Retirement announcements are very close to a tennis player’s heart as it is a major part of their career, and as a result, most times, Instagram or X is the chosen platform for such an emotional message, but not for former World No. 39, Mikhail Kukushkin. The 38-year-old Kazakh drew curtains on his 20-year career, but chose a unique platform to announce it on, catching the attention of a tennis journalist on social media.

Ben Rothenberg, a prominent tennis journalist, spotted Kukushkin’s retirement message on LinkedIn, of all places. “Mikhail Kukushkin might be the first tennis player I’ve seen announce a retirement on LinkedIn”, tweeted Rothenberg. Even though the message’s medium was odd and slightly comical, the content was emotional. “Tennis has never been just a job or a sport for me. It has been my life. Since childhood, it has taught me how to dream, how to fight, how to deal with defeat, how to appreciate victory, and how to never give up”, penned an emotional Kukushkin.

Kukushkin announced he would retire in front of his home fans, penciling in the 2026 Almaty Open in October as his last event on the Tour. That would be the first Tour-level event he would play this year, after playing all 38 of his matches in 2026 at the Challenger level, with one runner-up finish in Glasgow.

Kukushkin had made his debut on the Tour back in 2006 while playing under the Russian flag, but soon adopted Kazakhstan’s citizenship and started representing the country in 2008. He was the one who set the standard for Kazakh tennis in the early 2010s, by becoming the first player from the country to reach the fourth round at the 2012 Australian Open and cracking the top 40 on the ATP rankings. He is famous for his gritty style of play, often dragging opponents into baseline battles, which often helped him win long five-set matches at Grand Slams.

This is a developing story…