TENNIS.com Podcast

"Some were going to be great no matter what we did, but we try to treat all the players that come through with the idea: Look at your game now and where do you want to go?"USTA national coach Richard Ashby joins the TENNIS.com Podcast from the Lake Nona, Fla. studio with Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi.Now 17 years into his career as a coach, Ashby has worked with most of America's young female talent, targeting players in the Under-14 category. His resume includes court time with Sloane Stephens, Amanda Anisimova, Sofia Kenin and Coco Vandeweghe, to name just a few.Ashby talks about his experience running Player Development camps—one of which Falconi attended alongside Madison Brengle and Alison Riske. He explains what it's like working with young stars, who he's keeping a close eye on, and how he sees college tennis as a pathway to the pro tour.Watch TENNIS.com Podcast episodes on YouTube and Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"You’ve got to have everything. That’s not easy. We’ve picked the toughest sport in the world to be professionals at. It is the toughest sport in the world without a doubt.” Pat Cash joins the show this week, catching up with co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi while he was in Delray Beach. The Australian is currently working with fast-rising American teenager Brandon Nakashima.Cash is working as a consultant, hoping to help a few pro players on tour. He's got plenty of wisdom to share having been ranked as high as No. 4, won Wimbledon in 1987, and appeared in two Australian Open finals.The esteemed coach has previously worked with Greg Rusedski, Mark Philippoussis, CoCo Vandeweghe and Alexei Popyrin. He shares what he looks for in a new pupil, what stands out to him about Nakashima and how he operates as a coach. He also reveals the inspiration behind his famous checkered bandana, his off-court interests and how he lost his passport on his way to the U.S. last month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Being Top 100, it’s such a grind physically on tour sometimes, you don’t really need to be a better player you just need to play more tournaments feeling better.”Brian Baker joins the TENNIS.com Podcast this week with co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi. The trio met up while in Lake Nona, Fla. at the USTA National Campus, where Baker is a national men’s coach. Baker took his talents to the pro tour as a teenager in 2002. He would reach as high as No. 52 in the world, and won two doubles ATP titles in 2017. But the 34-year-old might be most well-known for his injury setbacks.His struggles began back in 2005 with a wrist injury. A torn MCL at Wimbledon—at the start of a qualifying match against Novak Djokovic—became the catalyst for more problems that would keep him off the tour for six years. He’s had 15 surgeries in total, dealing with wrist, knee, back, elbow and hip injuries. He made multiple memorable comebacks including in 2011 and 2016, which resulted in two huge career highlights: reaching the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2012 and earning a spot on the Rio Olympic team in 2016.Watch TENNIS.com Podcast episodes on YouTube and Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"I think me and Coco have a good time and we like to separate that. We still are young, we’re still kids, we like to have fun, and not always think about tennis 24/7... We were making TikToks in the locker room in Australia."This week, the TENNIS.com Podcast features American teenager Caty McNally. Co-host Nina Pantic sat down with the 18-year-old and her coach Kevin O’Neill while they were in Midland, Mich. for the ITF W100. Though the Ohio resident didn’t defend her title there this year, she did reach the quarterfinals. McNally has risen quietly behind her doubles partner Coco Gauff (the teens won two titles in 2019 and reached the Australian Open quarterfinals). McNally shares what it’s like being partners and friends with Gauff, and explains the inspirations behind their celebratory dances. She also goes into detail abut their obsession with Tik Tok, and how find ways to have fun on tour. Doubles has helped round out McNally’s game, and her coach O’Neill is more than supportive of her desire to play both. While ranked inside the Top 40 in doubles, McNally has made waves in singles too, taking a set of Serena Williams at the 2019 US Open and reaching the semifinals in Washington, while achieving a career-high ranking of No. 105. Stick around after the interview to hear an update from co-host Irina Falconi as she continues her comeback season. She gives a behind-the-scenes rundown of the unexpected finale in Midland, where Anhelina Kalinina withdrew from the title match against Shelby Rogers.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"If I start something I want to finish it and I want to say, 'Look I gave it my all.' And I don't think I was ready to stop. At the end of the day, I do love competing and giving myself a chance—I don't want to look back and say I didn't do that."TENNIS.com Podcast co-hosts Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi caught up with Jamie Loeb at the W100 ITF in Midland, Mich., where she reached the semifinals of both singles and doubles. The 24-year-old New York native spent two years at the University of North Carolina, and won the NCAA singles title in 2015. She was awarded the $100,000 Oracle grant last year, but the pro tour hasn't been an upwards-only trajectory for her. The world No. 279 reflects on a tough 2019 that saw injury and lack of confidence hinder both her mindset and results. Despite her ranking dip (she was No. 132 in 2018) and not enjoying being on court, she won the W25 ITF in Dallas in October. It marked her eighth career ITF trophy and first since 2017, and signaled the start of a career turnaround. She talks about her college experience, relocating to Lake Nona, Fla., teaming up with Jermaine Jenkins (who has worked with Naomi Osaka and Venus Williams) and just how far she's willing to go to see Cardi B perform.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"It's great tennis. However, it's so much more than tennis. We have dining from all over the area. We have concerts. We have free events. There's just so much going on."The TENNIS.com Podcast's Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi are in Midland, Mich. this week at the ITF W100 Dow Tennis Classic. They sit down with tournament director Talaya Schilb to talk all things Midland, and also recap the Australian Open. Schilb is a first-time tournament director, but she's not new to the Greater Midland Tennis Center, having worked there since 2004. She explains what makes the week so special as the community rallies around the players, providing housing, sponsorship support and attending the matches by the hundreds.The Australian Open just wrapped and Falconi gives the lowdown on what it was like to be in Melbourne for qualifying when the air quality was at its worst. The co-hosts also break down what is so unique about Sofia Kenin's fighting spirit, if touching an umpire's shoe is really that serious, and why Ashleigh Barty brought her baby niece into press.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"I think that it does come from reps and that confidence is one thing that’s essential in a performance business, which this is. And I think that confidence is the one thing in life you can’t fake."This week's TENNIS.com Podcast episode features Brett Haber, a decorated broadcaster with over three decades of experience and stories to share. Nina Pantic sat down with Haber in Los Angeles ahead of the 2020 season.Haber is the voice and face you see regularly on Tennis Channel, covering all of the action alongside the greatest legends in the game. But how did he get that coveted seat? It all began for him as a teenager on NBC's "Main Street" in 1986. Since then, he's anchored ESPN's "SportsCenter",  won 17 regional Emmy awards, emceed the Tennis Hall of Fame induction ceremony and hosted the Olympics on NBC. His love for tennis started young, and Haber recalls sneaking into the Jimmy Connors' famous 1991 win over Aaron Krickstein at the US Open. He shares the challenges of both getting into broadcasting and getting good at it, and the importance of doing reps, watching yourself on film and having confidence. Watch TENNIS.com Podcast episodes on YouTube and Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"I love it. I still keep all my credentials and I get excited when I get my credential and I think, wow, yeah, they’re paying me this time."As writer Joel Drucker heads to Melbourne for his 12th Australian Open, he joins Nina Pantic to preview the first Grand Slam of the year, and dive into his recent TENNIS Magazine cover story about Roger Federer. The 59-year-old author of two books is entering his fifth decade of covering the game. He shares his tips and tricks to reporting, including how he found out that Ken Rosewall writes a handwritten letter to Federer ahead of every Australian Open. Drucker talks about his experiences interviewing Federer, including a memorable Indian Wells encounter. A preview of the Happy Slam wouldn't be complete without discussion of the Big Three, as well as defending champion Naomi Osaka. Australian favorite Alex de Minaur pulled out, but Nick Kyrgios and Ashleigh Barty are two homegrown stars poised to make an impact this fortnight.To donate to the American Red Cross for the Australian bushfire relief effort, go to redcross.org/tennischannel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"When I was playing juniors last year it was all Grand Slams and nice tournaments. Now it’s going to be that grind day in, day out, every week, so I’m looking forward to that."This week's TENNIS.com Podcast features Emilio Nava, a rising American teenager. He joined Nina Pantic and Irina Falconi in the USTA National Campus studio during the off-season.The 18-year-old reached the junior Australian Open and US Open finals in 2019, ending the year as the No. 5 junior in the world. Now he's turning his attention to the pro tour with a ranking of No. 940, and shares what it's like to commit to the transition. The teenager talks about how he got into tennis, why he idolizes David Ferrer, his move out of the USTA dorms, his yoga skills, and a lot more. Nava is part of a tennis-playing family: his mom represented Mexico in the 1988 Olympics, his older brother Eduardo plays for Wake Forest and his cousin is ATP pro Ernesto Escobedo. He gives credit to his family for his competitive spirit and love for the game. Watch the TENNIS.com Podcast episodes on YouTube and Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"My memories are about: conflict and how I resolved those conflicts on the court, off the court, relationships that I built, the fun times in the hotels messing around, and friendships that I didn’t enter into the business thinking that I would leave with."This week's TENNIS.com Podcast episode features Todd Martin, a former world No. 4 and current CEO of the International Tennis Hall of Fame.Martin won eight ATP titles and appeared in two Grand Slam finals, but he cherishes the relationships and off-court memories the most. The American was a late bloomer, turning pro after two years at Northwestern, but he found his place amidst the Top 10 and as president of the ATP Council. The 49-year-old thought he knew exactly what he wanted to do after retiring in 2006, but coaching was not the right fit despite working with the likes of Mardy Fish and Novak Djokovic. Instead, Martin jumped into business for himself, but couldn't refuse an offer from the Hall of Fame in 2014. There's a lot in store for the Hall of Fame in 2020 and beyond, and Martin has the inside scoop on what it's like to work at the tennis' most precious museum. Martin explains how the inductees are decided, ahead of the Class of 2020 being announced on Jan. 28 (the candidates are Goran Ivanisevic, Conchita Martinez, Jonas Bjorkman and Sergi Bruguera). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices