JAMES BLAKE answers WHAT DOES A TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR DO?

Excerpt from Served with Andy Roddick Episode 8 - released on 3.19.24.
James Blake walks through some of his roles and responsibilities as Miami Open's Tournament Director. He also shares some stories of how he's handled angry players in the past.
Watch the full interview here: • JAMES BLAKE - Full Int...

[@williamweinberg9509]

Hey Blake, Ruud's still waiting on his towels and water. 😂

[@Callie456]

Were the problems in the tournament talked about? Unfortunate if not, though I'm not surprised since the first sentence is how Andy is best friends with Blake.

[@yi-juhuang8204]

Andy, turn your damn phone off 😂

[@Kibinishi]

Those phone dings are annoying! Please Andy! Please have those notifications on Vibrate 😂

[@bribeiro]

I thought Andy had a lasagna in the oven while podcasting. Why not just set it to silent or vibrate 😅

[@slc2466]

It's so great to see James again- loved both of these guys when they were on the tour! Great interview offering a behind-the-scenes look at a big tournament as well.

[@JayRuf3438]

I'm hoping James Blake is getting the support he needs from the tournament. Seems Ruud and Monfils haven't been too happy with how players are being treated.

[@coochee96]

James texting Andy who they were? 😂

[@renardfox328]

Great episode! I really liked getting a peek behind the curtain to see how the machine works!

[@wendyweger3115]

I love this Andy and Blake and I am learning so much. Many thanks to you both and for the rest of the 'Served" content.🙏🙃😘

[@princesyntheticgut16g21]

haha you can tell they are good friends by how Andy roasts James.

[@stevesworld9680]

Thank you James for letting Simona play. She stayed in tennis shape and had a good lively match with Badosa.

[@josesantiagolagunasramos7022]

OK THANKS OK YOURS MOMENT'S 🎉😅😮😅🎉.. 🧡 OK 🤝🎶💪🎶🤝

[@demebady]

Two of my all time favorite players. Watched these two since they both had a head full of hair. Damn, well, I guess I still had hair too. Good to see them.🤣

[@l.rongardner2150]

Andy's got most of his back with a recent hair transplant.

[@gregwickstrom5479]

Indian Wells has been surfaced with Plexipave IW for years. That surface was designed for Indian Wells by using larger grains of silica sand to slow the court down in the desert. Plexipave offers two other speeds, regular and medium, with medium playing the best. The Penn Tour ball has a harder ball core and plays like a rock. The Pro Penn Extra Duty ball is a much better choice. Also, the women never play with the Penn Tour ball or the Wilson US Open Extra Duty ball. t the US Open they use the regular duty ball which has less nap on it and is lighter. I'm not sure how they can use Dunlop balls in Miami. They're hideous... Keep up the great interviews and insight Andy.👍😎

[@michaelscoots]

Love you, Andy but I’m with James - no coffee!

[@deathbombs]

Blake please give Ruud his damn water

[@tennissir1986]

So who was the two time (at the time) slam winning female who got upset not getting the main court ?

[@matthewa7433]

You shouldn’t be asking players if they want to play during the day or at night when the conditions can change drastically and the time of day could change the outcome of the match. In the Fritz Alcarez ex. playing at night the ball is going to travel slower and favor Carlos more than a day time match when the ball is flying and Fritz can take time away

[@icefalcon2243]

Does James ever mention if he still plays tennis? I know he’s not on tour or anything but if he still plays for the love of the game

[@johnp1]

Andy is very entertaining 🙂

[@Ladybug211211]

James said 7. I heard it.

[@michaeladkins6]

He was at home during all of the rain delays Friday?

[@alcarazundisputedgoat]

18:02 It could also be Tsitsipas who got angry, but Zverev is a good guess.

[@HannibalPOV]

My thoughts aswell, zverev most likely

[@poisenopinionator]

Did you actually check for that day when there was a big name on grandstand when Kyrgios was on stadium?

[@minguyen2589]

it's zverev, check his draw in 2018 against kyrgios

[@tennissir1986]

Scary - Zverev sounds like the kind of guy who would get someone to go after him.

[@bilders6701]

Still can't find this full interview!

[@goldwolf0606]

😂 he has to deal with coffee 😂😂😂

[@wendyweger3115]

I am so glad to know a little more about what goes on behind the scenes and just how much energy is expended from all ~ Many thanks. PS Lunar eclipse full moon March 25th 2024 + March Madness + Total Solar Eclipse April 8th 2024 = stay detached..lol~ 🌴🍊🏖

[@tobiasgoldman]

When James Blake didn't mention the player's names but described them in detail it reminds me of when Larry's therapist mentions a client "who's a very famous director who created Star wars" and when confronted defends himself by stating: "I didn't say who it was, I never said that".c

[@tennissir1986]

Andy - great channel - if you don’t know how to work your devices - you may may want to put them in a different room when filming.

[@goldwolf0606]

They beg Weakvak to come to Miami 😂😂😂 they offer him lots of money… and when he hits lines women in the throat, they don’t want to defaultovic him so they talk an easy decision over for over 10 minutes but can’t find a good reason to keep in the tournament and eventually say sorry, we will lose more money than we make if you stay in the tournament 😂😂😂

[@minguyen2589]

@15:09 must be Zverev, just checked the draw in 2018 :) @15:21

[@wendyweger3115]

I'm laughing ...the way my old computer is displaying the channel is "Served with Andy Rock" chuckling, suits you I think. Anyway it was a great interview/podcast _ I appreciate James and yourself Andy, for shedding some light on just how complex it is to produce the right conditions, from so many angles during these tournaments, to make the venue a success. Thank you so much for hosting 'Served" and it's refreshing look at the tennis world. Have a great week.🌴🍊 🥤🌘 partial lunar eclipse tomorrow's full moon ~ total solar eclipse April 8th ...Along with March madness, we'd best hold onto our hats....from Pacific NW. x

[@englishiguana4304]

My only complaint abt this podcast is that it is not longer!

[@orenthaljames2534]

does Andy ask James about the complaints from Ruud?

[@gabrielion9313]

why do these gentlemen wear hats indoors? wrong answers only

[@OX3YMORON]

Too much hair

[@anthonydecastro6938]

Hey, James Blake, do your job. Miami sucks compared to IW.

[@TheDusty1920]

His job is not to provide funding to upgrade infrastructure. He's not a billionaire.

[@anthonydecastro6938]

@@TheDusty1920 his job is make sure the "billionaire" who does own the Miami tournament (IMG???) upgrade the facilities. he is the tournament director or is he not?

[@TheDusty1920]

@@anthonydecastro6938 He's not going to "make" a billionaire do anything he doesn't want to do. If it was as simple as telling the billionaire "Give me $100 million to upgrade the facilities", I'm sure it would've been done already.

[@anthonydecastro6938]

@@TheDusty1920 stupid remark. really paints James Blake in dark and ugly colors. what makes you think you can read his mind? who do you think you are, God???

[@TheDusty1920]

@@anthonydecastro6938 Hmm did someone forget to take their pills today?

[@l.rongardner2150]

Duh! He directs a tournament. That's like asking what a tennis player does. He plays tennis.

[@kuab1313]

Giving a wild card to a player banned for doping is just disgraceful, regardless of Halep's excuses and the fact the ban was shortened.

[@alcarazundisputedgoat]

The ban is over, so it's not disgraceful and what Halep brought up is not an excuse, it's the reason for her being banned which was something that she had no control over.