Mikhail Kukushkin Advances to Quarterfinals at Oeiras Challenger
Қазақстандық теннисші, әлемнің 262-ракеткасы Михаил Кукушкин Оэйраш (Португалия) челленджер турнирінің ширек финалына шықты.
Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin, currently ranked 262nd in the ATP standings, has secured a place in the quarterfinals of the Challenger tournament in Oeiras, Portugal.
Kukushkin began his campaign with a straight sets victory over local wildcard Gastao Elias, ranked 370th in the world, winning 6:2, 6:3. In the second round, he faced Estonia’s Mark Lajal, the world No.153.
Lajal claimed the opening set after edging a tie break 7:6 (7:4), but Kukushkin responded with a strong comeback, taking the next two sets 6:2 and 7:5. The hard fought match lasted three hours and 15 minutes.
In the quarterfinals, Kukushkin will meet Lithuania’s Vilius Gaubas, ranked 129th, who earlier defeated 19 year old Czech player Petr Brunclik (No.313) in three sets, 6:1, 1:6, 6:3.
Another Kazakh player, Denis Yevseyev (No.367), produced an upset in the opening round by defeating Switzerland’s Jerome Kym (No.187) 6:4, 6:7 (5:7), 6:2. He will next face Hungary’s Zsombor Piros, currently ranked 170th.
The Oeiras Challenger tournament offers a total prize pool of 160,680 euros, with the champion set to earn 23,750 euros and 100 ATP ranking points.
