Arthur Fils caps his successful comeback to the tour with the Barcelona crown, while official tennis outlets act h-word on main while they trade on his good looks. Ben Shelton wins his first clay title outside of Texas and marks a surprising milestone for US men. Clay queens Coco and Iga are down bad while Elena, Karolina, and Marta soar; and Carlos’ status is questionable for who knows how long. Finally, we talk about the news that interests me most: Marketa Vondrousova has been charged with refusing to give a sample to a doping control officer. Her social media posts about the incident provide interesting context but – as we’ve seen before – could come back to bite.

2:15 Arthur Fils is the truth!

8:55 Rybakina wins Stuttgart again, Muchova exorcises some demons

14:00 Join Elena’s crypto community …

18:35 Ben Shelton, American king of clay?

26:35 Vondrousova’s case

37:40 James talks about books and takes another quiz!

In Monte Carlo, Sinner’s 4th consecutive Master’s title and reclaiming of the #1 ranking adds another wrinkle to the Sincaraz rivalry. We talk about our desire for a little less golden retriever energy from Carlos – or, at least one of us does – but ultimately an unfriendly rivalry is no longer advantageous for today’s player brands. Last week, Pegula defended her Charleston title, 3 Argentines made 3 different finals, and Iga appeared at the Rafa Nadal Academy with her new coach Francisco Roig. We also talk about golf, double bagels, Coco having to defend herself online (again), and an intriguing FMK about three celebrated tennis careers.

1:05 Bestie rivals, a hallmark of this era

13:35 A double bagel to Berrettini, come on man

16:35 I thank myself

20:40 Coco defends her Miu Miu look and her hair from online waste yutes and losers

24:05 Pegula wins the first equalized 500 prize money in Charleston

29:10 Men’s results last week: Tommy Paul, first career titles for Jodar and Navone

33:00 Coaching carousel

36:20 Rory McIlroy defends his Masters title; Caroline still has shooters

39:45 FMK Tennis careers: Sharapova, Hingis, Davenport

Jannik Sinner wins the Sunshine Double without losing a set – a first! – and upends the mini-narrative that said Carlos was running away with the season. Aryna Sabalenka, for her part, snatches back momentum in the Rybakina rivalry and bests bugaboo Coco Gauff in the Miami final. The actual star of Miami turned out to be thirst magnet Arthur Fils, who reached the semis, stunned four-match-point-haver Tommy Paul, and broke containment. We’ve also got: close reading a tweet about the IOC’s new gender policy; the Charleston draw and prize money increase; and the WTA Finals’ departure from Saudi Arabia.

2:30 Sinner’s win reminds the tennis world to chill with the proclamations

9:55 Sabalenka keeps her head on straight for the final

18:35 Coco’s hat: saying nothing was always an option!

26:35 Arthur Fils breaks out in a big way; a thick way, even

33:30 Charleston increases prize money to match the ATP 500 level

37:50 IOC’s announcement on trans athletes and what it has to do with Wertheim and Navratilova

46:00 What is holding you back from buying a yacht?

47:45 Listener question: which tennis player would you go on vacation with?