Mikhail Kukushkin: On his way back!

– With his performances on last weeks, Mikhail Kukushkin has comebacked where I think he belongs, the Top-100. He has climbed his way back into where I think he belongs, the Top-100, after a R3 showing in the USO, and two Challenger wins. But it hasn’t just been a three week work, as 2013 has seen him climb from #324 in June ( his drop in the rankings was due to a combination of injuries in the 2nd half of 2012 and not being able to defend his early points from 2012 [ he reached R4 in the AO and R3 in Monte-Carlo] ) to finally #100 this week. This year he’s won 3 CH’s [ Kosice, Istanbul-2 and Izmir] , and has reached 2 finals [ Tanger and Astana]. He didn’t appear much on the main tour ( 2-4 record, plus one loss to Hajekon Davis Cup), but he performed great in the USO, as he qualified and reached R3, losing to Ferrer in a hard-fought match. I think it’s time again for Mikhail to play ATP’s regularly, and I think he will end the year around #85.

Some Facts about him:

– Reached his 1st SF in Moscow 09′ ( aged 21).
– Won St.Petersburg over #10 at the time Youzhny in 2010.
– He ended 2010 in the Top-60.
– He made his maiden GS R4 in the AO, beating #23 Troicki and #15 Monfils in 5 sets.
– He also made his only M-1000 R3 in Monte-Carlo 2012 ( beating #20 Florian Mayer).
– Is yet to beat a Top-10 player.
– Has 9 Challenger titles in his résumé.

David Goffin mental strength in doubt

It’s often tough to establish yourself after a breakthrough year ( it happened to Tomic in 2012, Golubev in 2011, Stebe in 2012, Ebden… and many other players), and it seems to be happening to David Goffin this year, and that’s a shame because the Belgian is in my opinion such an exciting prospect and he has such a good timing off both wings. This year he has a 1-4 record, with just 1 win over Ebden in Brisbane R1. Almost in all his losses he has had a chance of winning, specially in his 5 set losses vs Verdasco in Oz R1 after being two sets to one up with a break in the 4th, and his most recent loss vs Troicki on Davis Cup R1, after squandering a two sets to love lead. Even though he showed some improvements on his game, like more firepower on his groundies and with his serve, he loses all that on key moments, showing a huge lack of mental strength. I hope it’s just a temporary slump, and I think it will be that, because a player of David’s caliber can’t spend too much time without winning. Allez David!, all the best