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The 21-year-old has two of the best role models one could ever hope for on his side.
21-year-old Spaniard picked up his first Masters 1000 win this week in Miami, before falling to 6th-seeded Kevin Anderson in three sets on Saturday. After his first-round victory over Prajnesh Gunneswaran the rising star talked to ATP Tennis Radiso’s Seb Lauzier about his relationship with two of Spain’s greatest legends, Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer.

Munar, who hails from Mallorca and trains at Rafael Nadal’s Academy on the island, says he has forged a great relationship with the king of clay over the years.

“At the beginning he was my, maybe, work partner, or something like this,” said Munar. “Right now he’s a friend for me. We are sharing a lot of moments on court and of court. I know him a lot right now and he’s special. I think he can teach me everything I’m going to see during the years on the tour. I think he’s trying to do this because he wants me to be the best player I can be, and also I have one of the best friends of Rafa in my team—the relationships is getting closer and I’m really happy with this.”

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— ATP Tour (@ATP_Tour) March 23, 2019

Munar also professed his deep respect for Ferrer, saying that he admires what the indefatigable baseliner has done over the course of his career.

“David is amazing for me, I’m in love with this guy,” Munar said. “I always say that David is my idol. I think he’s a person who is a “ten” in life and also he’s this way on the tennis court. I have very much respect for him and I think and I hope he will a wonderful career outside of tennis and a wonderful life. Something is going to change for him in the next months but I’m pretty sure that the person he is and he has been during the whole of these years on tour he will be for all his life.”

Munar has enjoyed quite a bit of success in 2019, his first full year on the ATP Tour. He entered this week with a career-high ranking of 61 and a record of 9-7 (now 10-8). He has already reached four quarter-finals this season, including three in a row during the Golden Swing in South America.

He’d like to continue his momentum rankings-wise, but is more focused on working hard and growing his game.

“It’s difficult in the situation I am right now to say numbers, but I am feeling like I am growing,” he said. “I am growing as a player, I really feel like I can do it right now. I have been working so hard for this and this is the important part right now. You have to remain clear and I think I am. I know that I will have my chances for the year. I started with the South American swing and I did well there. Just keep growing… maybe to say a number inside the Top 40 but I don’t like the numbers.”

The Aussie breaks down the weaknesses of Federer, Djokovic and NadalIn an exclusive interview with Mike Dickson of the Daily Mail, Nick Kyrgios enumerated what he feels are the weaknesses in tennis’ holy trinity a.k.a Big Three.

Read the Full Exclusive in Daily Mail Here

'They don't do anything spectacularly well,” Kyrgios explains, before taking a quick crack at explaining how he has gone about solving the relatively unsolvable games of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic in recent years.

"Rafa loves to be defensive so you can really push through his forehand and expose how far back he stands. So they do have weaknesses and if you play the right way and execute it right under pressure then they can be beaten." https://t.co/FpvzCEd9ao

— jimmy soixante-dix (@hotdog6969) March 23, 2019

“Obviously Federer is unbelievably talented and the greatest of all time, but he gets tired in tight situations," Kyrgios says. "Djokovic struggles with short balls, he doesn't like to come forward. Second serve can get a bit shaky. Rafa loves to be defensive so you can really push through his forehand and expose how far back he stands. So they do have weaknesses and if you play the right way and execute it right under pressure then they can be beaten."

Kyrgios may not have figured out how to play at a consistently high level week in and week out on the tour, but he has done a great job against the biggest names in the sport.

"You just have to play the right way and for the stars to align," he said. "Of course they are a level above all of us, but they are definitely beatable, I don't think like they are Gods to the sport.”

Kyrgios is one guy that deserves to have a say. He owns a 6-6 lifetime record against the trio (3-3 v Nadal, 2-0 v Djokovic and 1-3 v Federer) and recently stunned Nadal in a tremendously entertaining three-setter en route to winning the title at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel in Acapulco.

It’s well known that Federer, Nadal and Djokovic have some players beaten before they even leave the locker room, but Kyrgios isn’t about to dole out too much respect to players that he feels get preferential treatment from the tour as it is.

“I don't know how much respect the others show them but I'm not going to really respect someone just because they can hit a ball over the net, that's not enough for me to give them respect,” Kyrgios told Dickson. “Why would I give them an inch? They've already got the advantage with always playing on the best courts in the best conditions, all that sort of stuff, so I don't know why you would give them inches.”

The Dane has been struggling to get healthy for a month, but looked good in her win on Friday at Miami.

One of Caroline Wozniacki‘s greatest seasons ended with what may prove to be her greatest challenge as a player in 2018. The Dane won her first major and reclaimed the WTA’s No.1 ranking last year, but by the end of the season her career was in jeopardy as she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis.

Wozniacki has been positive about things, but admittedly was in a state of shock when she got the news. “In the beginning, it was a shock,” Wozniacki said last year at Singapore. “Just, you feel like you’re the fittest athlete out there—or that’s in my head, that’s what I’m known for—and all of a sudden you have this to work with.”

But rather than dwell on the difficulties Wozniacki—much in the same fashion that Venus Williams has become a poster woman for what is possible for people with Sjogren's syndrome—has set her sights on being an inspiration for those afflicted with the autoimmune disease that can cause joint pain and affect mobility.

Wozniacki found out the news officially after last year’s U.S. Open and since then has played a relatively full schedule. But this winter she fell ill and had not played since the Australian Open, where she lost in the third round to Maria Sharapova, when she arrived at Indian Wells. She lost in California in her first match to Ekaterina Alexandrova but in Miami she got off on the right foot with a 6-4 6-4 win over Aliaksandra Sasnovich on Friday.

“I feel like it's definitely not been the greatest start to the year health-wise for me,” Wozniacki told reporters. “I'm just really thankful I can be out there and play and compete. All I can do right now is just try and get the matches under my belt, try to play better.

A straight sets win for @CaroWozniacki!

Beats Sasnovich 6-4, 6-4!#miamiopen pic.twitter.com/pkfTsh9n4i

— WTA (@WTA) March 22, 2019

Wozniacki will next face Monica Niculescu of Romania in third-round action. She feels like she’s making progress with her game and hopes to take advantage of a favorable draw—Niculescu stunned Spain’s Garbiñe Muguruza on Friday and Wozniacki owns a 9-0 record against her.

“Finally the last week or so, I really feel like I'm starting to hit the ball well in practice,” Wozniacki said. “Hopefully that's going to transfer into a match and it's just going to get better.”

The Dane has had a rough go of it lately, but she’s eager to keep battling.

“It's hard when you're in bed most of the time through Doha, Dubai,” she said. “I expect a lot out of myself. Going to play Indian Wells and basically not having practiced for a month, I still wanted to play well. I thought I played pretty decent compared to how much I'd been able to practice. I was proud of my fight.

“I just have to keep putting myself out there and I have to keep just doing my best. That's really all I can ask of myself right now. Hopefully tomorrow is going to be better. That's all I can do.

A familiar face has inspired Karen Khachanov's surge.
A familiar face has helped Karen Khachanov regain a winning state of mind.

Khachanov, who arrived in Indian Wells mired in a three-match losing streak, switched back to his Wilson Blade racquet and has reaped the rewards.

More: Federer Charges Into IW Semifinals

The 13th-ranked Russian, who announced he signed with Head in January, extended his Masters winning streak to nine matches surging into the Indian Wells quarterfinals against Rafael Nadal.

Interestingly, Khachanov was a member of Team Head until 2015 before bouncing to Wilson. 

These days, some racquet changes are cosmetic though changing brands can create cracked confidence even in elite players.

Rod Laver, the only player in history to win the Grand Slam twice, briefly switched from Dunlop to Spalding but could not find the feel and went back to Dunlop. 

Roger Federer's switch from a 90-square inch Wilson Pro Staff to a more powerful 97-square inch sized version of the frame back in 2014 was a game-changer that gave him easier access to power on his backhand and serve.

Asked about Khachanov's racquet change today, Federer said trust is the quality he values most in his frame.

"It's the extension of the arm, essentially, and your hand," Federer said. "So from that standpoint the question is you always have to ask yourself, is your racquet and your mind going to be aligned at 5-All in the third set at 30-All?

"Can you hit it into the corner? Some days you just can't. That's nothing to do with the racquet. But that's why racquet changes need to be taken very seriously and at the right time of the year and with the right mindset, a positive one, not one in frustration."

Federer said he advocates experimenting with racquet and string technolog in the offseason, but cautions making the change can be a tricky process.

"(Khachanov) did it in a position of strength after a good season. Breakthrough season, essentially," Federer said. "But it's definitely not easy, you know. I never heard anybody say, This was, like, such a simple move for me. It just takes time, you know. I think it seems like he's back to his old racquet again.

"But I think it's good to test racquets, test frames, test new technology, because all of a sudden you realize that something is working better for you. Same with strings, for that matter. There is so much out there in the market that I have always been curious to find out what's out there, because maybe you find some that's better."

Photo credit: BNP Paribas Masters

The Canadian is already benefitting from the presence of the Magician in his box.

At first glance Milos Raonic and Fabrice Santoro might seem like an unlikely player-coach tandem, but a look deeper below the surface, coupled with a very successful tournament together, shows that there may be more to the pairing than meets the eye.

After his 6-3 6-4 victory over Miomir Kecmanovic, Raonic talked more about some of the positive impact that the talented Frenchman has been having.

It starts with respect.

“You can see how effortlessly he can do a lot of things, a lot of things that sort of surprise you,” Raonic told reporters. “You know, he can't blow you off the court, but he can make you feel pretty bad out there with the different rotations of spin.”

Raonic says that the relationship has instantly flown off on the right foot due to the fact that both players share a love of advance scouting and a love for breaking down tape.

“I think the most important thing where we really struck a note was that we are both very meticulous about how we go about things,” the No.13 seeded 28-year-old said. “We spent a lot of time throughout this week, together and apart, watching matches over and every again, my matches, other matches, the guys I'm playing. Something I have always been very keen on, and he approaches it the same way. I think that kind of attention to detail can only be a good thing.”

Raonic said that one of the things he has begun to work on with Santoro is finding ways to lure top players off the baseline. He was asked about using his backhand slice in rallies on Thursday and said that it has been a point of focus from Santoro.

“Everybody moves extremely well laterally,” he said. “Sometimes you can try to get glimpses of better looks by trying to bring them in a bit more. And I think that's what I was trying to do and something I'm trying to incorporate more and more into my game. Fabrice has put quite a bit of attention on it. Sometimes I do it too much, but it's a good option to have, to incorporate.”

Raonic has reached at least the semi-finals at Indian Wells in each of his last four appearances. He owns a 19-4 record in his last five appearances and will face either Dominic Thiem or Gael Monfils in Saturday’s semis.

Fabrice Santoro is out here schooling Milos Raonic 😆 pic.twitter.com/a1vtbP4PPy

— Chris Oddo (@TheFanChild) March 10, 2019

“Gaël, he's been playing well over the last couple of weeks,” Raonic said. “It's tough with him. You never really know what you're going to get. It's important to focus on yourself and make sure you take care of your things and try to execute them well.

“With Dominic, you know, you can't give him too much time. He can do a lot of good things, get ahead in the point, and start to run you around a lot if he has time to get into a point and work it.

“Both of them, it's going to be important that I'm very strict with myself and on top of it from the first shot.”

The Serb reached the round of 16 at a Masters 1000 for the first time on Monday at Indian Wells.

A hard block of training in Tenerife, Spain with Dominic Thiem, Jan-Lennard Struff and Ernests Gulbis is paying big dividends for Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic.

The 19-year-old is into his first Masters 1000 round of 16 as a lucky loser after defeating Laslo Djere 6-2 7-6(3) on Monday at Indian Wells. The current World No.130 says it was an eye-opening experience.

“A lot more intense,” he said of the experience, compared to his normal off-season training block. “I obviously did off-season training before but not at that level. I didn’t know that’s what they were going for. That definitely opened my eyes to see how much more I have to work to get where I want to be.”

Asked if it was a matter of more hours, Kecmanovic said working smart was more important than working hard—though we’re pretty sure they did both.

“Maybe not as much timewise but just the intensity and the stuff they do it’s just at a different level,” he said.

It’s been a great week for Kecmanovic, and he’s closing in on a spot in the Top 100. He’ll get there if he can defeat Yoshihito Nishioka in the round of 16 on Wednesday.

The Serb, who will turn 20 on August 31st, says he’s focused on finishing the season inside the Top 100 and he isn’t concerned with Making the Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan. If he makes it, great, he says, but he doesn’t want the pressure, he just wants to improve.

Kecmanovic is the ATP’s third highest-ranked teenager, but he says he’s been overlooked and that fact has served as a motivating force since he’s young.

“Honestly I’m used to it,” he told Tennis Now today. “I’ve been overlooked my entire life. I have been overlooked my entire life, I think in the back of my mind it drives me to prove everybody wrong. So, I don’t mind it honestly. I like it because it kind of gives me the extra motivation maybe some days that I don’t feel like practicing or something.”

Roger Federer is hoping his friend and compatriot is back in the Top 10 soon.

Stan Wawrinka is slowly but surely finding his form in 2019 after a forgettable 2018 that was more about a test run than a title run.

Roger Federer says it’s just a matter of time before the Stanimal finds his way to the top of the game.

“I mean, he came from very far away,” Federer said on Sunday in press. “Clearly he knew and I knew that he was not ready for the Australian Open [in 2018], but he still wanted to give it a go. I was just hoping he'd get through the Australian Open uninjured, which he did, which I was happy for him.”

Things started to click for Wawrinka more late in the season, when fears of re-injuring his knee finally faded, but he still needed time to find his game with a surgically repaired knee.

Federer, who will face Wawrinka in third-round action on Tuesday at Indian Wells, says he wasn’t far off by the end of the season when he decided to take a long off-season to continue to add layers to what has clearly been a complicated rehabilitation.

“I really feel like he's been back at a normal level, let's say, around the US Open,” Federer said. “But obviously his ranking was low, he was still maybe missing some fitness, you know, that day-to-day match fitness that you need, mental fitness that you require to bring it every single day. I think he was just missing it a little bit. But I think as the season wore on, he only got stronger, even though at the end he didn't play anymore because he didn't want to take a chance, which I totally understand.”

What an atmosphere!

The moment @stanwawrinka defeated Fucscovics after a 3h24 battle under the lights… pic.twitter.com/HwWEawzgqi

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 11, 2019

Now a year and a half from his double knee surgery, Federer feels that it could be any day that the old Stanimal appears and snags a big title or two.

He was close in February, reaching his first final since 2017 Roland Garros before falling to Gael Monfils.

The loss may have been disappointing but the 500-level final was yet another sign that Wawrinka is getting closer to bagging big titles.

“I think, from what I'm gathering, if he's in no pain or injury-free, I think we will see a great Stan [maybe at Indian Wells], down the road, without a doubt, because I know what he can do,” Federer said. “I think a lot of Stan. He's got all the different options how to win points. He's a fighter and a winner. Yeah, I hope he's going to be in the top 20, top 10 very soon again.”

The World No.1 says his fellow World No.1 is doing just fine, thank you.

Asked what advice he would give to reigning two-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka by a reporter on Thursday at all-access media hour, Novak Djokovic didn’t hesitate.

She’s got this one, he basically told her.

“She seems very mature,” Djokovic said. “She seems like she has already done it, like she has experienced it already which is quite impressive. The way she handled U.S. Open final closing ceremony—I thought it was terrific under circumstances that were not easy for her and would not be easy for anybody. I thought that it was very impressive for her to win the Australian Open several months after her first Grand Slam win and to position herself as No.1 in the world."

Djokovic says that the 21-year-old is wise beyond her years and he really has no advice to give to her.

“Everything that she has been doing so far is very positive and she is very kind and very genuine,” he said. “She comes across as someone that works hard, that respects the game—everybody likes her. I have no advice, she is doing everything perfect.”

Osaka, working with new coach Jermaine Jenkins at Indian Wells will kick off her title defense with a second-round encounter against Kristina Mladenovic. She fell to Mladenovic 6-3 6-3 in Dubai in her only match after claiming the Australian Open title.

The 21-year-old has undergone four surgeries in the last five years. Ana Konjuh‘s injury struggles continue. The Croatian announced that she underwent ulnar collateral reconstruction surgery and is not sure of when she’ll be able to return to tennis. Konjuh said that she tried to play through what she deemed to be manageable pain this season, but that it flared up more recently, causing her to go the surgery route.

Just a little update🙏🏻♥️ pic.twitter.com/ojgynyQgn3

— Ana Konjuh (@anakonjuh) March 3, 2019

It’s an incredibly unfortunate situation for a wildly talented player that has been riddled by injuries throughout her career.

The 21-year-old reached a career-high ranking of 20 in the world. In 2016 she reached the U.S. Open quarterfinals at the age of 18. A year earlier she had won the Nottingham title at the age of 17—becoming the youngest WTA player to lift a trophy since 2006.

This is the fourth surgery that Konjuh has undergone since 2014. She underwent two elbow surgeries on her right arm in 2014 and 2017, and had an elbow surgery on her left arm in 2018.

The former junior No.1 last played at Budapest in February, where she lost to Pauline Parmentier in straight sets.

Greece officially has its first Top 10 player in Stefanos Tsitsipas.

   it's official. Stefanos Tsitsipas    is enjoying his first week as a member of the ATP’s Top 10 at the BNP Paribas Open. The Greek, who fell to Roger Federer 6-4 6-4 in the Dubai final, rises one spot to become the first from his country to ever claim a spot in the Top 10. He bumps Marin Cilic down to No.11.

Welcome to the top 10, @StefTsitsipas 🤘

It's been a rapid rise – how far can Stef go? pic.twitter.com/ATPxsCFJnJ

— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) March 4, 2019

Federer jumps three spots to No. 4 after claiming his 100th title at Dubai.

The biggest riser inside the Top 100 this week is Nick Kyrgios who rises 39 spots all the way back to No.33. The former No.13 defeated three Top 10 players en route to his fifth career title in Mexico.

#NKRising 🙌

With the Acapulco title, @NickKyrgios soars 39 places this week to world No.33, more than halving his @ATP_Tour ranking in the space of seven days. #GoAussieshttps://t.co/aehyJjoer8

— TennisAustralia (@TennisAustralia) March 5, 2019

Great Britain’s Cameron Norrie makes his Top 50 debut at No.48 as a result of his semi-final appearance at Acapulco, while American Mackenzie McDonald rises to a new career-high at 62 after falling to Norrie in the Acapulco quarters.

Chile’s Christian Garin, 22, rises 20 spots to No.72 after reaching his maiden ATP final at Sao Paulo.

Norway’s Casper Ruud makes his Top 100 debut at 94 after reaching the semi-finals at Sao Paulo.