Ranked nº 14 by the WTA, French-Japanese tennis player ÉLODIE LODGER dreams of achieving her first Grand Slam title.
Meanwhile, F2 Champion and member of McLaren's F1 Team OSCAR PIASTRI seeks the World Driver's Championship.
Their only common grou...
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"How are we feeling?"
Leia's voice echoed as soon as I sat in the minivan. She sat in the passenger seat accompanied by two guys right behind her-one with a camera and the other with a mini microphone. She looked up from her phone, "big day today, huh?"
I half-smiled and looked over to the window. "You could say that."
"Come on, you can give Netflix a better reaction."
As much as I wanted to remain neutral, I couldn't help but scoff. "Sure thing."
The driver took off from the hotel almost immediately, but it didn't take long for Leia's strong Brazilian accent to start echoing again.
"They're gonna ask you about Navarro."
I didn't look forward. "Was already expecting this, yeah."
She didn't like my answer. Even without directly looking at her, I could feel the weight of her eyes over my shoulder.
"Is she attending?" I gave up and faced her.
Leia Barrichello, my PR manager, was responsible for everything media-related, including my participation in Netflix's BreakPoint. She was the daughter of a former Brazilian F1 driver, had a marketing degree from Yale, and owned one of the biggest sports PR startups. There was no one better to handle my career, although I was pretty aware I also wasn't the easiest client.
"Her team didn't want her image related to Netflix," she said. "Makes me wonder if it's related to the fact they've pretty much chosen a side on this feud."
I arched an eyebrow, leaning back in my seat. "Her family didn't pay for the good press?"
Leia crossed her arms, her eyes narrowing. "Élodie."
I shrugged, smirking. January is always a good time to be in Melbourne, so I rolled down my window, feeling the wind rush past my arm as I stuck it outside. "What? Just giving Netflix a better reaction."
It wasn't always easy to forget the Netflix crew trailing behind, but at important events, they usually kept a low profile to avoid being intrusive. Since the second part of the season would only come out in June, they were still covering moments to add on later.
Although it was supposed to be nerve-wracking, I never felt anxious before an event. Sure, the second season premiere of Break Point was exciting, especially since it was the first time I'd be featured in a tennis-related series, but it took a lot to get a real reaction out of me.
The Break Point premiere also signaled the start of the 2024 season. In a few days, the Australian Open would begin. It meant I was closer to my first Grand Slam victory-or my biggest downfall yet. That one takes a reaction out of me.
"I just received an e-mail," Leia said after a while. "A list with attendees. Raducanu, Alcaraz, and Rune have already checked in."
