\u2022 Happy Craig Tiley day:<\/p>\n
USTA appoints Craig Tiley as Chief Executive Officer.<\/p>\n
Globally recognized CEO of Tennis Australia to guide American tennis into its next era of growth and innovation.<\/p>\n
Read more: https:\/\/t.co\/9UFpUAbdtC<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/OMx3c4okBU<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 USTA (@usta) February 24, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n \u2022 Venus Williams is returning to Indian Wells<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2022 Tennis treasure Greg Sharko did a great job reporting from the NCAA event in Dallas last week<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2022 Here are some more details about Destanee Aiava\u2019s retirement, thanks to Takashi Williams.<\/a><\/p>\n Gambling in tennis<\/p>\n \u2022 A few of you have written recently about gambling issues you\u2019ve faced, including results you have found suspicious, bets that haven\u2019t been paid and disputes with sportsbooks. If there\u2019s a systemic issue or material evidence of corruption, I\u2019m happy to investigate. But mere suspicions or quirky results aren\u2019t enough. And I can\u2019t be customer service for DraftKings, FanDuel and the others.\u200b<\/p>\n One of the many harms of the gambling culture is that it erodes trust in the product. Any comeback is immediately deemed suspect. Any official\u2019s ruling inevitably leads to charges that they\u2019re on the take. The unpredictability of sports and the unexpected plot twists and quirks\u2014some of sports\u2019 great assets and sources of appeal\u2014are now seen through a prism of conspiracy. What a pity.<\/p>\n Full disclosure: I don\u2019t gamble on sports. I can\u2019t gamble on sports as a condition of receiving a credential. Should sports gambling be illegal? No. If people want to wager on uncertain events, that is an urge as old as human history and should be permitted. If people want to wager despite the odds being stacked against them and toward the house\/sportsbooks, that\u2019s their choice. Is sports gambling a public health crisis? Increasingly, yes. Does it threaten the integrity of competition? Increasingly, yes. Are sports and leagues slurping from the sportsbook\u2019s trough for short-term nourishment but long-term peril? Yes. Is tennis particularly vulnerable? Yes.<\/p>\n \u200bOne fundamental question I have for tennis bettors: What makes you think you have superior information? Put another way, do you really think you know more than anyone out there about a player\u2019s injury, mood, life circumstances, etc.? If the answer is no, you are putting yourself in a position to lose.<\/p>\n Q&A<\/p>\n \u2022 Jon, if your daughter played professional tennis on the WTA Tour, what\u2019s the one thing you would tell her?<\/p>\n James L., Las Vegas<\/p>\n Just one? Stay off social media. Another one? Seek mentorship from Jessica Pegula.<\/p>\n Seriously, I\u2019d say a version of this: You\u2019re the CEO. Don\u2019t let anyone else play the role of boss. Part ways with a coach who doesn\u2019t jibe with you. There is no such thing as a mandatory event\u2014don\u2019t play if you\u2019re not up to it. Respect your colleagues. Respect your fans. Respect the tour. Respect the media. But you have ultimate agency; run your career like a start-up you founded.<\/p>\n Karol\u00edna Muchov\u00e1 won the Qatar Open, defeating Victoria Mboko in the final. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images<\/p>\n Jon, I know you have touted Karol\u00edna Muchov\u00e1 in the past. I like watching her play but where do you see her career going now? Can she really win a major? Thanks.<\/p>\n Brett, Calif.<\/p>\n \u2022 Remember last week\u2019s discussion<\/a> about Frances Tiafoe and how personal and visceral fond feelings can cloud objective reality. I feel like there\u2019s a version of that going on here. The tennis salon really likes Muchov\u00e1, as we\u2014or it\u2014should. Here is a player with a versatile, all-court, all-surface game. (Remember, she came within a few games of beating Iga \u015awi\u0105tek to steal the 2023 Roland Garros title.) She has flair, athleticism and shotmaking. She\u2019s a veteran but still has some career runway. She has made deep runs at majors and even has a winning record<\/a> against the current world No. 1.<\/p>\n \u200bThen you look at her results, and it\u2019s sobering. She won the title in Doha last week, which is awesome. It also marked her second career title, with the first one being before the COVID-19 pandemic. She has advanced to the quarters or better at majors seven times, and yet she\u2019s only won two career titles? And while it\u2019s not her fault, she\u2019s failed to get through so many seasons without significant injury\u2014most seriously, a wrist injury, one of the worst injuries a tennis player can have.<\/p>\n \u200bThere\u2019s so much to like here. And if Muchov\u00e1 won a major, it would not at all be surprising. (She\u2019s been to the semifinals or better at every major except for Wimbledon, where she\u2019s been to multiple quarterfinals.) But if I were going to pick a likely breakthrough major winner, there are several other names (Amanda Anisimova, Elina Svitolina, Pegula, maybe Qinwen Zhang) higher on the list.<\/p>\n Hi Jon,<\/p>\n I\u2019m a longtime tennis fan and regular reader\/listener of your work. I\u2019m writing with a guest question and a concern I hope you might consider addressing.<\/p>\n Tickets went on sale yesterday for several of the August International Tennis Hall of Fame induction weekend events surrounding Roger Federer\u2019s induction. Events sold out within roughly two minutes. While I expected strong demand, the speed of the sellout suggests that very few tickets were available to the general public.<\/p>\n Like many fans, I logged in right at the start time and still had no realistic chance My question is broader than just my situation: As tennis grows and major moments like this draw global attention, are organizers doing enough to ensure fair public access to milestone events? And is there a better model for balancing sponsors, partners and insiders with dedicated fans who are willing to travel and support the sport?<\/p>\n I\u2019d appreciate any attention you might bring to this\u2014even just raising the question helps fans feel heard.<\/p>\n Thanks for all you do for tennis coverage and discussion each week.<\/p>\n Best regards, \u2022 A quick story: Last week, a friend wanted to take his wife to the Broadway show, Just in Time<\/a>. It\u2019s based on Bobby Darin, and stars Jonathan Groff of Hamilton fame. It received strong reviews and seemed like a fun night out.<\/p>\n \u200bThen said friend looked at the price of tickets. They were expensive. Like, prohibitively expensive. I\u2014did I say that? I meant my friend\u2014like Broadway as much as anyone. But to me, $800 for two tickets is not rational. I can\u2019t justify that, no matter how breathless the reviews are. But wait, this theater has a standing section, with tickets going for $40. You have to stand in line the morning of the performance, but that I can do. So, for $80, my wife and I stood a half-dozen rows back from the stage and, joined by other bargain hunters, watched the show. It was great. See it if possible.<\/p>\n \u200bAnyway, I kept thinking back to tennis. Why is it that this 750-seat theater on Broadway\u2014which hardly has the margins of the U.S. Open, much less the seating inventory\u2014can come up with a way to accommodate theater fans reluctant to pay through the nose? But tennis struggles so mightily?<\/p>\n \u200bIncreasingly, tennis fans feel priced out. Increasingly, I see matches played before pastures of empty seats. It\u2019s not an issue of supply and demand or market economics. (Note the unsold seats at Arthur Ashe Stadium, Stadium 1 at Indian Wells, etc.) It\u2019s a lack of will and creativity. Use an open-source dynamic pricing model, AI or consult Broadway. There must be a win-win here.<\/p>\n \u00a0I have been impressed by the Australian Open\u2019s website in the past, but what happened with the videos this year? No \u201cshot of the day\u201d, and the highlights weren\u2019t nearly as well curated\u2014for example, the final highlights were just three minutes, with only one shot from the impressive first set (and yet they included a shot that was randomly hit into the net). Especially combined with the increased difficulty in finding live matches, it\u2019s really made the tournament harder to appreciate \u2026<\/p>\n Kevin (Portland)<\/p>\n \u2022 My gripe was that it was hard to find interviews. But yes, we live in clip culture, and a paucity of videos does a disservice to fans, players and the event itself.<\/p>\n Jon,\u00a0<\/p>\n When did you start coaching Vanderbilt men\u2019s basketball?!? Where do you find the time?!? At any rate you\u2019re doing a great job there in Nashville. Go Dores!\u00a0<\/p>\n Paul R.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"Karol\u00edna](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/01kj8vtm8hm2s079ez4b.jpg\" "\\"Karol\u00edna")
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to secure tickets. It was surprisingly discouraging\u2014especially for an event meant to celebrate the sport\u2019s history with its fans.<\/p>\n
Dave E.<\/p>\n