US Open 2026: Live From Billie Jean King National Tennis Center Day One

**SPEAKER_1** (0:02)
Bloomberg Audio Studios, Podcasts, Radio, News.
This is Bloomberg Businessweek Daily, reporting from the magazine that helps global leaders stay ahead, with insight on the people, companies, and trends shaping today's complex economy, plus global business, finance, and tech news as it happens. The Bloomberg Businessweek Daily Podcast with Carol Massar and Tim Stenovec on Bloomberg Radio.

**Tim Stenovec** (0:32)
Well, Steve Flink has seen some tennis. He's been covering the sport since 1974, so it's more than 50 years, we should note. For some context, Molly, this was the era of Jimmy Connors, Arthur Ashe, Chris Evert, Billy Jean King, Martina Navratilova.

**Molly Smith** (0:49)
And back into the era that I grew up with, with Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, Venus and Serena.

**Steve Flink** (0:55)
Now hold it a second, you're giving away your youth.

**Anthony Sama** (0:59)
That's a giveaway.

**Molly Smith** (1:00)
I've got a big poster of Andre Agassi back in my childhood bedroom.

**Christian Basnigh** (1:04)
This is like this is who I grew up with.

**Tim Stenovec** (1:06)
The 90s version of him.

**Molly Smith** (1:08)
It's a crossover.

**Steve Flink** (1:09)
Okay.

**Tim Stenovec** (1:09)
So it's like long hair versus short hair.

**Steve Flink** (1:10)
There's a little both in there. Yeah. All right.

**Tim Stenovec** (1:12)
He's also the author of multiple books, The Greatest Tennis Matches of All Time, Pete Sampras, Greatness Revisited and The Immortals of American Tennis. We are joined by the author and tennis journalist, Steve Flink. Welcome. Welcome.

**Steve Flink** (1:24)
Well, thank you for having me.

**Tim Stenovec** (1:25)
How many US Open do you think you've been to?

**Steve Flink** (1:28)
Well, I mean, I started coming when it was still the US Championships in 65, but I've been to every Open except for 1970, where I was studying in England that year and I couldn't, I was unable to make the 1970 Open.

**Tim Stenovec** (1:42)
Is the Open, in your view, and we're going to dive right into it, okay, is it still enough about tennis?

**Steve Flink** (1:51)
Well, that question, you know, we would be here until about midnight on September 13th.
So I can't really adequate it. I think it's a great question, seriously. And from my standpoint, not enough, but I understand why it's occurred, because it's become an American sporting extravaganza. And to a lot of people, it's the idea of being out here and seen here and being a part of an entertainment capital. But I wish it were more strictly about tennis. I think a lot of people, I think that has changed a lot in the last 10 to 20 years.

**Molly Smith** (2:28)
Talk to us about how you remember it and more, whether it was the US Championships or how it is now, the glory days, however you would define that, and what your happiest memories here are like.

**Steve Flink** (2:42)
Well, the happiest memories were those initial years as a fan, because I became a full-time reporter. I mentioned 1974
I was starting to watch it in 1965 So those years in the 60s leading up to Open Tennis and in the early stages of Open Tennis, it was much easier to wander around the grounds and get close on any outside court you wanted, and there was more of an innocence to it. And I think particularly of that first open year, two in 68, when Arthur Ashe won the tournament, and there were so many vivid memories of that period, as I was growing up and as the game was growing.

**Tim Stenovec** (3:20)
Were you in Cincinnati this year?

**Steve Flink** (3:22)
No, I mean, I watched it. I was not on site.

**Tim Stenovec** (3:24)
Molly and I both went to Cincinnati separately to see Tennis this year. I went for the first time. You were there for the first time?

**Molly Smith** (3:30)
For the first time, yeah.

**Tim Stenovec** (3:32)
We haven't gotten too much of a chance to talk about it, but I'll just share, I was just struck by the intimacy of it and the feeling of actually getting so close to some of these players, and I'm wondering as we see, and we'll talk more about the American players, but as we see more and more American players and the interest grow among young people, if that tournament becomes increasingly popular for people to go to.

**Steve Flink** (3:53)
Cincinnati?

**Tim Stenovec** (3:54)
Yeah.

**Steve Flink** (3:56)
It's hard to say. Look, you're talking about a very prestigious event, a Masters 1000, I mean, obviously those tournaments are in prestige just a step below the Grand Slam. And it's a popular event for the players. It's in a tricky timeframe though, because sometimes players are pulling out because they got...