Del Potro’s Sydney Run Ends

Juan Martin del Potro’s run at the Sydney International tournament came to an end on Thursday as the defending champion fell to Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin in the semifinals.

Kukushkin prevailed in two sets that each went to tiebreakers for a 7-6(5), 7-6(3) victory. The match featured no break points as each player won every single one of their service games.

“When you play six matches in a row at one tournament, you start to get some confidence,” said Kukushkin, who is ranked 66th in the world. “It’s very, very important, especially at the beginning of the year when you had two month offseason, no competition, no matches. I’m pretty happy to have so many wins here in Sydney.”

The loss marks the end of Del Potro’s hopes of defending his Sydney title as he continues his comeback from wrist surgery. The Argentine was playing his first matches this week since last February.

“It was a tough match,” said del Potro. “I think he deserved to win because he played better than me in the tiebreak. I served well, but my wrist hurts a little bit more than yesterday, and I couldn’t hit harder than my last match.  I think anyway it’s a great week for me. I played three matches in a row and I played against good players, which means a good comeback for me.”

While one Argentinean was eliminated on Thursday, another one reached the final four. Fifth-seeded Leonardo Mayer got past fourth-seeded Julien Benneteau of France 6-3, 7-6(4) to advance.

He fired 12 aces and notched the only break point of the match to claim victory in an hour and a half, setting up a clash with Kukushkin.

“It’s going to be a very complicated match,” said Mayer about his semifinal opponent. “Kukushkin is a very good player. He’s won tough matches and for sure it’s going to be a big challenge.”

The other semifinal will be between Serbian qualifier Viktor Troicki and Gilles Muller.

Troicki continued his excellent play in Sydney with a 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 victory over Italy’s Simone Bolelli, while Muller outlasted Australian Bernard Tomic in a second-set tiebreaker for a 7-6(3), 7-6(13) victory.

In Auckland, New Zealand, fourth-seeded Kevin Anderson ousted eighth-seeded American Steve Johnson. The South African edged Johnson in a second-set tiebreaker to advance with a 6-4, 7-6(8) win at the Heineken Open.

Anderson moves into the semis where he will take on Jiri Vesely. The Czech qualifier rolled past American Donald Young 6-2, 6-3 on Thursday.

Lucas Pouille knocked off Albert Ramos-Vinolas of Spain 6-3, 6-2 to push through into the final four. The 20-year old Frenchman entered the draw as a lucky loser following the withdrawal of Tommy Robredo.

He will meet fellow Frenchman Adrian Mannarino, who knocked off Alejandro Falla 6-3, 6-1 to advance to the semifinals.