Roger is officially part of the International Tennis Hall of Fame!

From now on, August 29th is Roger Federer International Day (at least for me)

Who said this? I did!

Mirka and Roger Federer’s speeches were emotional. That was expected. What surprised me is that none of them spoke about Roger’s tennis achievements. It made me realize how his legendary career was of course important to him but definitely not the most important. His family and being a great role model are on top on his list.

In today’s episode, I talk about:

-The art of detachment: how Roger managed to achieve his biggest tennis dreams while remaining detached especially after tough losses;

-How to pick the right team that will lead you to success: use the “Interview and Watch” strategy

I also shared my personal “Roger Hall of Fame moments” for each slam.

-US Open 2005 final: this is definitely my favorite because he was facing another legend, Andre Agassi in the final who at the time was 35 and still pushing the limits of greatness. That was before the Big 3 made 35 being the new 25… Funny anecdote: when I was in college, my coach made us watch the match so many times but we never got past the first set because he kept pausing it every two minutes. Still a great memory.

-Australian Open 2017 final: that legendary final against Rafa Nadal reached for me its climax at 4/3 in the third when Roger in full open stance hit that forehand winner down the line. I remember screaming “this is the same point Nadal won in 2009, this is fate, Roger is going to win!” And he did. I also missed a brunch reunion with some primary school friends because there was no way I was going to leave. Sorry guys, but I would do it all over again!

-French Open 2011 semi final: I was happy he won in 2009 but it was not a huge surprise after Rafa lost to Soderling because we all knew Roger wasn’t going to miss that chance, especially after surviving the matches against Haas and Delpo. To me, his most iconic moment at the French was beating Djoko who had not lost a match since the beginning of the season and was on a 42-winning streak. And him shaking his finger at the end, that s*ht was cold.

-Wimbledon 2009 final: we could feel the weight of history on his shoulders. Pistol Pete Sampras sitting in the royal box watching his until-then untouchable 14-grand slam record being broken. “I tried Pete”, Roddick said during the trophy ceremony. And boy he tried. 16-14 in the fifth. He deserved that one. But Roger had a date with History and he was not going to ghost it.

What is your favorite Roger Federer’s Hall of Fame moment?

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From the podcast The Players' Lounge:

#rogerfederer #RoadtoNewport #InternationalTennisHallofFame #Nadal #Djokovic

Venus Williams lost her first round match against Emiliana Arango at the Cincinnati Open.

14 Wild Cards. 14 losses.

And people are getting pissed off.

Many observers are saying that it’s time for Venus to retire and the same claims keep coming back:

-She’s too old and cannot compete;

-She’s stealing wild cards away from younger and more promising players

-It’s tarnishing her legacy.

And if we look at her 2026 0-14 record, it’s hard to argue against those arguments.

But is there more to the story?

Is Venus’ willingness to keep playing is sad?

Or is it an invitation for us to learn to push the threshold of our tolerance to “losing/ failing in the public eye”?

In this new episode of the Tennis Lounge podcast, I took a deeper look at Venus’s season and what lessons we can learn from it.

-Is Venus really no longer capable to compete against players in the top 100?

-What is the reason behind the Wild Cards she's receiving and why the might keep coming?

-What Venus Williams' willingness to keep playing is revealing about our relationship with loss/failure?

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Novak Djokovic is not “The Wolf in Winter”.

He is a shark and the undisputed GOAT at “Shark Empathy”.

Shark empathy is the ability to sense or feel your opponent’s mental weaknesses and doubts.

And over his career, he has demonstrated time and time again how shark empathy gave him the mental edge over his biggest rivals.

Shark empathy has 4 pillars that I share in this episode:

#1: Build a solid technical/tactical basis: what drills you need to focus on at practice to get ready for pressure times during your matches

#2: Break your opponent’s biggest weapon: why choosing to attack your opponent’s best shots/strength will give you an amazing the mental advantage

#3: Learn from Djokovic’s ability to channel your Inat: how can you learn to use negative emotions and turn it into motivation to win,

#4: Watch and listen to your opponent: the moment when you need to watch your opponent’s closely

Follow for more mental strategies and BTS about building a tennis career and you can also find the podcast on Instagram @tennisloungepodcast and Facebook!

Check out some of our previous episodes: