Bagel Bites: Give Stan a wildcard, please

Internet ephemera from the tennis world and beyond. Have something you want to include? Join the Discord  – we have a really nice and active community growing there – or hmu on Bluesky.

If you've been following this blog/newsletter from the start, you know that I really don't post this often. But it's the beginning of the new season, we're flush with news and results coming in overnight, so you'll have to bear with me as I try to get us all up to speed as quickly as possible. For better or worse, the dispatches will slow down once we get to February.

So please endure the spam for a bit. At least I hope it's useful and tasty spam!

• Previously on The Bagel: Everyone is sick and hurt including my heart.
• ICYMI: Here are the Week 1 draws in Brisbane, Auckland, and Hong Kong.

• Stan Wawrinka – that's three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka – announced over the off-season that 2026 would be his last rodeo. BUT his ranking is currently sub 150 and that means Old Man Stan is going to need wildcards to even have a Last Dance. That includes the Australian Open, where he reigned supreme in 2014. Come on, Tennis Australia, give Stan a wildcard. Let's be serious.
• And if they needed anymore convincing, perhaps his fantastic and riveting 5-7, 7-6(5), 7-6(5) win over Arthur Rinderknech at United Cup will do the trick. Do try and catch this full match on replay, it was awesome.
• Zhang Zhizhen was China's MVP on Day 2 at the United Cup, where he led the team to a narrow 2-1 lead over Belgium. A fun thing I've learned is that even his own teammates call him "Triple Z". Delightful.

• Speaking of MVPs, how about giving up for two former Doubles No.1s: Coco Gauff won her singles and mixed doubles to give USA a 2-1 win over Argentina.

• And Storm Hunter subbed in for an ill Maya Joint THE GOAT and also went 2-0 to give Australia a 2-1 win over Norway. We love that for Stormy.
• Taylor Fritz lost 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Sebastian Baez and that is just a super confusing result to wake up to until you see this:

Q. Lastly, you have the off-season behind you now and first match of 2026. Do you have things in mind that you want to work on ahead of the Australian Open and the rest of the year?

TAYLOR FRITZ: I mean, I really just need to be playing points and be healthy. I think that's the biggest thing. I spent the majority – pretty much the entirety of the off-season trying to rehab my knee tendinopathy, but that's a thing that takes months and months to get better.

You know, I didn't get to play a lot of points because I'm trying to not push it too hard. So it's just going to be a struggle of trying to get the reps in and get the points and matches in to start feeling like I'm comfortable while juggling that while still managing my knee pain because I'm going to try to play through and keep doing the rehab while traveling and getting better, but if that doesn't work in a couple of months, then I am just going to have to full stop and fix it.

• Casper Ruud got married in a quiet civil ceremony (congrats!) before leaving for Australia, where he went surfing for the first time and beat Alex DeMinaur for the first time. Busy dude! (Twitter)

• Next up: United Cup Day 3 as well as Day 1 at the Brisbane International:
  • United Cup Sydney: Germany vs. Netherlands and Canada vs. China (First look at Felix and Vicky)
  • United Cup Perth: Great Britain vs. Japan (Raducanu-Osaka!) and Italy vs. Switzerland (Jasmine-Belinda! Cobo-Stan!)
  • Brisbane WTA: Dasha vs. Potapova aka The Copy Pasta Bowl.
  • Brisbane ATP: Frances and Learner kick off their seasons.

• At United Cup in Sydney, Iga Swiatek was asked if she watched a specific exo (Twitter) and I'm actually impressed she knew the year of the original Battle of the Sexes:

Q. Iga, did you see the Kyrgios and Sabalenka match and if you had any thoughts on it?

IGA SWIATEK: No, I haven't watched, because I don't watch stuff like that. I think for sure it attracted, like, a lot of attention. It was an entertainment, but I wouldn't say that had anything to do with, like, social change or any important topics.

I think the name was just the same as the one from the Billie Jean King match in '73. That's it. There were no more similarities because I feel like women's tennis stands on its own right now. We have so many great athletes and great stories to present, we don't necessarily need to, like, compare to men's tennis. It's a totally different story.

I think, honestly, yeah, there doesn't need to be any competition. I think actually events like this one, United Cup, brings tennis all together, and WTA fans and ATP fans can watch this event with so much excitement. Seeing also singles players that usually don't have space to play mixed doubles together, playing these kind of matches, I think this is actually what makes our sport much more interesting and better.

So yeah, I haven't watched the match. I only know about how it looked like. But I think, yeah, it was for sure nice entertainment and an XO match between these two.

• Gaby Dabrowski was initially listed as Team Captain for Canada but was unable to make the trip down after injuring her foot in practice. In Canada's press conference, Felix Auger-Aliassime said he wasn't sure how serious it was but hopefully she's ready for the Australian Open.
• Team Netherlands and Captain Tallon Griekspoor have the jokes:

Q. Suzan, what is he like as a Captain?

SUZAN LAMENS: I can't say, because I still want to play tomorrow (smiling). No... I mean, he's really nice. I know him for a while now, and he has good energy. He's funny. We can talk about everything, but also he takes his role seriously. He keeps us up to date with all the information and takes us for dinner. Yeah, it's a nice captain.

TALLON GRIEKSPOOR: She really wants to play (laughter).

• !!!: Venus and Elina doubles in Auckland:

• Wild things are happening in the juniors. His name is Lucas Herrera Sanchez from Germany:

• Lots of pressure on Madison Keys as she gets ready to defend a truckload of points over the next four weeks. (AFP)
• Here's Tumaini Carayol's 2026 season preview and a dispatch from Perth – GO GET A QUOKKA PIC, T! – where Emma Raducanu seems in good spirits as she readies to take on Naomi Osaka.(The Guardian)

• I NEED TO WATCH THE EVONNE GOOLAGONG CAWLEY SHOW. MAKE IT SO, SOMEONE PLEASE. WHAT IS ABC IVIEW AND HOW DO I HACK IT. (The Guardian)
• Sad news: Jenny Brady was entered in Australian Open qualies but she's out. (Twitter)

• My Letterboxd Wrapped said my most-watched director was Steven Soderberg which makes sense because OMG LOOK HOW MUCH TENNIS MY GUY WATCHED LAST YEAR. (Steven Soderberg's Soderblog)

• Relatedly: IF THIS IS NOT THE YEAR FOR PAUL THOMAS ANDERSON I WILL THROW AN ANGRY FIT.

• We close this dispatch with a simple reminder as we start the new year, that applies not just to significant global news but to our little goofy corner of the tennis internet: me mindful – nay, intentional – about who you rely on for news and information:

• ORRRRRRR you could learn everything you need to know from Kate McKinnon: