Topic: Igor Kunitsyn

Igor Kunitsyn (born September 30, 1981, in Vladivostok, Soviet Union) is a professional male tennis player from Russia. He made it into the top 100 for the first time in 2006, and reached a career-high singles ranking of 35 on July 6, 2009.

Kunitsyn was raised by his grandparents in Vladivostok, on the eastern coast of Russia, when he was young, and started to play tennis at age seven.

Kunitsyn is arguably best known for two matches against compatriot Marat Safin. The first of which was at the 2007 Tennis Channel Open's round robin stage. Kunitsyn had won the first set 6–4, and had an early break in the 2nd before Safin fought back and then got a 5–3 lead. While serving for the match, Kunitsyn broke Safin and then held to get it to 5–5. The set went to a tiebreaker which Safin won. Kunitsyn was still dangerous, as he won the first 3 games of the 3rd set, before losing the next 4. Kunitsyn performed the same as before, and broke Safin again to get the set on equal terms. At 5–5, Kunitsyn suffered a service break and Safin ultimately won the 3rd set 7–5. The pair met again in the final of the Kremlin Cup, an ATP tournament played in Moscow, which is to date Kunitsyn's only tour final and was Safin's last appearance in an ATP final before his retirement in 2010. In what was a considerable upset, Kunitsyn defeated the former two-time Grand Slam winner and world no. 1 7–6 (6), 6–7 (4), 6–3 for his first and, to date, only professional title.