Who Is Miomir Kecmanovic’s Famed Coach Ivan Cinkus? Everything You Need to Know About His Vital Contributions to Balkan Tennis

Fasten your seatbelts. It’s time for ‘Misha’ vs ‘Baby Fed’ in Monte Carlo. Miomir Kecmanovic is all set to take on Grigor Dimitrov in the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters in just a few hours from now at the Court des Princes. Miami Open finalist, Dimitrov, had to navigate a tricky first match against the local lad, Valentin Vacherot to get through to the next round. While Kecmanovic ease passed, Matteo Berrettini in his opening match, can he repeat the same against the new no.9? Well, Ivan Cinkus may have the perfect answer to this.

Who’s Ivan Cinkus? He’s a renowned tennis coach from Zagreb, Croatia. Previously, the 44-year-old tennis coach has worked with multiple tennis stars and most recently he coached Marin Cilic before joining Kecmanovic’s team in 2023. Cilic is widely considered one of the greatest Croatian tennis players of all time. He won the US Open title in 2014 and a year later, Cinkus joined his team. The duo then went on to win the Cincinnati Masters in 2016 and played two Grand Slam finals after that.

Miomir Kecmanovic now looks forward to having a similar impact on his career with the presence of this Croatian coach in his team. In 2022, Kecmanovic worked with David Nalbandian and Johan Ortegren. But after a disappointing start to his season, he had to seek a change in coaching time in the middle of the season. After that, he contacted Cinkus and asked him if he wanted to come on board.

Speaking on Kecmanovic, Ivan Cinkus once said, “Miomir plays really well. But what he lacks a bit is a positive attitude on the court. For instance, in Dallas he lost a match he should have won (to Emiliano Gomez). He is a young player who needs a coach that will make him work hard and stay disciplined. From what I have gathered talking to him, with Nalbandian a lot of things were not defined,”

Before facing Carlos Alcaraz at the AO this year, Miomir Kecmanovic’s coach said that he was pleased with the progress of the Serbian. For him, the most important thing is that Kecmanovic knows that they are here to help him become a good tennis player. “I am satisfied as the coach that he’s believing more and more in what we do. We are now really good. He feels that he can do much better now.” Ivan Cinkus believes it’s very important for the coach to be on the same page with the player.

“He is a top 20 caliber player” – Big claims by the coach of Serbian tennis player, Miomir Kecmanovic

During an interview with Tennis Majors last year, Cinkus stated, “Everybody thinks that a former player just comes in with a magic wand, but it does not work that way. The coach and a player need to go through certain things together. And they need to be on the same page.” Kecmanovic has a tough job ahead this season at the Monte-Carlo Masters. But his coach is quite optimistic about his future.

“I am not sure how it will go with Kecmanovic – perhaps I will ask for too much. Perhaps he will, but what I am sure of is that he is a top 20 caliber player,” said the coach of the current number 66. Can the young Serbian tennis player follow in the footsteps of his idol Novak Djokovic? Share your thoughts with us in the comment box.

READ MORE: “Achieved Something That’s Almost Impossible”- Miomir Kecmanovic on Being Potential Successor of Novak Djokovic