Having launched earlier this year, What’s The Call?, is a podcast that unpacks the biggest stories in tennis - and it’s already causing a stir in the upper echelons of the sport.
Hosted by Theodora Petalas, a sports and entertainment strategy consultant, and Andrea Jimenez, who is completing her PhD in psychology, the pair are lifelong tennis fans, but they may already have made an enemy on the courts.
In a recent episode recapping the Australian Open, Theodora and Andrea discuss the four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka and second-round match against Sorana Cîrstea. Petalas and Jimenez described Osaka’s on-court intensity and repeated shouts of “Come on!” as “annoying.”
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Osaka responded on social media, sparking discussion among tennis fans online about what is acceptable on-court - and speaking from the sidelines.
She wrote: “It makes me laugh when people who know nothing about tennis start a tennis podcast. How are grunts unsportsmanlike and make you uncomfortable? Watch another sport…who gave them the microphone anyway."
What’s The Call? addressed the backlash in their latest episode, urging listeners not to “take things too seriously”, and emphasising that the show is intended to be accessible and light-hearted. They remind people that they are not presenting themselves as experts, but rather as fans offering the kind of commentary typically heard off-broadcast.
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It’s not just Osaka who has taken notice of the show among the professional tennis community. Stephanos Tsitsipas, finalist in the 2023 edition of the competition, appeared on the show earlier this month - prior to Osaka’s pushback - while tennis content creator Liza West recapped a busy February for the show.
