The Tennis Podcast: The Show Aces The Format

The number of tennis podcasts pales compared to team sports podcasts, where every team has a show run either by the team or a large podcast network. Individual sports, like golf and tennis, typically have a smaller podcasting footprint. Tennis has some excellent podcasts, one of the best being The Tennis Podcast. The simplicity of the show’s name belies its excellence in tennis coverage and insightful commentary.

Just in time for the French Open, the show is joining The Athletic Podcast Network to bring its insightful analysis, engaging discussions, and unique chemistry to The Athletic’s global audience of sports fans. The Athletic is owned by The New York Times.

Broadcaster Catherine Whitaker and BBC commentator David Law launched The Tennis Podcast in 2012 to discuss and laugh about the sport they love. Matt Roberts joined in 2015, becoming a popular new voice.

With more than 20 years of experience in tennis, David Law started as an ATP Tour Communications Manager, conducting the first Media Guide Q&A with a 16-year-old Roger Federer in 1998.

After a few years living in Monte Carlo, where the ATP has its European HQ, David got the urge to become a freelance journalist, pursuing his passion for commentary. He has been one of the lead commentators on the BBC Radio 5 Live team since 2002, describing more than 20 Grand Slam finals and covering special moments in the careers of the Big 4 and Serena Williams. He also commentates on TV for BBC and BT Sport, and was one of the leading voices on the Federer-Nadal documentary, Strokes of Genius. In addition to his broadcasting work, David spent 12 years as Media Director of The Queen’s Championships.

David started The Tennis Podcast in 2012 and remains the driving force behind it today, going full-time in early 2022. When he is not working, David is likely to be watching his beloved West Bromwich Albion or the slightly less-beloved Seattle Seahawks.

Co-host Catherine Whitaker first met David at Queen’s in 2007 and spent seven years working with him on the ATP Champions Tour. After moving into broadcasting, Catherine was part of the Eurosport team at the Australian Open, Roland Garros, and the US Open. She also worked for the BBC at Wimbledon and presented Eurosport’s coverage of the Winter Olympics in Pyeonchang.

Since 2018, Catherine has hosted Amazon Prime Video’s tennis coverage in the UK. The night Emma Raducanu won the US Open, she presented the action to more than 11 million people watching live.

Away from tennis, Catherine supports Reading FC, loves figure skating, is obsessed with the Olympics, and has recently become an F1 fan. A nap alongside Billie Jean K9, with cricket on in the background, is Catherine’s idea of heaven.

After years of listening to The Tennis Podcast on the school bus, Matt Roberts approached David and Catherine during his first year of university to see if he could help as an intern. Beginning life with us as Student Matt, he helped with our social media and show planning between lectures.

In November 2018, after he’d left university to become Grad Matt, David and Catherine invited him to a pod recording at a pub in London, put a microphone in his hand, and got him talking on-air for the first time. Listeners enjoyed his Karen Khachanov takes and helped us give him a full-time job in our 2019 crowdfunding campaign.

Since then, Matt has been a third voice on the show, travelling to Grand Slam tournaments as an on-site reporter. He also writes the show’s newsletter, edits most episodes, leads the research on the Tennis Re-Lived series, and shares Twitter duties with David outside the slams. He loves stats, backhands, reading, languages, and Fulham FC.

Since its launch, the show has garnered over 30 million downloads, becoming the most listened-to podcast in the sport. “The Tennis Podcast” was named Best Sport Podcast at the British Podcast Awards in 2023 and is regularly the №1 tennis podcast on Apple Podcasts across the U.S., U.K., Australia, and Canada. It is a favorite of Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Pam Shriver, and Mary Carillo.

New episodes drop weekly on Mondays throughout the year and daily during all four Grand Slam tournaments. Listeners can watch and listen on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever they get their podcasts.

From the occasional fan to the hardcore enthusiast, The Tennis Podcast is for anyone who likes tennis.