Exhibition with Bublik as an Emotional Prelude to His Final Tournament
Kazakh tennis great Mikhail Kukushkin is apparently putting an end to his rich career at this year’s ATP 250 tournament in Almaty. The organizers have prepared a special send-off for their longtime national team representative on his home turf. Before playing in the main draw – thanks to a wildcard – Kukushkin played an emotional exhibition match with his compatriot Alexander Bublik, which served as a ceremonial prelude to what is likely his final tournament.
Following the exhibition duel, a press conference was held where TennisSignals journalist, Lepojka Stanković, took the opportunity to take Kukushkin back to some of the brightest moments of his career, especially regarding his appearances for the national team.
Kukushkin for TennisSignals: “I Will Remember the Match Against Novak for the Rest of My Life”
Lepojka Stanković (TennisSignals): First of all, my big compliments for today’s exhibition match. It was full of warm and beautiful tennis between two friends. I have two questions for you. First, what does playing for your country in the Davis Cup mean to you compared to playing on the ATP tour? And to continue, tennis fans from Serbia still remember your epic five-hour Davis Cup match against Novak Djokovic in 2016. Did playing for your country give you extra motivation in that match?
Mikhail Kukushkin: Yes, playing for the Davis Cup means a lot. It’s those kinds of matches, those kinds of days for me that are special. You know, when I’m playing ATP events, I’m playing for myself, but when I play Davis Cup matches, I represent the country. There is a lot of responsibility.
For me, these kinds of matches always felt like I played better sometimes, because with the support from the crowd, from the fans, from the team, and from the whole country, that always really helped me to play better. The atmosphere of Davis Cup matches is completely different from the atmosphere of regular tour events. I always loved to play those kinds of matches.
And of course, I do remember the match with Novak in 2016. It was 4 hours and 57 minutes, I will remember this match for all my life. For sure, it was one of the best matches of my career, even though I lost the match. It was incredible, you know, playing against Novak, the Number 1 in the world. That year for him, I believe, was one of his best years. It was incredible to play, it was a really good match, and I really enjoyed it. It doesn’t matter the result, it’s a special day and a special match for me as well.
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