Not many gamers can say they have never lost to Jannik Sinner after going through him.
Sinner is presently on the damage sidelines, having ended his season early due to a proper knee damage.
Despite his current woes, Sinner has still loved a very profitable 2026 season, having won his fifth Grand Slam title at Wimbledon and won every single match he has performed at a Masters 1000 event.
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Only three gamers have crushed Sinner this yr, exhibiting just how exhausting a feat it is to obtain. Mikhail Kukushkin also has a win against Sinner, and he has now retired from skilled tennis.
Mikhail Kukushkin has retired from skilled tennis
Kukushkin made his ATP Tour debut in 2007, and almost 20 years later he is still competing.
The now 38-year-old, who represents Kazakhstan, had announced that he would be taking part in his ultimate event at the Almaty Open, where Kukushkin had acquired a wildcard for.
Kukushkin won his first ATP Tour match in two years in his first spherical in Almaty, before both his run and profession came to an finish against Stefanos Tsitsipas, who beat him 7-6(5), 7-6(4).
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This brings an finish to a very respectable profession for Kukushkin, who has been ranked as extremely as world quantity 39. Kukushkin also won one ATP title in his profession at the St. Petersburg Open and achieved his best Grand Slam outcome at Wimbledon in 2019, when he made it to the fourth spherical.
Kukushkin also obtained 4 high 10 wins in his profession, including victories over both Stan Wawrinka and Grigor Dimitrov. Kukushkin also performed Sinner earlier in his profession at the St. Petersburg Open in 2019. This was when Sinner was just 18 years outdated, and expertise confirmed as Kukushkin beat the Italian 6-3, 7-6(4).
Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images
Stefanos Tsitsipas sends message to Mikhail Kukushkin after he retires from tennis
While Kukushkin is not essentially the largest retirement of 2026, with the likes of Wawrinka and Gael Monfils also saying farewell to the sport, it is clear to see how revered he is by his friends.
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Kukushkin has represented Kazakhstan since 2008, and is one of the Central Asian nation’s best ever gamers, and Tsitsipas has praised him for all he has finished for the nation after ending his profession.
Tsitsipas wrote on X (previously recognized as Twitter), “A big bravo to Mikhail Kukushkin, who was a trailblazer for Kazakh tennis in the 2010s. Wishing you the best in retirement, Mikhail!”
After ending his taking part in profession, Kukushkin has confirmed his intention to now focus on his tennis academy that he opened in Spain.
In an interview with Clay, Kukushkin said, “Coaching at the academy I opened this summer in Spain. It’s a very small academy, not one of those huge mass academies; let’s say it’s a boutique academy where I pay attention to every player.
“It’s got off to a very good begin and we have a lot of good gamers, so for the second I’ll keep in tennis through that, but let’s see where I am in a few years.”
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