Hi there, this is Martina Navratlova and you're listening to the tennis podcast.

Well hello and welcome to the tennis podcast which probably should be renamed the feminist tennis

podcast because two weeks ago we had the first all female tennis podcast with myself and Alex

last week we had Martina Navratlova as a guest the queen of tennis and this week we have another

all female tennis podcast I'm so delighted to say I'm joined by esteemed tennis journalist Carol

Bouchard formerly of Leukeepe now freelance writing for all sorts of people including Leprezean

Carol thank you so much for joining me. Thank you for the invitation thank you for the nice

words to happy to be joining and it's particularly appropriate because we're here in France at Roland

Garros we're in we're in the media cafe as the as glamorous as that sounds it is less glamorous than

it sounds but we're still very lucky to be here Carol how many Roland Garros is if you've done now and

as a local tell me what makes this place so special. How many it's a good question I think first one as

a working journalist when maybe 2008 so it could be seven already but I was coming before as a

as a simple fan so I'm not that old. I think what makes it special I think when the sun is here you

have a retraditional kind of typical french vibe so that's really cute the sight is beautiful

now it's a little bit too packed but it's still beautiful and the red glare and you know the french

food and I think it could be like when the sun is here it's really really beautiful and super french

when it's raining it's also french because we have a lot of friends but it's less glamorous

not always glamorous it's not we have to we have to work hard to say you've been you've been here as a

fan and as a journalist what's better there's an impossible question I know but I still say as a

journalist because you really see how it works backstage you have a different contact with the

players and you really understand all these tennis crazy world is working so I still say it as a

journalist because I'm a career spokesperson so I'm not I know I'm inside we know and for better or

...