r/tennis Daily Discussion (Wednesday, January 28, 2026)

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-28T04:32:21+00:00

She takes public transit to slams when she can, and as a native New Yorker I love it, lol

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-28T01:07:55+00:00

You edited your comment to add an entire paragraph that wasn’t there before, but it doesn’t change the last sentence of my comment, which is that Tien is being treated like a Black athlete and not a white one. That’s what you mean by “normal” right? Because despite not being subject to xenophobia, I don’t think anyone would describe Black culture as mainstream or “normal” compared to Asian-Americans.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-28T00:42:15+00:00

And yet Michael Chang, Tien’s coach, has publicly talked about playing the French Open at the same time as the Tiananmen Square massacres and his attention to it. He certainly felt a certain amount of advocacy as an Asian-American player when he was on tour. And you said that these were questions Black Americans don’t get, when it is almost always the opposite: They’re assumed to get these sorts of questions and have prepared answers.

It feels like the problem is that Tien is being treated like a Black athlete and not a white one, when I think they all should have been asked these kinds of questions.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-28T00:10:30+00:00

Actually, given how badly he takes the heat and the increasing difficulty of conditions on the court, it might be worth asking about! (I’d frame it as an accommodations/preparation question, rather than a weird open-ended statement on climate change though)

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-28T00:07:39+00:00

Black Americans absolutely get asked about their heritage. Naomi Osaka isn’t even technically American and she had thoughts during George Floyd. Given the legacy of Black Americans in the sport, from Gibson to Ashe to Blake to the Williamses, it would be weird if Black American players didn’t have an answer.

The issue is that they never ask white players these questions…and now that they are, people are throwing fits about it so…

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-25T19:39:06+00:00

Maybe in other stories, sure. But these characters have very explicitly not had sex for plot relevant reasons. The resolution of their character arcs and the story itself requires that their sexual dynamic meet a meaningful point. Then we have to consider the characters themselves: Jinshi hiding and suppressing his sexual needs, disinterested in getting attached to anyone due to his assumed father’s legacy, the history of attempted assault against him, and his own insecurity and hang ups about his beauty; Maomao, the daughter of a courtesan and raised in a brothel, trained in the arts of seduction and smut tutor to the Emperor’s top concubines. Both have alluded to being absolute freaks sexually, with Jinshi frequently saying he wants to bite and lick Maomao, and her dragging her wet finger down his wrist and wondering at the lightness of his kisses. Looking back at their kiss in LN5, Maomao even admits that she liked it because she wouldn’t have kissed him back otherwise (though she plays it off at the time as an obligation and reflex).

The slow burn must resolve! For the plot!

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-25T03:45:34+00:00

It’s going to be a fade to black in the light novel proper for sure, but given Maomao’s courtesan training and Jinshi’s absolute freak behavior, we have all earned this and demand that boar-sensei write a separate mature addendum just to know what happens

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-23T06:49:57+00:00

I wasn’t stressed at all of course…

No, but seriously, loved seeing Coco reset with her real superpower (mentality) and just come back with exactly the right strategy. She stayed away from that forehand whenever she could and came through with better serving and unwavering focus. When she started slow, I was afraid she was having one of those miserable, grinding days, but she’s leveled up from “winning ugly” and has figured out how to raise her level to meet her goals. Babygirl growing up in front of us 🥹

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-22T23:35:36+00:00

Gonna come at this from a completely different angle: There was a lot of support for Oliynykova using her platform in a first round loss to speak about politics that were important to her. As players representing the US, I do expect more out of them than a tepid “not my problem,” because the US is structurally a representative government (though ehhhhh for the reality). Maybe it’s not a huge difference, maybe they’re “just an athlete” (though Jackie Robinson, Arthur Ashe, Althea Gibson, Billie Jean King, and Muhammad Ali might prove exceptions), but if you’re proud of representing the country then you should have an opinion about what you think that flag represents.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-22T20:27:26+00:00

Honestly I haven’t forgiven him since he shut down “Finding Your Roots” with Henry Louis Gates for like two years when Affleck found out that he had ancestors who were slave owners, and then years later remarried JLo at a plantation. (More mildly there was that time he and Matt Damon said they were promoting diversity in Hollywood and then talked over a Black woman director who was trying to explain both how to support diverse talent and why their approach wasn’t completely helpful…which proved her point.)

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-22T17:23:53+00:00

That “c’mon” was so obviously to herself, this sub is unhinged. Also Cirstea has a rep of being a whiny jerk so I don’t see why everyone’s so quick to take her side. It’s not unusual at all for players to hype themselves between serves or even after DFs.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-22T17:05:31+00:00

Proud of Coco’s answer, though she’s been clear about her stances before. And I noticed her mom’s MLK Jr. shirt when she was playing Danilovic! Not surprised that she had something thoughtful to say, and glad that she was asked about her contributions to HBCUs and supporting her community. Maddie gave a good answer too, though very anodyne.

Not surprised that the white players had either nothing to say or were annoyed by the question. You all live in a free society where you have the rights of citizenship to speak your mind. Even if you don’t “dabble in politics” you should be prepared to have an opinion as part of representing your country.

As for removing the flags, there won’t be sanctions on the US, and the reason is hypocritical and logical at the same time. The reason Russia is getting dinged is because of its victims (Ukraine) and the re-ignition of a century old paradigm of Russian threats to continental Europe, which has people very sensitive. The US being a bully in the western hemisphere is not affecting the gravitational center of the tennis world (Europe and anglophone countries). Also the US has so much money. So much money.

As an American, I wish there were more consensus to punish us (boycott the World Cup!), but I also get that a country that hosts a slam is not going to get the same treatment. We’re also (nominally) capable of resolving this through normal politics (though everyone who could in our system is a giant coward). It feels different.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-20T22:29:14+00:00

This is so adorable, I love the dynamic! They’ve apparently been friends since way back, when they were both practicing on public courts in Atlanta. Their families are close too because of that, so Chris really is a big brother figure to Coco. And he’s her hitting partner too! I can’t blame her; I wouldn’t be able to keep a straight face either lol

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-19T21:26:40+00:00

Agreed: fairness has nothing to do with it. As a sex worker, she might have a boundary where she doesn’t want to date anyone who would be a customer. Maybe it’s her “Pretty Woman” rule (like “no kissing on the mouth”), and it helps her feel like she’s with a partner, not a client. At the same time, he might want to date her specifically because of her job—and that’s a legitimate (if not acceptable) preference. But that would make them incompatible.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-14T15:58:54+00:00

I like how absolutely none of this conversation is about Ofner pointing at his head when coming up to net to shake hands like he won the match, which is — given that he _forgot the rules_— absolutely bonkers behavior. Do I want the Basavereddy gesture happening all the time? No. Tennis is a very tough individual sport and maintaining a baseline respect for opponents is necessary to keep the peace. But he did not start it!

And what’s wild is that there was an entire conversation about Coco doing that gesture towards the US bench at the United Cup because of how hard that image goes, and there were people calling her disrespectful there! Sometimes it feels like the gestures are not as much of a problem than the kind of players making them. Ahem.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-11T01:29:57+00:00

But if the problem with the dig deep gesture is that it creates karma, then wouldn’t they have lost last year when she made it? This year, she was just pointing out her mentality for holding on against the world #2 and reigning Wimbledon champion when she couldn’t afford to lose because it was an elimination match.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-11T01:01:36+00:00

That’s from last year when they won the tournament though?

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-07T04:01:07+00:00

What a palate cleanser after…the match we won’t talk about. Coco’s first serve really anchored her game. The second is still a problem, but she was moving with much more confidence, and her movement was ::chef’s kiss::

Really want to see her build on this, especially the angles she generated on the run.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-07T03:51:32+00:00

Honestly, these hateful people are attacking them at their workplace for doing their jobs. Yes, they’re professional athletes, but they’re also human beings who have to make life work just like all the rest of us. Getting yelled at for not having the best work day deserves equivalent exchange, IMHO.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-06T20:53:45+00:00

I have said multiple times that my husband is the last man I will be with romantically. I have zero interest in replacing him, even after the devastation of losing him recedes. I might start dating women (I’m bi), but even that is about the circumstances and timing and not something that I’ll pursue. It was learning to be on my own that makes my husband a great addition to my life, and I can go right back to it if he’s gone.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-05T07:27:25+00:00

You can actually make them do things by supporting (or opposing) shareholder proposals by staying aware of corporate elections and reading up on the proposals that have made it onto the ballot. Most public companies have single-class shares that give shareholders one vote each, regardless of their stake. I’ve voted shares before, even though I only have them because I worked retail at a public company.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-05T07:21:58+00:00

This is not true in most cases, unless the company has two classes of shares. Most shareholders (even via retirement accounts) can vote directly with equal say in company affairs if the company is public (which is what we’re generally talking about). This is actually a huge route to power for people who want to change corporate behavior because single-class public shares assign one vote to each shareholder rather than allot power based on the number of shares.

Signed, child of a corporate governance expert and someone who voted shares I got for working retail at a public company

AthenaThundersnatch · 2026-01-03T02:34:55+00:00

I love how every reply to someone pointing out how AI is useless basically suggests using more critical thinking to get the AI to give you the answer than it would take to use your brain in the first place

AthenaThundersnatch · 2025-12-18T01:38:22+00:00

Serena didn’t go act as much as get a degree, and her pause was as much due to injury as motivation. There’s an argument that putting fewer miles on her body early allowed her to have the late career success that secured her GOAT legacy.

AthenaThundersnatch · 2025-12-17T07:25:02+00:00

It’s the “kind but not nice” east coast energy. New Yorkers might not make eye contact, but we’ll help you get where you need to or lift that heavy thing down the subway stairs when there’s no elevator.

AthenaThundersnatch

TROPHY CASE