Challengers is a 2024 American romantic sports drama film directed by Luca Guadagnino from a screenplay by Justin Kuritzkes, and stars Zendaya, Josh O'Connor, and Mike Faist. The film centers around the love triangle between an injured tennis star turned coach (Zendaya), her low-circuit tennis player ex-boyfriend (O'Connor), and her tennis champion husband (Faist) across thirteen years of their shared relationship, culminating in the latter two's match at the ATP Challenger Tour.

Plot

In 2006, friends Patrick Zweig and Art Donaldson win the boys' junior doubles title at the US Open. They watch a match played by Tashi Duncan, a rising tennis star, with whom Patrick and Art become infatuated. After meeting at a party, Tashi joins Art and Patrick in their hotel room, where all three kiss before Tashi abruptly ends the tryst. She promises to give her phone number to whoever wins the final the next day. Patrick wins the match, and later signals to Art that he had sex with Tashi by placing the ball in the neck of his racket prior to serving, a tic of Art's.