Jun Kuki

Jun Kuki
Full name Jun Kuki
Country (sports)  Japan
Born (1945-12-28) 28 December 1945
Yokkaichi, Japan
Plays Right-handed
Singles
Career record 67–115
Career titles 0
Highest ranking No. 74 (7 November 1976)
Grand Slam Singles results
Australian Open 2R (1972)
French Open 3R (1971)
Wimbledon 2R (1973)
US Open 2R (1971)
Doubles
Career record 14–69
Career titles 0
Grand Slam Doubles results
Australian Open 2R (1972)
French Open 2R (1970, 1971)
Wimbledon 2R (1975)
US Open 1R (1970, 1971, 1972)

Jun Kuki (九鬼 潤 Kuki Jun, born 28 December 1945) is a former professional tennis player from Japan.

Biography

Kuki, a right-hander, played collegiate tennis in the United States for UCLA. He had an unbeaten season in 1969, with a 13–0 record.[1]

He was first picked for the Japan Davis Cup team in the 1971 tournament.[2]

His best performance in a Grand Slam tournament came at the 1971 French Open when he had wins over Phil Dent and Peter Marmureanu, before losing a five-set third round match to Bob Lutz.[3]

Kuki made the first of his three Grand Prix finals at the 1972 Japan Open and lost in the decider to countryman Toshiro Sakai.

In April 1976 he had the most prolific period of his career when he finished runner-up in a further two Grand Prix tournaments, both in Spain. He lost to Paolo Bertolucci in the final at Barcelona, then to Buster Mottram in Palma, Majorca.[4][5]

A regular Davis Cup competitor for Japan in the 1970s, Kuki played the last of his nine ties for the Japanese team in 1978. He played a total of 17 singles matches, of which he won 11.

In the 1980s he was coach of Etsuko Inoue, a player on the women's circuit.[6]

Grand Prix career finals

Singles: 3 (0–3)

Outcome No. Year Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Runner-up 1. 1972 Tokyo, Japan Hard Japan Toshiro Sakai 3–6, 3–6
Runner-up 2. 1976 Barcelona, Spain Clay Italy Paolo Bertolucci 1–6, 6–3, 1–6, 6–7
Runner-up 3. 1976 Palma, Majorca, Spain Clay United Kingdom Buster Mottram 5–7, 3–6, 3–6

See also

References

  1. Ripton, Ray (2 May 1985). "31-0 Tennis Record Goes Beyond Words". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  2. "Japanese Pick Kuki". The Milwaukee Journal. 7 May 1971. p. 19. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  3. "Grand Slam Bid By Court Ended". Herald-Journal. 31 May 1971. p. 83. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  4. "Sports In Brief". Kentucky New Era. 3 April 1976. p. 15. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  5. "International Tournament". Sydney Morning Herald. 20 April 1976. p. 16. Retrieved 24 December 2015.
  6. Povtak, Tim. "Inoue A Pioneer For Japanese Tennis Players From Eastern Bloc Dominate Top 5 Places In Women's Rankings". Orlando Sentinel. 24 April 1985. Retrieved 24 December 2015.

External links

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