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📚 Featuring: My [Tennis] Work Book 📘 + My [Tennis] Black Book: Federer, Nadal, Serena, Djokovic 🖤
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🌟 Short Summary
Welcome to a massive US Open Special Edition! 🗽🎾 Dr. Ashley M. Berge comes to you live as Day 1 of the main draw kicks off! This episode is the ultimate “source of truth,” recapping the final tune-up tournaments and diving deep into the rankings and draws for the last Grand Slam of the year.
First, Dr. Berge wraps up the Cincinnati 1000 event, congratulating Iga Świątek 🏆 for her 7-5, 6-4 final victory over Jasmine Paolini and Carlos Alcaraz 🏆, who claimed the men’s title after an unfortunate retirement from Jannik Sinner. She also covers the final lead-up events, including Sorana Cîrstea’s 250 title in Cleveland and Diana Shnaider’s 500-level triumph in Monterrey.
The core of the episode is a meticulous “double rankings analysis” 📈📈. Dr. Berge first reviews the pre-Cincinnati rankings (week of Aug 11) and then unveils the NEW live rankings (week of Aug 18), showing the exact impact of the 1000-level event. Key moves include Iga Świątek reclaiming World #2, Amanda Anisimova surging +5 spots to World #4, Novak Djokovic jumping to World #4, Victoria Mboko skyrocketing +61 spots to World #24, and Naomi Osakaleaping +24 spots to World #25!
Finally, Dr. Berge provides a “source of truth” US Open Draw Breakdown, analyzing the paths for all 32 seeds, identifying blockbuster R1s like Tomljanović vs. Gauff and Muchová vs. Venus Williams, and highlighting the brutalpotential R3 clash between Rybakina and Raducanu.
🎙️ Detailed Episode Breakdown
[00:00:00] Welcome & Special Edition Intro
Dr. Ashley M. Berge kicks off the show, bypassing the usual preamble to dive straight into the action! ⚡️ This is a special overlap episode, wrapping up the pre-Slam tournaments just as Day 1 of the US Open begins.
- Book Check-In 📚: For followers of My [Tennis] Black Book, this week marks Week 4 of Block 8. Dr. Berge can’t believe how fast the season has flown! She reminds listeners that the Work Book 📘 is the essential daily tool for tracking your game, identifying strengths, weaknesses, and objectives. This is the exact process she uses with athletes, and it’s how you apply the principles from her 13 non-fiction books (like the What is Your Game Missing? series 🤔) to your game.
- Today’s Mission 🗺️:
- Wrap up the Cincinnati 1000 finals.
- Review the smaller tune-up events (Cleveland & Monterrey).
- Conduct a “double rankings analysis”: Pre-Cincy & Post-Cincy.
- Break down the US Open main draw, seeds, and key matchups!
[00:02:41] Final Tune-Up Tournament Results
Dr. Berge quickly recaps the finals of all the lead-up tournaments.
- Cincinnati 1000 (WTA) [00:02:51.580]: Iga Świątek def. Jasmine Paolini 7-5, 6-4! 🏆 A huge win for Iga, who reclaims the World #2 spot from Coco Gauff. Dr. Berge is excited to see the rankings align with her data trajectories.
- Cincinnati 1000 (ATP) [00:02:46.540]: Carlos Alcaraz def. Jannik Sinner 5-0, ret. 🏆 Sinner was unwell and had to retire.
- Cleveland 250 (WTA) [00:03:30.140]:
- Final: Sorana Cîrstea def. Ann Li 6-2, 6-4.
- Key upsets: (1) Samsonova lost to Cîrstea in the QF, and (2) Wang lost to Li in the SF.
- Monterrey 500 (WTA) [00:10:06.800]:
- Final: (3) Diana Shnaider def. (2) Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.
- Dr. Berge’s Analysis: A great win for Shnaider, who has recently teamed up with coach Sasha Bajan. Dr. Berge thinks this is a “really good pairing”.
- Seed Carnage! 💥 (1) Navarro lost R2, (4) Haddad Maia lost R2, (7) Fernandez lost R2.
- Winston-Salem 250 (ATP) [00:25:01.400]:
- Final: Márton Fucsovics def. Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3, 7-6.
- Seed Carnage! 💥 (1) Tsitsipas was stunned in R2 by Bu! (2) Griekspoor also fell in R2. Dr. Berge notes something is “not quite right” with Tsitsipas’s game, linking it to a breakdown in the 8 Keys 🔑. This is a prime example of what’s explored in The Secrets to Optimal Coaching Success.
[00:40:06] 📊 WTA Rankings Deep Dive (Pre- & Post-Cincinnati)
Dr. Berge breaks down the rankings from August 11 (pre-Cincy) and the new rankings from August 18 (post-Cincy) to show the exact impact of the 1000-level events.
WTA Rankings (as of Aug 11, 2025):
- (1) Sabalenka, (2) Gauff, (3) Świątek, (4) Pegula, (5) Andreeva, (6) Keys, (7) Zheng, (8) Paolini, (9) Anisimova, (10) Rybakina.
- (11) Navarro, (12) Badosa, (13) Svitolina, (14) Muchová, (15) Tauson, (16) Alexandrova, (17) Kasatkina, (18) Haddad Maia, (19) Bencic, (20) Shnaider.
- Movers: Mboko (+61 to 24!), Osaka (+24 to 25!).
NEW WTA Rankings (as of Aug 18, 2025):
- Big Risers ⬆️:
- Victoria Mboko: Holds steady at #23 (Career High!).
- Naomi Osaka: Up +1 to #24 (Career High post-maternity!).
- Barbora Krejčíková: +19 to #61!.
- Markéta Vondroušová: +24 to #36!.
- Big Fallers ⬇️:
- Emma Navarro: -7 to #18! (A tough hit after a R2 loss).
- Paula Badosa: -4 to #16.
- Top 10 Analysis 💥:
- (1) Aryna Sabalenka (Steady, but her lead narrows).
- (2) Iga Świątek (+1) (Title win 🏆 puts her back at #2!).
- (3) Coco Gauff (-1) (Drops to #3).
- (4) Amanda Anisimova (+5) 🚀 (Jumps into the Top 4!)
- (5) Jessica Pegula (-1) (Slips one spot).
- (6) Madison Keys (Steady).
- (7) Zheng Qinwen (Steady).
- (8) Jasmine Paolini (+1) (Finalist run boosts her).
- (9) Mira Andreeva (-1) (Slips one spot).
- (10) Elena Rybakina (Steady).
- Race for #1 🏁: Dr. Berge notes that while Sabalenka is #1, she has a ton of points to defend from her strong 2024 finish. Świątek, who had time off, has fewer points to defend. The race is on!
[00:41:40] 🗽 WTA US Open Draw Preview! 🗽
Dr. Berge dives into the draw, highlighting the blockbuster matchups and potential paths.
- Top Quarter (Sabalenka’s):
- (1) Sabalenka has a clean path to R3, where she’ll likely face (27) Fernandez.
- MATCH OF THE DRAW! 🍿 (9) Rybakina vs. Emma Raducanu in ROUND 1! 😱 Dr. Berge is 50/50 on this, as both are playing incredibly well. The winner likely faces (17) Navarro in R3. Correction: The transcript says Navarro plays (32) Yastremska, but R1 is vs. Wang.
- Second Quarter (Anisimova’s):
- (4) Anisimova has a smooth-looking draw.
- (18) Haddad Maia faces (WC) Kartel.
- (16) Svitolina vs. (WC) Bondár.
- Potential R16: (4) Anisimova vs. (16) Svitolina!
- Third Quarter (Gauff’s):
- (6) Keys (AUS Open Champ) has a good draw.
- R1 to Watch: (11) Muchová vs. (WC) Venus Williams! 🤩.
- (15) Kasatkina vs. Rus.
- (23) Osaka vs. Baptiste. Potential R3: Osaka vs. Kasatkina!.
- (3) Gauff vs. Tomljanović! Dr. Berge notes this is tough for Coco, as Tomljanović is the player who beat Serena in her final match.
- Bottom Quarter (Świątek’s):
- (7) Paolini vs. Aiava (Q).
- (26) Krejčíková vs. (WC) Victoria Mboko! A brutal R1 for the new Montreal champ!.
- (20) Alexandrova vs. Sevastova.
- (2) Iga Świątek vs. Arango.
- Dr. Berge’s Analysis: This quarter is STACKED! 🤯 Świątek has a potential R3 vs. (25) Kalinskaya(who pushed her in Cincy), R16 vs. (20) Alexandrova, and a QF vs. (4) Anisimova (a Wimbledon final rematch!).
[00:55:03] 📊 ATP Rankings Deep Dive (Pre- & Post-Cincinnati)
ATP Rankings (as of Aug 11, 2025):
- (1) Sinner, (2) Alcaraz, (3) Zverev, (4) Fritz, (5) Draper, (6) Djokovic, (7) Shelton, (8) De Minaur, (9) Musetti, (10) Khachanov.
NEW ATP Rankings (as of Aug 18, 2025):
- Big Risers ⬆️:
- Térence Atmane (Q): +67 spots to #69! (Cincy SF).
- Sebastian Korda: +41 to #86! (Finally healthy and climbing).
- Jenson Brooksby: +10 to #91.
- Big Fallers ⬇️:
- Alexei Popyrin: -18 to #37! (Failing to defend his Montreal title is a “big hit”).
- Top 10 Analysis 💥:
- (1) Jannik Sinner (Steady, but lead is vanishing!).
- (2) Carlos Alcaraz (Cincy title 🏆 closes the gap to <1000 points).
- (3) Alexander Zverev (Steady).
- (4) Novak Djokovic (+3) 🚀 (Jumps Draper, Fritz, Shelton!).
- (5) Taylor Fritz (-1).
- (6) Ben Shelton (+1).
- (7) Jack Draper (-2) (Loses Montreal SF points).
- (8) Alex de Minaur (Steady).
- (9) Lorenzo Musetti (Steady).
- (10) Karen Khachanov (Steady).
- The Race for #1 🏎️: Sinner is defending 2000 points as US Open champ. Alcaraz is defending almost nothing(R2 loss last year). Dr. Berge states Alcaraz is now the favorite to reclaim the #1 ranking after the US Open.
[00:55:27] 🗽 ATP US Open Draw Preview! 🗽
- Top Quarter (Sinner’s):
- (1) Sinner vs. Kopriva.
- BRUTAL R2 🚨: (1) Sinner vs. (defending Montreal champ) Alexei Popyrin!
- (13) Paul vs. (WC) Mmoh.
- (8) Musetti vs. Mpetshi Perricard.
- Second Quarter (Zverev’s):
- (3) Zverev vs. Tabilo.
- (6) Draper vs. Gomez. Dr. Berge questions if he’s healthy after his R1 retirement in Cincy.
- (10) Khachanov vs. (WC) Basavareddy.
- (7) De Minaur vs. O’Connell.
- Third Quarter (Fritz’s):
- (5) Fritz vs. (Q) Narvaez.
- (11) Ruud vs. Ofner.
- R1 REMATCH 🍿: (12) Medvedev vs. Bonzi! (Bonzi won at Wimbledon!).
- (4) Shelton (Cincy Champ) vs. Bu.
- Bottom Quarter (Alcaraz’s):
- (9) Rublev vs. (WC) Tien.
- (16) Mensik vs. Jarry.
- (10) Tiafoe vs. Nishioka.
- (6) Rune vs. Van de Zandschulp.
- (2) Alcaraz vs. Opelka! A “not easy” R1 against a massive server.
[01:06:04] Conclusion
Dr. Berge wraps up this huge preview! The draws are set, the data is tracking, and the last Grand Slam of 2025 is here! She’ll be back in a few days with a special edition to cover all the R1 and R2 action.
“Thank you so much for listening. I am so incredibly grateful. I’m your host, Dr. Ashley Morgan Berge, and this is Beyond Top 10 Tennis.”
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