The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast

Dyan Castillejo and I met over 10 years ago covering the prizefighter Manny Pacquiao's career all around the globe, but it was in 2014 I saw her hitting some balls with her son in the parking lot of The Wild Card Gym in Hollywood- Manny's training camp in the US. It was then I realized that she had lived a special life in tennis. She is the first Filipino woman to have attained a WTA ranking. With the emergence of Alex Eala I thought there was no one better to learn about that unique and exciting situation, and Dyan didn't disappoint. Recorded 4.1 Released 4.2 The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast is Coming to Rome

Mats Wilander had 4 majors before his 21st birthday, and finished an illustrious career with 33 tournament victories, 7 major titles, the year end #1 in 1988, 3 Davis Cups, and we had a world class chat from the VIP Patio at The Arizona Tennis Classic, the coolest tennis tournament in the Americas. Mats and I covered Fonseca, Alcaraz, Nishikori, the Sinner debacle, Colton Smith, and a whole lot more. Recorded 3.15, released 3.16The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast is Going To Rome

Dr Zach Thomas and I got back onto the mic to discuss all the things we need to know about our feet. Orthotic, ankle braces, and of course, the shoes. We played the hits as well as the more obscure one hit wonders, the sublime to the ridiculous. He recently dissected a pair of Rafa's actual; shoes and we discussed it all. Recorded 2.14 Released 2.17The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast is Going To RomeDiadora Powers The Podcast

The comedian and former world #864 Michael Kosta and I met in Paris a couple years ago, and courtesy of Tennis Channel sat court side on Philippe Chatrier one evening. Two years after our chance meeting he is one of the hosts of The Daily Show and has a memoir entitled Lucky Loser rolling out next month. We ran thru the 5 set format and we talked in length about his significant and fascinating life in tennis and how he pivoted from grinding on the tour to becoming a comedian. We talked about his time at Illinois, turning pro, and then making the U-turn into comedy. Michael was extremely forthcoming with his experience and there are a lot of lessons imparted. I really enjoyed this Shapsterclass. Recorded and Released 2.10.25Diadora powers the show. Learn more about Michael Kosta hereThe Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast is Going To Rome

He's been a player, a coach, a Davis Cup Captain and has the distinction of organizing arguably the biggest exhibition tennis event in history. John Laffnie De Jaeger cheated death when he was born and has gone on to have an incredible life in tennis. We discussed the Australian Open, in particular the behind the scenes happenings that have made the event elite. We talked about the level of the tennis we've seen, and we discussed his origin story. John explained the challenges of being a South African player, and really painted a picture of what South African tennis was like in it's heyday. John explained what it was like to win The Huggy Bear, and told us a great story about sorting out the Match For Africa, when Roger played Rafa in a massive rugby stadium. Recorded 1.20 Released 1.22The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast is Powered By The Golden TicketDiadora is The Official Shoe of The Show

We sat down with the Tunisian Davis Cupper Aziz Dougaz in the lounge at The NTC, a couple days after he lost his 1st round match against Yoshihito Nishioka, and the Tunisian world #219 did not disappoint. The 27 year old former FSU player came thru qualies and played in his first main draw major, his elbow taped up, and was literally waiting for his winnings to hit his bank account as we were talking. but that is just the beginning. We discussed his path to this moment, from Tunisia to Morocco to France and then to Tallahassee. We discussed the lack of support he has gotten, and how the scales are tipped against players that do not have vigorous federations, as well as why he has an optimistic view of his prospects for the future. Recorded 1.16 Released 1.18 The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast is Powered By Diadora and The Golden Ticket