All Articles
Dr. Martita Està in Casa
Spanish player Martita Ortega—known as La Doctora on the professional pàdel circuit for her dazzling game as well as her active medical practice—is a breakout star in the PPL. Her on-court prowess has taken her to the heights of the game: in 2019, Martita became the youngest player ever to achieve a number-one world ranking, and her high-energy pàdel play has netted her more than 10 international titles. Racquet sat down with the Madrileño at the beginning and end of the PPL season to find out more.
Postcard from SoHo: The Wall Always Wins
At Wilson’s SoHo flagship, …Anyone for Tennis? hosted Off the Wall, a panel bringing together fashion, media, and music to reframe tennis as a shared language of culture and play.
A Riot of Colour with Agnès Ricart
Agnès Ricart is a multimedia artist from Spain who—close Racquet readers will confirm—has been a staple in our visual vocabulary for the better part of a decade. Alongside classic Racquet illustrations such as Medvedev flipping the bird at the collected crowd at the US Open, Naomi Osaka's masked protest during COVID and even a protester using a tennis racquet to clear a cannister of tear gas. Her work is vivid and cheeky, and can be seen across the world from The Guardian to Die Ziet to the Economist. We asked her to bring to life an ode to the tennis ball in our latest issue, and to sit down for a Q&A about her artistic practice.
From the Trenches of the World’s Most Obscure Racquet Sport
Stické tennis was invented in the 1870s in England, i’s a hodge-podge of tennis, squash, and real tennis. The game disappeared after the First World War. Just two courts are still playable. Yes, stické is the world’s most obscure racquet sport.
Racquet Retreat at Sensei Had us Breathing Easier
During this year's Indian Wells tournament, we launched a first-ever restorative trip for our nearest and dearest at the exclusive Porupine Creek property, and the results were... relaxing.
Jannik Sinner Can’t Lose (Except at Content)
When Aryna Sabalenka’s on-court intensity translates into campy, self-congratulatory TikToks, harmony is felt and sense is made. But Jannik’s on-court persona, tightly controlled like an unseasoned chicken breast, respectfully, need not be repackaged for YouTube. Because where is the flavor?!?
Issue No. 28: Tennis is the Blueprint
“To create one’s own world takes courage.” —Georgia O’Keefe
The Disappearing American College Tennis Player
These days, American college tennis is barely that: American
The Elegant Order of the Court
Sure, game-play conditions may vary, and a maintained court is more enticing for actual play, but as purely aesthetic fascinations, the inherently satisfying rationality of court design endures.
The Morte d’Arthur Was Greatly Exaggerated
Frenchman Arthur Fils—the charisma bomb—is back and looking better than ever.
An Open Letter To Daniil Medvedev: Are You “So Back?”
Racquet’s See You In Court is a regular column in which Melissa Kenny, a famously mediocre lifelong player, opines on pro tennis. She also writes Hard Hitting, a Substack about the thrills and frustrations of recreational tennis.
Dispatches from the Desert
Our Managing Editor Wendy Laird is on the grounds and has Dispatches from the Desert coming in on a regular basis: Today the BNP Paribas Open is over. Long live the BNP Paribas Open.
