2015 US Open: Cilic v Kukushkin preview

Reigning US Open champion Marin Cilic marches on to the third round of the 2015 US Open following his straight-sets victory over Russian qualifier Evgeny Donskoy 6-2 6-3 7-5 at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Wednesday. Cilic will play unseeded Mikhail Kukushkin in the next round in his bid to defend his title at Flushing Meadows.

Cilic, who struggled this season after battling a shoulder injury, soared off to a strong start by overcoming Argentine qualifier Guido Pella 6-3 7-6 7-6 in his opening round match on Monday at Louis Armstrong Stadium. He powered his way into the third round by winning in straight sets against Donskoy, firing 19 aces to his opponent’s two. He struck 39 winners and won 63 percent of his break point opportunities.

Cilic, who only lost serve once to the Russian, needed less than two hours to advance. He reached the fourth round of the 2015 French Open (lost to David Ferrer 6-2 6-2 6-4). He also had a quarterfinal appearance at this year’s Wimbledon (lost to Novak Djokovic 6-4 6-4 6-4).

The ninth-seeded Croat will play 56^th-ranked Kukushkin in the third round. The unseeded Kazakhstani advanced in the tournament after scoring a stunning upset of 17^th seed Grigor Dimitrov 6-3 7-6 2-6 4-6 6-4, to avoid the same fate last year when he was eliminated in the first round (lost to Jan-Lennard Struff 2-6 3-6 6-3 6-3 7-5).

Kukushkin has already played eight sets in the tournament. The 29-year-old Croat, on the other hand, won his first two matches in straight sets, raising his game in tiebreaks in defence of his US Open title. Cilic did not play at the Australian Open due to his shoulder injury.

This will be the third time that Cilic and Kukushkin will play on tour. Both previous clashes took place in the hardcourt events at St. Petersburg and Moscow. Their head-to-head series are tied at 1-1.

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