The Tennis Players Show

I got a chance to speak with Daniel Vallejo after his win over Pablo Carreño Busta, we spoke about his goals for the coming weeks and how he is feeling heading into the final few months of the season. He also gives advice to players who are trying to make it from a smaller country, like his native Paraguay. The 22 year old just reached a career high of 58 in the world.

Three of us in the media got a chance to speak with former world No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas on Day 1 of the Winston Salem Open. The questions are as follows: Do you feel like you're looking towards world No. 3? What do you hope to get out of the Winston Salem Open? You're going into your tenth US Open, can you give some thoughts to how that tournament has gone for you? If you were a coach, how would you approach working with a younger player? What changes have you made to hopefully turn the year around? Did those changes come internally? Do you have any thoughts about the city of Winston Salem? Tsitsipas continued on to lose to Aleks Kovacevic before making a run to the fourth round at the US Open, losing to Ben Shelton.

Chloe Hunt from World Tennis Magazine and I got a chance to talk with ATP world No. 34 Arthur Fery after his second round win over Cruz Hewitt. We discuss adjustments made, what he learned from practicing daily with players like Nishesh Basavareddy and Tristan Boyer, and his advice to younger players from the U.K.

I got a chance to chat with World No. 36 Ignacio Buse after his first round win over Adam Walton. We talk about his almost trip to college tennis, his fellow countrywoman Lucciana Perez's success and his advice to young players coming from Peru.

I got a chance to speak one-on-one with Martin Damm after his 7-5, 6-3 win over world No. 7 Daniil Medvedev. We discuss how past matches helped him to prepare for this one, and how confidence helped play a role in the win.

I got a chance to chat with Mees Rottgering after his first round win over world No. 70 Jan Choinski. We talk about his win, the progression he's made over the past few months and what the plan is moving forward (spoilers: he's taking things one day at a time, as he should.)

Chloe Hunt from World Tennis Magazine and I spoke with Cruz Hewitt briefly after his win over Sebastian Gorzny. We discuss the match as well as his upcoming match against Arthur Fery.

I had a chance to speak with Martin Damm after his win over Abdullah Shelbayh in the first round of the Winston Salem Open. He spoke about perseverance through adversity as well as his upcoming match with world No. 7 Danil Medvedev.

TCU's Cooper Woestendick joins the show from Fort Worth, where he is currently preparing for his junior season for the Horned Frogs. We discuss growing up in Kansas, spending a lot of time in Florida training at the USTA center, as well as his first two seasons playing in college, helping the team to a Championship appearance in his freshman year and a Final Four appearance in his sophomore season. Woestendick finished last year ranked No. 43 in the country with a 14-4 record in singles and 19-6 in doubles. He is also an Australian Open Boys doubles champion with partner Max Exsted (USC).

University of Oklahoma's Zoie Epps joins the show to discuss her transfer back home to Norman after playing three years at Louisiana Tech. Epps finished last season as the Conference USA Player of the Year, going 18-1 in dual matches, she also didn't drop a set for the final two and a half months of the 2025-2026 season. Epps also recorded the most singles wins of any DI women's player in the country during the 2024-25 season going 37-5. She now joins a University of Oklahoma team with National Championship aspirations.

University of Florida's Jana Hossam joins the show to discuss her transfer to Gainesville as well as her tennis journey, coming from Alexandria, Egypt to the states to play college tennis. Hossam played No. 1 last year for the USC Trojans where she finished the year ranked No. 25 in the country, earning All-American and All Big-Ten First Team honors, accumulating eight wins over top-100 ranked opponents, seven of which were ranked in the top 50. She now joins a Florida Gators team that has big aspirations this coming spring in their quest and a deep run in May.

Ole' Miss' Riley Crowder joins the show from the UTR PTT Summer Slam Finale in Tallahassee! We discuss her very successful freshman season for the Rebels as well as her experiences playing collegiate tennis in Oxford and her goals as she enters her sophomore season. Crowder went 23-6 last year for the team as a freshman, going 11-0 at the No. 4 spot.

Florida State's Azariah Rusher joins the show from the UTR PTT Summer Slam Tallahassee event at FSU. We discuss his evolution as a player and person, growing up in New Hampshire before traveling the world playing tennis and then moving to Delray Beach in Florida and deciding to play college tennis for the Seminoles. We also talk about his growth on social media where he interacts with other tennis players and promotes the sport on a bigger platform. Rusher played 3 and 4 last year for the Seminoles and is heading into his senior year.

University of Texas' Carmen Herea joined the show to discuss the 2025-2026 season, her summer playing pro tennis, and to tell some stories about her experiences representing her home country of Romania in the Billie Jean King Cup. Herea finished this past season ranked No. 3 in the country, while reaching a career high of No. 1 along the way. She went 24-8 playing #1 for the Longhorns and accumulated 14 ranked wins in that span, in addition to getting to the finals of the ITA All Americans and the quarterfinals of the NCAA Individual Championships this past fall.

Auburn's Bella Kruger joins the show from South Africa to talk about the coming season and her journey through the sport. Kruger will be making her debut this year for the Tigers after having to sit out last year. Kruger has a career high of WTA No. 330 and has represented South Africa in the Billie Jean King Cup.

Emily Appleton joins the show from the U.K., where she reached the final this past week in doubles at the W35 in Aldershot. We talk about her journey through the sport, playing junior Wimbledon at 14 years old, reaching No. 10 in the world as a junior, and her decision to turn pro instead of taking a scholarship to Vanderbilt. Appleton has a career high of No. 77 in the world in doubles, and has started to focus on singles more in recent months.

University of Georgia's Patricija Paukstyte joins the show to discuss her freshman year as a Bulldog. We discuss playing tennis in the SEC, hosting at the final site, and the culture shock of coming to America. Paukstyte finished the year ranked No. 6 in the country in doubles with partner Anastasiia Lopata with a 17-6 record at the No. 1 and No. 2 spots.

Jose Garcia joins the show to talk about his progression as a player on the mental side of the game, and his win at the PTT at home in Knoxville this past weekend. We also talk about finding balance in life, playing piano, how he prepares for matches, and how he handles adversity. Garcia (13.31) reached a career high No. 76 in the country this past season.

Wake Forest Men's Tennis Head Coach Tony Bresky joins the show to discuss his philosophy of recruiting in the new age of collegiate athletics, how he measures success and how rewarding coaching is to him. Bresky has won two National Championships as the head coach at Wake Forest and is coming off a season in which his team went 34-4 and made a run to the Final Four.

LSU Women's Tennis Head Coach Taylor Fogleman joins the show to discuss the evolution of the program and how he's evolved as a coach. We discuss how he sees the coaching calendar, what leadership means to him, his role in the development of his staff as they move towards their own goals, and what the most rewarding thing is about being a coach.