a top topic every Friday right and it takes 2 3 hours to write a thing like this so that's been mind consuming energy consuming but it's been a lot of fun as well and then on the other hand it's a little bit easier because I write about things that I think about all week long it's tennis it's competing it's uh performing Under Pressure uh what does it take to perform Under Pressure all these things so I think about them constantly anyway so it's on the other hand it's easy whereas in a novel you have to kind of go out of your comfort zone and into uh matters that you're not as uh as proficient in as in tennis but uh yeah it's been hard and fun at the same time I saw the clip of you or I saw the photos from you in Germany at like the was it a Q&A about the book oh right is it weird that people might know you now just as an author and not a tennis player it's really strange so normally I still get a good portion of uh tennis fans and some of the literary fans let's say but I had one reading in hurg and I write for a newspaper which is the equivalent of the New Yorker where I have a column uh about arts and Leisure and um and so that newspaper is published in hurg the site and it was the first reading I had it was fully sold out and it was mostly literary audience and it was so confusing to me because I would tell my tennis jokes and they wouldn't land and then I told a few literary things and people were into it and I was like oh this is the first time I have an audience who doesn't remember I used to be a tennis player so it was a little bit strange but um but it's nice to to gain another following as well they're like this tall fit writer what who is this what's her background why does she have muscles what is wrong with these these writer it's not the writers I used to know no definitely not uh lastly you've been a blast as always what's next on the docket or what's not next because it feels like it's broadcasting it's writing what the next couple months look like for you so my next couple of months are cincin I'm here now in La doing Montreal Toronto and I'm going to Cincinnati from the side I will do the qualifying as a mentor for the G tennis Federation it's a good time for them actually Eva leis has been doing very well very well she's in the quarters right now in hurg so that's exciting um and then I'm going to do some broadcasting for the US Open and what else I'm doing labor cup which was because it's in Germany it's going to be very exciting it's in Berlin and then I have kept my November and December open because I want to start to write a third book oh wow we'll be on the lookout for that for sure especially giving your new literary audience too so yes all the five of them they're not listening to this we'll have to get them the podcast some other way uh Andrea pekovich always a blast really appreciate you making time knowing how busy you are really enjoy our chats thanks for coming on the podcast you're one of the best guests here thanks for coming on inside thank you Mitch you say that to everyone but I'll take it as if you didn't I only mean it to a few but thank you