NEW YORK—“This has literally been the greatest experience of my life.” What could have inspired a teenage tennis fan to say these excited words to a TV reporter at 11:30 A.M. on Monday, half an hour after the tournament had begun? No, the girl in the pink basketball sneakers hadn’t

It happens every year at the Open. It’s a little past 7:00 in the evening, I’ve spent the day getting scorched by the sun, and I’m woozy from watching tennis balls fly back and forth. It’s time to begin the three-borough journey back to Brooklyn. As I trudge across the

by Pete Bodo NEW YORK—Just as it was a sure bet that installing a roof over Centre Court at Wimbledon would guarantee sunny, warm weather for eons to come, so the fact that the U.S. Open is one of just two majors (the French Open is the other) without a

Each day during the Australian Open, Richard Pagliaro will preview three must-see men's and women's matches—and offer his predictions. (3) Maria Sharapova vs. (20) Dominika Cibulkova Head-to-head: Sharapova leads 3-2 Rod Laver Arena, first match The four-time Grand Slam champion is nearly a foot taller than Cibulkova, but Sharapova sometimes

File this under the same heading as the old “tree falls in a forest” riddle: Is it possible for a player to have a great year that’s also a disappointing year? That’s a question Novak Djokovic may find himself pondering now and then, as this year in tennis winds down.

The Rally: Joel Drucker and Steve Tignor talk about how social issues play out at the first week of Grand Slams; how this Open feels like two legendary veterans trying to hold off a mass of young hopefuls; and what it’s like to cover all of it from outside the

For starters, what’s up with the scoring? 15, 30, 40, love? Seriously? How are we supposed to remember which is the ad court and which is the deuce court? Where else can two athletes battle it out for 11 hours over three days, playing a total of five sets and

With the French Open just days away, senior writers Peter Bodo and Steve Tignor are here to give their thoughts on the tournament, in a back-and-forth exchange not dissimilar to the rallies you'll see in Paris. Check back throughout the day for updates; editor Ed McGrogan leads off the conversation.

Early last year, Bianca Andreescu traveled to The Netherlands to play a Fed Cup tie for her native Canada. At the time, she was a tour neophyte who had just cracked the Top 100. But a month earlier she had beaten Venus Williams and Caroline Wozniacki on her way to

Good night. Wimbledon didn't disappoint in its 2016 iteration. The likes of Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka were missing in action, certainly for different reasons, and yet scads and oodles of drama ensued over two weeks in London. On the heels of giving the French Open the same

Hi Steve, This is remarkable, but as the second week of Roland Garros gets underway, the news is similar to what happened at the start of the first week: A big name has withdrawn. Roger Federer has stated all along that he had no chance to win Roland Garros this

Do tennis matches really have “turning points”? Can dozens of rallies be reduced to just one or two or three? It might seem like a hopelessly simplistic and clichéd concept, but watching Maria Sharapova’s 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 win over Carla Suarez Navarro in the Rome women's final on Sunday, it

It’s Wednesday, August 28, 2030, day five of this year’s US Open. As is the case at every major, tennis’ Grand Slam tournaments take place over the course of three weekends. Each commences on a Saturday at high noon, with a grand kickoff ceremony honoring past champions and community notables

This morning the narrow streets of my Brooklyn neighborhood were sunk beneath a foot of snow. Steps, stoops, sidewalks, even cars were invisible. When I was walking to work, very little of it had been plowed or shoveled, so the only way forward, if I didn’t want to be covered

The young guns have all been sent home on the men’s side. Their all-purpose flair was fun while it lasted, but now it’s time for the New Look Veterans to take over. The semis are shaping up like a (monster forehand) blast from the recent past. Over on the women’s

It's a storyteller's dream: Whatever type of character you like, the first week of a Grand Slam offers it to you. Wide-eyed up-and-comer, star in free fall, underachieving sure-shot—all three were out on the grounds on a hot Tuesday at Wimbledon. Here's a look at how each of them struggled,

First there was the age of Roger. Then there was Roger and Rafa. Then there was Roger, Rafa, and Novak. Now, as we can see when we look at the results of the last seven Grand Slams, we’re officially in the Age of the Big 4. Whether you consider that

“Gorgo” was what Ken Rosewall and Rod Laver called their fellow pro, Pancho Gonzalez. It was short for “gorgonzola”—i.e., the Big Cheese. The young Aussies, who dominated the barnstorming pro tours for much of the 1960s, resented the fact that the moody and mercurial American always received the lion’s share

*PhpnKBq8bPM By Pete Bodo Any doubts I may have entertained about the intensity of the flame burning inside the cool exterior of Roger Federer were pretty much extinguished last night, in the wake of that borderline epic win over Andy Roddick. I've been trying to find adjectives to describe properly

I could just picture the conversation that took place between Willy Canas and Tommy Robredo in the locker room shortly before they strolled out to play the last remaining quarterfinal of the Sony Ericsson Open this evening: Willy: Okay, Tommy, I have an idea. Let's go out and you pretend