Alcaraz’s Clay Swing In Doubt, Fils Top 5 Potential, Shelton Shines in Munich | EP 167

**Sam** (0:00)
All right, everyone, on today's episode of Nothing Major, we're going to bring you back all of our Monday segment shows.
We also are going to talk about the champions in Madrid, Barcelona, and Stuttgart. And with that, let's get started.

**SPEAKER_2** (0:14)
Jack, John, Stevie, and Sam got close a few times, never won a slam, nothing major.

**Sam** (0:20)
All right, everyone, welcome back. I'm going to flip it today. What are you shaking your head for?

**Stevie** (0:24)
Let's hit Munich this week since it happened. We'll hit Madrid in a couple of weeks when it finishes.

**Sam** (0:29)
Ah, whatever. Yeah, good point, good point.
Munich, Madrid, same thing.

**John** (0:34)
It's hard to do an intro and need someone sitting there shaking their head as you're doing it.

**Sam** (0:37)
It's hard, dude. I can feel Stevie's just like eyes piercing through my soul. Anyway.

**Stevie** (0:42)
That's never happened for Sam once, but that's okay.

**Sam** (0:44)
We're back. I've got Charlie, the team at SIFT, John Isner, and you. I'm gonna give you your name on today's pod.
So let's get started.
A little update for Friday's show. We're talking about my Queens membership. You guys remember that? I won Queens 2010 I was very unaware that there was potentially I had a membership. I've reached out. I'm in fact a member. I've had multiple members reach out to me already. DM. I've already had someone this morning actually asked me to play the mixed doubles championships. There's a members party during the Queens Club that I'm not going to make. Unbelievable. I am in fact a member at Queens.

**Stevie** (1:25)
Oh, man. That's unbelievable. Actually, you've been missing out for 15 years.

**Sam** (1:29)
Yeah.

**John** (1:30)
So that was 16 years ago. You retired in 2022, right?

**Sam** (1:34)
Yeah.

**John** (1:35)
Okay.
Would you have taken advantage of that membership, say, from 2000, whatever, till that 12-year period, would you have taken advantage of that membership? Like, while you were in London?

**Sam** (1:46)
Maybe. Maybe.

**John** (1:47)
Yeah.

**Sam** (1:47)
I probably would have gone over for dinner once. I don't know if, like, that week between Queens and Wimbledon, maybe I could have gone over and practiced there.

**John** (1:55)
Probably.

**Stevie** (1:55)
You're a member.

**Sam** (1:56)
I think so. I think I would have taken advantage of it three times, gone over and had, like, a nice lunch.

**Stevie** (2:02)
It would have been nice.

**Sam** (2:04)
Okay.

**John** (2:04)
But it's confirmed you obviously don't pay dues.

**Sam** (2:06)
It's confirmed I don't pay dues. No.

**John** (2:10)
What if your membership has been activated officially now? What if they send you some dues? What are you going to do? Are you going to stay on?

**Sam** (2:17)
16 years worth of dues? Retroactive dues?

**John** (2:21)
Yeah.

**Sam** (2:22)
No, I'd just leave the membership.
But also two other things I wanted to bring up. I forgot to do this last week. When Stevie and I were at Coachella, John, I forgot to tell you, we got recognized on four occasions. Not as like tennis players, but like as podcast guys. So I thought...

**John** (2:45)
Of course.

**Stevie** (2:46)
It's shocking.

**John** (2:47)
We are not recognizable as tennis players anymore. What has become?

**Sam** (2:52)
A lot of crossover between the Coachella fans and our fans. And then also last week, I couldn't do it. Remember when I had that little Benson Boone bit during Australia?

**Stevie** (3:00)
Yeah.

**Sam** (3:01)
I got invited to play pickleball with Benson Boone last week. I couldn't make it though. How funny is that?
I know.

**Stevie** (3:07)
You probably would have seen that clip.

**John** (3:08)
Because of the clip or just randomly?

**Sam** (3:11)
Just randomly.

**John** (3:12)
Okay.

**Sam** (3:12)
The person who invited me to play with them definitely did not see the clip.
But I would have showed Benson Boone the clip had I played with him. Anyway, we can talk some tennis now. Let's start in Barcelona. Let me start. Barcelona and Munich both going on this week. Barcelona feels bigger for some reason, doesn't it? Even though they're both 500s?

**Stevie** (3:32)
I'm going to be honest. I thought Munich was still a 250 until like Thursday of last week. So yeah, yeah, you're right.

**Sam** (3:39)
I think it's a little bit of 500 for like two years.

**Stevie** (3:41)
You feel like that, John?

**John** (3:42)
That's why it feels bigger.

**Sam** (3:43)
That's why, yeah.

**Stevie** (3:44)
Yeah.

**Sam** (3:46)
Anyway, let's start Arthur Fils. Big event. Amanda is back, takes out Rublev in the final 6-2, 7-6.
Stevie J, let me go to you. Second Frenchman to win Barcelona since his old French guy in 85, 41-year drought.