PODCAST · sports
Outside the Lines
by Bob Schewior
Tennis commentary on all aspects of the game from pros to club players
Episodes
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US Open 2024: Lessons from the commentators
Commentators are often given carte blanche with their comments. We go deep inside what they're really saying (or not!). The Coco Gauff loss to Emma Navarro serves as the main focus of this episode.
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Self Evaluation
The ability to self-evaluate is valuable in tennis. Yet in psychology, we learn this this is nearly impossible. What's the answer?
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Roland Garros 2024 Recap
We review the performances of Nadal, Osaka, Swiatek, Djokovic, Gauff, Sinner, Zverev, and Alcaraz and how they provide valuable lessons for club players.
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How Many Coaches For an Aspiring Club Player?
Players on the Tour typically have one coach. Sometimes, a second coach is added, but they always work as a team. We explore the possible loss of efficiency of having multiple coaches. In particular, having many voices may cause uncertainty.
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Opponent Awareness 1
Who is the Most Important Person on the court? The standard answer is: I am. We explore the often neglected ability to dissect an opponent.
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AO 2024 Recap
Tournament results, Osaka, Gauff, Sabalenka, Sinner and Djokovic. Also a new metric for analyzing your own game: "conversions" and "steals."
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What's Cookin'? (with your Feel)
Food has Texture; shots have Feel. We talk about this significant but often overlooked part of playing good tennis.
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Playing With Freedom
Playing with Freedom. We systematically deconstruct the rewards to playing either Scared or Confidently under the umbrella of a player's role as Underdog or Favorite. It ends up that playing Scared is ok if Winning is the only thing that matters to you. However, if you'd like to improve your game...
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US Open Recap 2023
We dissect several of the most notable matches with a focus on adaptability. Surprisingly, the top players frequently don't display this quality. The match-fixing scandal revealed in the Washington Post on 9/7 is also discussed.
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How to Use Your Off-season
The summer season has concluded for most players unless they are heading to Sectionals or Nationals. There is a 6–8-week window without competitive pressure. This is an ideal time to make either a technical change or add a new tactic to your game. The pros have a similar window in...
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Wimbledon Recap 2023
We review some key matches in this year's Wimbledon devoting a lot of attention to the Alcaraz-Djokovic men's final. Other players highlighted include: Hurkacz, Svitolina, Swiatek, Eubanks, and Medvedev.
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Chestnut Ridge Pro Shootout Preview
Chestnut Ridge is proud to host their Pro Shootout from 7/21-7/23. Featuring both singles and doubles competition in a standard tournament format, many top college players and local pros are taking part. The event is also being live-streamed. For a link go to www.chestnutridgetennis.com.
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The 5 Biggest Things That You Don't Want to be Thinking in a Match
Outside the Lines takes a fun look at some of the thoughts that can be detrimental to performance. We conclude with the biggest thought/question of all: Why am I here?
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Roland Garros 2023
We go Outside the Lines to comment on this year's Slam. Topics include Djokovic, Karolina Muchova, and Swiatek. We broaden the discussion to talk about other top players who are "treading water", i.e. they have not made any changes in the last 1-2 years. Tennis demands change.
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Making Mid-match Corrections: A Conversation with a 3.5 female player
Our subjects and discussions are usually generated by the two of us. Here, we have a conversation with Lisa Lubart, a 3.5 player and address some of her concerns when playing a match.
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The Big 5: What are the Top 5 Concepts for Improving Your Tennis?
What are the Top 5 concepts which link tennis together. Bob and Scott, independently, came up with their list: 1) Balance; 2) Split step; 3) Relaxing (staying loose); 4) Make a plan (use targets); 5) See the blur (match up to the racquet)
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How We Learned Tennis and What It Suggests for Aspiring Players
Both of us were essentially self-taught until 13 with only a few lessons thereafter. Seeing the pros in action and imitating what we saw was crucial for our development. In addition, both strategies and tactics were demanded from us at a young age in order to succeed. This has made our...
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FEAR: What are we afraid of in a tennis match?
We establish that fear is a part of the human condition based upon our genetic predisposition. We have inherited fear from the beginning of human time because it was a form of protection in a dangerous world: the sabre-toothed tiger. Tennis is a symbolic fight which, while it is not life...
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How to Finish a Match
Unlike the start of a match, the finish of a match can occur under varying scenarios. We define the finish of a match to be any time that either you or your opponent is within 8 points of victory. You may either be leading or trailing at this time. And, your lead or deficit may be either large or...
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How to Begin a Match
We emphasize two key points on How to Begin a Match: 1) Preparation begins days earlier than the match by learning how to set the correct expectations for yourself; and 2) consistency counts at the start, but even more important is accessing the correct gear of your shots. Invest in your ability…
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Mixed Doubles: How to Play the Game
Mixed doubles often has a large gap in power and speed between both the partners and the opponents on the court. Whether it's 9.0, 8.0, or 7.0, certain changes from same-gender doubles need to be implemented. We discuss the timing and use of alternative formations to give yourself the best chance...
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Getting to Know Bob and Scott: Stories from Their Matches
Every tennis player has matches which they recall as pivotal in their careers. Some are simply noteworthy achievements; others are potentially life-changing when viewed through the rearview mirror of time. Bob and Scott each share 3 or 4 matches from their careers that were responsible for…
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2022 US Open Recap
We review the highlights and low points of this year's Open with an emphasis on the things that were done well (like playing exceptional tennis!). The ungodly hour involved in many of the matches is discussed from the point of view of players, fans, and sponsors.
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2022 US Open Update through Day 4
We examine both men's and women's draws with an emphasis on placing results within the context of some themes from previous Outside the Lines podcasts. Serena is a significant part of our discussion.
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Atlantic Cup Men's 55 and Over team competition - New England Interviews
The Atlantic Cup is a team competition in the Men's 55 and Over division between the Eastern, New England, Middle States, and Middle Atlantic Sections. Each section was represented by 3 or 4 players who shared their most memorable and/or best tennis experiences.
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The Atlantic Cup Men's 55 and Over - Eastern Section Interviews
The Atlantic Cup is a team competition in the Men's 55 and Over division between the Eastern, New England, Middle States, and Middle Atlantic Sections. Each section was represented by 3 or 4 players who shared their most memorable and/or best tennis experiences.
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Atlantic Cup Men's 55 Team Competition - Middle States Interviews
The Atlantic Cup is a team competition in the Men's 55 and Over division between the Eastern, New England, Middle States, and Middle Atlantic Sections. Each section was represented by 3 or 4 players who shared their most memorable and/or best tennis experiences.
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How to Deal with Match Nerves ... and Related Topics
Nerves enter tennis matches at all levels of play. Outside the Lines gives an overview of the subject and concrete steps that players can make in their preparation and oncourt execution.
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Behind the Scenes: The ATA (American Tennis Association) and its role in developing Black players - Art Carrington, guest
Outside the Lines is honored to have Art Carrington as our guest. Our topic is the history of Black achievement in tennis with an emphasis on the time before and coincident with Arthur Ashe. Art’s personal stories are a substantial contribution to understanding the context of Black achievement.
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Wimbledon Recap 2022
We discuss diversity at Wimbledon, debate if Nick Kyrgios has a fear of failure or a fear of success, and we review key matches in the women's singles and doubles from the semis and finals.
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Wimbledon Update 2022
We discuss matches from the first week of play. Players include Nick Kyrgios, Serena Williams, Emma Raducanu, and Hubert Hurkacz, among others.
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French Open Recap 2022
We discuss all of the key matchups including Coco Gauff's first Slam final and Rafa's matchups with Djokovic, Zverev, and Rune. We also discuss the upcoming ban on Russian players at Wimbledon.
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French Open Update 2022
We highlight some of the week's top matches as well as preview a couple of likely meeting in week 2. Players discussed include: Swiatek, Zheng, Fernandez, Bencic, Nadal, Korda, Alcaraz, Djokovic, and Tsitsipas, among others.
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Intangibles in Tennis: What are They and How to Use Them
Intangibles are any qualities that impact a match that cannot be quantified with statistics. We contrast the statistical analysis of Carlos Alcaraz' strokes on Bob's Deconstructing Tennis website with the intangibles of attitude, effort, and communication. Concrete examples of how to better use...
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Sportsmanship, Line Calls, and the Rules of Tennis
After a short discussion of some recent events on the Pro Tour (Zverev smashing his racquet on the umpire's chair, Osaka's reaction to being heckled, and what constitutes permissible cheering), we go on to discuss sportsmanship in tennis and offer some concrete ways of dealing with opponents who...
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Player Interviews - Chestnut Ridge Pro Shootout 2/19/22 - Part 2
Chestnut Ridge hosted a high-level doubles tournament on Saturday 2/19. All players either held ITF junior rankings or played on the ATP Futures or Challenger Tours. Ten teams were divided into 2 groups of 5 and competed against each of the other 4 teams within their group in a one set no-ad...
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Player Interviews - Chestnut Ridge Pro Doubles Shootout 2/19/22 - Part 1
Chestnut Ridge hosted a high-level doubles tournament on Saturday 2/19. All players either held ITF junior rankings or played on the ATP Futures or Challenger Tours. Ten teams were divided into 2 groups of 5 and competed against each of the other 4 teams within their group in a one set no-ad...
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Aussie Open Recap
Bob and Scott are joined by colleague and fellow Westchester and Connecticut pro, Tom Carey to share their insights on several of the finals: Medvedev vs. Nadal, Barty vs. Collins, and Krygios/Kokkinakis vs. Purcell/Ebden. It seems that top pros are often guilty of the same mental errors that...
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Aussie Open Week 1 Review
We review several matches from week #1 of the 2022 Australian Open with the idea of making the matches relevant to club players. Players discussed include Rafa Nadal, Ash Barty, Matteo Berrettini, Gael Monfils, Dennis Shapovalov, Corey Gauff, Sloane Stephens, and Emma Raducanu among others.
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Tennis, TennisChannel, and the Capitol insurrection
Sinclair Broadcasting Group owns 193 television stations in the United States, mostly in the South and the Midwest. They are also the owners of TennisChannel. After Fox News and Facebook, Sinclair is the largest perpetrator of The Big Lie: the completely unsubstantiated claim that Donald Trump…
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Doubles Game Plan - Part 2
In this episode, Doubles Game Plan - Part 2, we review, in brief, the key points of How to Make a Game plan in Doubles while going into more detail concerning apparent contradictions between our points of view. We discover that there are not really any contradictions - merely a selective…
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King Richard: A Review
HBO Max is now airing King Richard, a movie about the process of developing the Williams sisters into tennis stars. It covers them from the ages of 10 to 15. The film's title is based upon the role of their father, Richard Williams, in making his dream of raising tennis stars come true. Richard…
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How to Make a Game Plan - Doubles
Doubles is much more complex than singles. At a basic level, there is simply more of a possibility of finding a weakness in doubles opponents since each player has a fh, bh, serve, oh, and fh and bh volleys. Sharing information with your partner at the end of the warmup is crucial for getting a...
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How to Make a Game Plan - Singles
Making a Game Plan is one of the black holes of improving in tennis. In this episode, we discuss the three main elements of making an effective plan: 1) Know thyself. You should not be attempting to make shots which you don't own (or mostly own); 2) Evaluate your opponent. Assess their physical...
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Losing a Match: What are the Takeaways?
Competitive tennis players almost always feel emotional pain after losing a match. This is because "hating to lose" is an important psychological component of being a successful competitor. But losing also offers a chance for a player to look at what happened and set an agenda for where they'd…
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Getting the Most Out of Your Indoor Season
For competitive recreational players, the spring/summer is typically the busiest match time. This means that the indoor season from now through the end of March/April is the best time to add something new to your game. A coach can help you to prioritize your goals for this crucial development…
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US Open Recap
We recap, using statistical data, both the women's final (Fernandez vs. Raducanu) and the men's final (Djokovic vs. Medvedev). In both cases, we take a look at first serve percentage as a key factor in determining the outcome of the match. A key concept is developed: the counterfactual. This asks...
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US Open Update II
We review several of the top matches of the second week including in depth analysis of Leylah Fernandez and and Alexander Zverev. We also take a look at several of the top announcers on ESPN and give our thoughts on what they add to the Open experience. We finish up with our predictions for the...
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US Open Update I
Several keys matches (Osaka vs. Fernandez, Alcaraz vs. Tsitsipas, Nishikori vs. McDonald) are discussed along with the low vaccination rates of players and the bathroom break controversy. Statistics from SlamTracker are used to supplement our understanding of what happened in these matches.
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US Open Preview
We check in with the big questions first: what about the absences of Serena, Rafa, and Fed? And, of course, will Novak Djokovic capture the Grand Slam? We highlight a couple of interesting first round matches and discuss how fans/spectators can learn from watching more tennis during a Slam.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Outside the Lines have?
Outside the Lines currently has 55 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Outside the Lines about?
Tennis commentary on all aspects of the game from pros to club players
How often does Outside the Lines release new episodes?
Outside the Lines has 55 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Outside the Lines?
You can listen to Outside the Lines on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Outside the Lines?
Outside the Lines is created and hosted by Bob Schewior.
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