Wta Insider Podcast

Aryna Sabalenka rediscovered her game en route to the 2020 Qatar Total Open title, defeating tricky opponents, and mind-numbing wind, and Petra Kvitova in the final, 6-3, 6-3, to capture her first title of the season.  The 21-year-old joins the WTA Insider Podcast to reflect on what went right during her Doha debut, what could have gone terribly wrong, and why her reunion with coach Dmitry Tursunov yielded immediate results. 

Top seeds Hsieh Su-Wei and Barbora Strycova dominated the tour's swing through the Middle East, becoming just the second doubles team to ever sweep the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and Qatar Total Open. Hsieh and Strycova rebounded from their quick Dubai turnaround to power through to their third title of the season at in Doha, defeating No.6 seeds Gabriela Dabrowski and Jelena Ostapenko, 6-2, 5-7, 10-2 in the final.  Hsieh and Strycova join the WTA Insider Podcast to discuss their scintillating 2020 season start, what it means to them to complete a rare sweep, and dish on the difficulties of celebrating the phenomenal achievement. 

The WTA Insider Podcast is excited to kick off our Original 9 podcast series, which celebrates the 50th anniversary of the iconic One Dollar Photo and the formation of the Virginia Slims Tour in 1970, which led to the foundation of the WTA three years later.  To kick off the series, we head down to Melbourne to sit in conversation with former World No.7 Judy Dalton, one of the two Australians to break away to join ranks with the Original 9. Dalton reflects on her decision to risk it all to join the Virginia Slims Tour, the encouraging results of the survey on women's tennis she administered at Forest Hills, and what it's like to see an Australian World No.1 collect the biggest prize money check in professional tennis history. 

Timea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic picked up right where they left off in 2019. Having capped off the season by winning the Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen, the duo became the first team since 2004 to win the Australian Open title without dropping a set, extending their win streak to 11 matches.  The pair catch up with WTA Insider after their title run in Melbourne, to go deep on how their true friendship was formed and why, without it, Team Babos/Mladenovic would not exist. 

Sofia Kenin became the youngest Australian Open champion since one of her idols Maria Sharapova and is set to become the youngest American to make her Top 10 debut since her other idol, Serena Williams. Now she's ready for her close-up after winning her maiden Slam by defeating Garbiñe Muguruza 4-6, 6-2, 6-2. 

Karolina Pliskova became the winningest player in Brisbane International history after becoming the first woman to win the title three times, defeating Madison Keys to capture the first Premier title of the season.  Pliskova joins the podcast to discuss what made her 2020 title run her toughest (she also won in 2017 and 2019) and looks ahead to how she'll prepare for the Australian Open with a new team in her box. 

World No.1 Ashleigh Barty sealed her outstanding WTA season by winning the 2019 Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen, defeating defending champion Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-3 to tally her tour-leading 56th win of the season and fourth title of the year. For her efforts, the Queenslander took home over $4.4 million, the biggest prize money check in the history of professional tennis. The 23-year-old reflects on her evolution into one of the most clutch players in the game and looks ahead to 2020, which will kick off under the intense spotlight of the Australian summer.

The season-long Porsche Race to Shenzhen is over and it's Australia's 23-year-old phenom Ashleigh Barty who takes the checkered flag. The World No.1 joins the WTA Insider Podcast to reflect on her standout season, which saw her win three titles on three different surfaces, including her maiden major at Roland Garros and Premier Mandatory at the Miami Open, and finish the regular season as the tour leader in match wins. 

Naomi Osaka extended her win-streak to 10 consecutive matches since the US Open, defeating World No.1 Ashleigh Barty 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 to win the China Open. The title is Osaka's third of the season and fifth of her career, paving the way for a resurgent fall as the reigning Australian Open champion eyes her final event at the Shiseido WTA Finals Shenzhen in three weeks.  Osaka joins the podcast to reflect on the key to winning her second Premier Mandatory title, which included tough wins over Barty and US Open Champion Bianca Andreescu, and how some soul-searching after a disappointing summer has steeled her resolve. 

Aryna Sabalenka successfully defended her Dongfeng Motor Wuhan Open title, defeating Alison Riske 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 to win her second title of the season and move her undefeated record in Wuhan to 12-0.  Sabalenka joins the podcast to discuss the lessons learned from her rocky sophomore season, what she wished she knew on January 1st of this season, and how a change in mindset triggered her dominant run to the title. 

Former No.1 and four-time major champion Kim Clijsters joins the WTA Insider Podcast to discuss her decision to return to the tour over eight years since retiring in 2012. A popular player in the locker room and fan-favorite all over the globe, the 36-year-old Belgian reflects on her path back to competitive tennis, what she defines as success, and how she plans to juggle family life and tour life.

19-year-old Bianca Andreescu made Canadian history at the 2019 US Open, becoming the first Canadian singles Slam champion ever with her 6-3, 7-5 win over Serena Williams in the final.  After starting the season ranked No.152m, Andreescu will rise to No.5 in the WTA Rankings on Monday and zoom up the Porsche Race to Shenzhen at No.4. Andreescu joins the podcast after her title run to reflect on her breakout season, how she'll redefine her goals for the remainder of the season, and reveal the US Open playlist that inspired her to victory.

Madison Keys blasted 245 winners, including 45 in her 7-5, 7-6(5) win over Svetlana Kuznetsova to win the Western & Southern Open and return to the Top 10. The 24-year-old defeated four Slam champions - Garbiñe Muguruza, Simona Halep, Venus Williams, and Kuznetsova - en route to her 5th title of her career and 2nd of the season.  Keys joins the podcast to discuss her breakthrough week of controlled, aggressive tennis, her mindset going into the pressure-filled fortnight at the US Open, and how her grandparents felt after witnessing her triumph from the sidelines. 

Simona Halep played the match of her life to defeat Serena Williams 6-2, 6-2 to win 2019 Wimbledon. The World No.7, who will rise to No.4 on Monday, dropped just one set over the fortnight to become the first Romanian to win the Wimbledon singles title, her second major title in the last two years.  Hear Halep address reporters after her big win and then sit down with WTA Insider for a candid chat about what triggered her renewed mindset at Wimbledon and what it portends for the future. 

Former World No.2 Andrea Jaeger joins the podcast at Wimbledon after the launch of her Little Star Foundations Global Art Competition, to discuss how she grappled with the platform her early success gave her and offers advice for current athletes on how to give back to the communities the sport touches on a weekly basis.  Jaeger also weighs in on the story of the tournament so far, 15-year-old Coco Gauff. Jaeger turned pro when she was 14-years-old and made two major finals as a teenager before stepping away from the sport due to injury. 

Ashleigh Barty's first overseas trip from Australia took her to Paris 10 years ago as a 13-year-old. Now, the 23-year-old, who will rise to No.2 in the rankings on Monday, is the 2019 French Open champion. Barty became the first Australian woman to win a major since Samantha Stosur at the 2011 US Open and is set to become the highest-ranked Australian woman since Evonne Goolagong Cawley in 1976. Barty joins the podcast the day after her big win to reflect on the journey to her maiden major, which included a stint away from the sport and a heartbreaking moment right here on Court Philippe Chatrier two years ago. 

Karolina Pliskova came to Rome with zero expectations and she leaves with the biggest clay title of her career. The Czech, who will rise to No.2 on Monday, rewrote her history in Rome, defeating Johanna Konta in the final to win the Internazionali BNL d"Italia.  The plain-speaking champ joins the podcast to reflect on the evolution of her game, her title run in Rome, and what it's like to travel the world with her husband Michal. 

Kiki Bertens became the first woman to ever win the Mutua Madrid Open title without losing a set, defeating reigning Roland Garros champion Simona Halep 6-4, 6-4 to win the biggest title of her career. The 27-year-old will make more history on Monday, when she rises to No.4 to become the highest-ranked Dutchwoman ever.  That's not a bad week's work. Bertens and her coach Raemon Sluiter join the podcast to reflect on their monumental title run, and preview what's next as Roland Garros looms. 

In the end, Petra Kvitova raced away with her first Porsche Tennis Grand Prix title in Stuttgart, defeating Anett Kontaveit 6-3, 7-6(2) to win her 27th career title. It wasn't always easy sailing for the Czech, who is set to return to No.2 on Monday, but Kvitova leaves Stuttgart with a load of confidence after winning her first clay title of the season in her first clay event.

Julie Heldman, a member of the Original 9, marvels at what the WTA Tour has become in the 49 years since her brave cohorts signed the famous one dollar contract to form what would become the WTA. But she also wants the world to know that it wasn't all fun and games.  The author of "Driven: A Daughter's Odyssey", joins the podcast to the difficult dualities of her life on tour. From her fraught relationship with her mother Gladys Heldman, one of the instrumental figures in the formation of the tour, her battles with mental illness, to finding inspiration in being surrounded by a hard-nosed group of outcasts, Heldman candidly discusses her truth and her experience in hopes of educating the masses.