The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham Hotspur News and Links for Monday, September 14

Good morning everyone!

We are one day removed from the 2026 US Open and your champions are Alex Zverev and Elena Rybakina.

After watching the tennis for the last 14 days I’m offering a take: The tennis world has undergone a new shift, where the women’s tour is a more dynamic and exciting competition than the men’s.

Zverev pulled off a soul-sucking display of tennis to defeat the Ben Shelton in four sets on Sunday, a day after Rybakina backed up her new status as World No. 1 in a three-setter power clash against the hard-hitting Aryna Sabalenka, which is now a full fledged rivalry.

Looking at the makeup of the top 10, it’s pretty clear why women’s tennis the better watch right now. We have two women at the top with dominant serves and a baseline-style play, offset by crafty players in Karolina Muchova, Mirra Andreeva (French Open champ) and Iga Swiatek. You have two new entrants in Wimbledon champ Linda Noskova and Marta Kostyuk, plus counter punchers Coco Gauff and Elina Svitolina, with the former a successful doubles player.

All of this makes for interesting matchups as we get deeper into the tournaments. Now contrast that with the men’s tour, which is all about baseline tennis. It’s pretty boring.

That’s what made Carlos Alcaraz’s return to the game so refreshing this tournament, even if he bounced out in the quarterfinals. He attacked each point with an unpredictability and flair that the men’s game seriously lacks right now. It was clear the men’s tour missed him these last four months.

But as I look at the rest of the top 10 I see baseliners: Felix Auger-Aliassime, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, Daniil Medvedev, Flavio Cobolli, Alex De Minaur. Throw all these names in a blender and it’s almost like watching the same match every time. Only Medvedev is interesting to watch because of his unorthodox style.

With Sinner and Alcaraz now struggling with injuries, we’re beginning to see a strong core of women’s players step up to dominate tournaments. This year the top four seeds made it to the semifinals. While that trend might not continue, I think there’s a really strong group of 10 or 12 players who we should be consisently seeing in the latter stages of the tournament.

Fitzie’s track of the day:Open Up, by Ratboys

And now for your links:

Jack P-B ($$): “Tottenham are stuck in a vicious cycle they need to break out of”

The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham HotspurAlasdair Gold: “Whether Richarlison can face Liverpool in Carabao Cup and the powerful people watching Tottenham”

BBC: “Twenty-five years in the waiting – Coventry’s nightmare top-flight return”

The Guardian: “London City’s superstars brought down to earth in WSL defeat at West Ham”