Control the Controllables

We´re reviewing all the action from the 2024 Australian Open in today´s episode.What a way to start the year of tennis, as Aryna Sabalenka didn’t drop a set on the way to her second consecutive Australian Open title. Jannik Sinner shocked the tennis world by defeating Novak Djokovic and performing a miraculous fightback against Daniil Medvedev to lift his first ever major title, and become the youngest winner since Djokovic himself in 2008!Here to round up the past two weeks in Melbourne alongside CTC host Dan Kiernan who was at the event, we have our panel of experts:Denmark´s Davis Cup Captain and 2012 Wimbledon Mens Doubles Champion and (most importantly!) CTC regular Freddie Nielsen.GB Coach Calvin Betton who is currently working with Henry Pattern.They discuss their risky picks from our Aussie Open Preview episode, whether eras really do come to an end, all of the 35 five set matches that happened over the two weeks, and whether the Australian Open has finally got it right with their 15 day schedule.Let us know what you thought of the event and anything you would like to hear Dan discuss on the podcast about anything in the tennis world! Tag @ctc.podcast on Instagram or email us.🎧 Join the Control the Controllables team as a Podcast Intern in 2024

Today we welcome British doubles specialist and Grand Slam quarter-finalist turned coach and commentator, Colin Fleming.Colin reached a career high of 17 in the world in doubles, consistently reaching the main draws of Grand Slams. He represented GB in the Davis Cup and at the Olympics before turning his expertise to coaching, then commentating. He now covers some of the biggest tennis tournaments in the world for Eurosport, Sky Sports and the BBC.Colin has partnered some of the biggest names in British and world tennis, including both Jamie and Andy Murray, Ken Skupski, and Rohan Bopanna, and chats to Dan about life as a doubles specialist at the top level.They also discuss Tennis Scotland and the first Grand Slam of the year, the Australian Open 2024.Colin brings a wealth of stories, experience and laughs, as well as some more emotive stories as well, so this is an all round entertaining episode and a must-listen! Read full shownotes here.Help us Win Best Tennis Podcast!We´re so excited that Control the Controllables is a finalist at the Sports Podcast Awards! We´ve been nominated for Best Tennis & Racket Podcast and we´d love it if you could vote for us! Vote for us here (it only takes a couple of minutes) and spread the link around as much as you can! Thank you for all your support 🙏🏻

The first Grand Slam of 2024 is finally underway! We´ve brought our panel back together to preview everything we can expect from the Australian Open.Control the Controllables host Dan Kiernan is in Melbourne this year, and is joined by:-US Open Doubles Champion and top 10 WTA doubles player, Gaby DabrowskiDenmark´s Davis Cup Captain and 2012 Wimbledon Mens Doubles Champion Freddie Nielsen.GB Coach Calvin Betton who is currently working with Henry Pattern.They discuss the "popcorn-ready" match-ups, the dark horses to look out for and their picks for the titles, plus what they think will be the main storylines in tennis in 2024.We want to hear who you think will be this years Australian Open Champions!  Tag @ctc.podcast on Instagram or email us and let us know who you´re backing!Vote for us at the Sports Podcast Awards!We´ve been nominated again for Best Tennis and Racket Podcast at the Sports Podcast Awards, and we´d love it if you could help us win!You can vote here for Control the Controllables, it only takes a couple of minutes. Thanks so much for your support 🙏🏻

In today´s CTC Short we bring you a true stalwart of the tennis tour and someone who is calling time on his career after this year’s Australian Open- it´s former US Open quarter finalist and Episode 25 guest John Millman.Over the span of a 15 year professional tennis career, John Millman has established himself as one of the most consistent and hard-working players on the tour, being a constant in the top 100 ATP Rankings. In 2018 he reached a career high of 33 after a remarkable run to the quarter finals of the US Open, beating Roger Federer.We spoke to John in June 2020 and he went detail on the unseen side of tennis, describing the hard yards required to get to tennis’ top table, and how to stay there when you are playing the biggest names in the sport. In this clip, John also reflects on his career, going into detail on how his goals and his measure of success changed as he progressed further up the rankings and got older.John Millman is the embodiment of everything Control the Controllables stands for, working hard and maximising your potential, and his retirement is a fitting opportunity to reflect on al the lessons this podcast can teach! Read full shownotes here.Vote for us at the Sports Podcast Awards!We´d love it if you could help us win Best Tennis & Racket Podcast at the Sports Podcast Awards! We´re so excited to be a finalist at this years awards. You can vote for us here 🙏🏻Links Mentioned in this Episode:-#25: John Millman - The Journeyman...or is he? #130: Craig Tiley - Leading from the Front

As 2023 draws to a close, we´ve sat down to look back at some of our most memorable moments of the Control the Controllables Podcast this year.From Sir Andy Murray agreeing to be our Special Guest for our 200th episode, to winning Best Tennis Podcast at the Sports Podcast Awards, and having 6 Grand Slam Champions in one episode, we´ve had some very special moments this year.Listen to CTC Host Dan Kiernan and producer Vicki Kiernan chat through their favourite clips and biggest learnings of 2023 in our final episode of the year.Thank you so much for listening to the show and wishing you Happy New Year and all the best for 2024! 🎧 Join the Control the Controllables team as a Podcast Intern in 2024🗳️ Vote for us in the Sports Podcast Awards!

In our third CTC Short we have a clip from our 200th Episode with Sir Andy Murray.CTC Host Dan Kiernan spoke to Andy back in August 2023, and unsurprisingly, it is our most listened to episode to date.Andy gave us lots of takeaways, including how important he feels it is for aspiring players to watch full matches, and not just the highlights reel.In this clip, Andy explains how watching tennis helped him and how he wished he´d had time to do it more during his career.It´s one of many great learnings from Andy Murray´s chat with Dan. You can listen to the full episode here.Read full show notes.CTC is a Finalist at the Sports Podcast Awards!We´re so excited to announce that we´ve made the final shortlist in the category Best Tennis and Racket Podcast at the Sports Podcast Awards! The winner is voted for by the public, which makes it even more special. We we would be so grateful it if you could take a moment to vote for Control The Controllables here!As always, thank you so much for your support! 🌟

In today´s episode we welcome someone who´s been at the heart of tennis as the BBC’s Tennis Correspondent for over ten years, Russell Fuller.Russell has worked his way up through the ranks of tennis media, working for the BBC World Service presenting Sportsworld, before earning his big break commentating on his first Wimbledon Final in 2013, when Andy Murray defeated Novak Djokovic to become Champion for the first time. Russell has gone on to be the voice of British tennis’ greatest moments, including the Davis Cup win in 2015, and Emma Raducanu’s shock victory at the US Open in 2021.In this episode, Russell takes Dan behind the scenes of the top level of tennis journalism, revealing how tennis players interact with the media, as well as what the future could hold, as he lifts the lid on his latest article on Saudi Arabian influence in tennis.There is no one better to give you insight on some of our sport’s greatest moments than someone who has witnessed them first hand, so this is a great listen, but especially for those looking to get “under the bonnet” of tennis, as we do on Control the Controllables.Read full shownotes here. Enjoyed the episode? We´d love to hear from you! Leave us a rating and review here!You can also follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook for all the latest on Control the Controllables!Find Russell on Twitter here.

Welcome to the 2nd of our CTC Podcast Shorts. In this clip, we have former top-5 doubles and top-40 singles player turned US Davis Cup captain and coach Tom Gullikson.Tom appeared on Episode 110 of Control the Controllables in April 2021, and talked about playing in the Golden era of US tennis in the 70´s and 80´s.His twin brother Tim Gullikson was Pete Sampras´ coach before he passed away in 1996 to brain cancer. In this clip, Tom speaks about the influence Tim had on Sampras´ career and how he still impacts his own coaching philosophy now.Tom is a powerful speaker and an inspirational story-teller. This is a special listen.Read full shownotes here.

In today´s episode we welcome 2002 Australian Open Champion and former world number 7 Thomas Johansson!Thomas began his career in the heyday of Swedish tennis, preceded and surrounded by legends such as Bjorn Borg, Mats Wilander and Stefan Edberg. As a result, he went under the radar until his career defining run at the Australian Open in 2002. He beat 9th seed Marat Safin to become the first male player seeded 16th to win a major in the Open Era.He is one of only 7 players to win the Men´s title in Melbourne since 2000!Thomas has since gone on to have a fantastic career as a coach, working with top 10 tour level players like David Goffin and most recently Sorana Cirstea, who knocked out world number 4 Elena Rybakina at the 2023 US Open.Thomas gives us some great stories from his time at the top of the game, and explains why he thinks building a team was the most successful formula for Swedish tennis.Read full shownotes here.Links mentioned in this Episode:-Follow Thomas on Instagram | Twitter Thomas’ charities:https://www.tapprabarn.se/https://zbfoundation.se/ SotoTennis Academy

Welcome to an all new feature here at Control the Controllables, our Podcast Shorts. With these we’re bringing out all of the most entertaining, informative, heart-warming and hilarious moments from all of your favourite CTC episodes in bitesized chunks for you to enjoy. Whether you’ve been listening to CTC for years or if this is your first sample, Shorts are perfect for you to submerse yourself in the world of tennis and elite sport in short, manageable chunks, or whetting your appetite for more!In this first CTC Podcast Short, we join Dan with Episode 62 guest Valorie Kondos Field as she talks openly and honestly through the challenges of coaching and parenting in elite sport. Valorie was Head Gymnastics Coach at UCLA for 29 years, leading them to 7 National Championships despite having no experience in gymnastics.In this clip, Valorie talks frankly about being too hard on her athletes in the early stages of her coaching journey, and how important it is to make sure athletes enjoy their sport. She also gives her key pieces of advice for parents getting used to their child competing in elite sport.What better way to start our brand new series of shorts than with one of the most successful coaches in US college history giving key lessons for young coaches and parents on how to get it right when developing athletes! Read full show notes here.Links mentioned in this EpisodeListen to Valorie´s Full CTC Episode here.Valorie´s Tedtalk: Why winning doesn´t always equal successGet your Black Friday Discount to train at SotoTennis Academy HERE!