It’s time for another episode of the Tennisnerd podcast, this time with Grisha Kuklin from Gladiators Tennis.
Grisha Kuklin from Gladiators Tennis
Grigory “Grisha” Kuklin is an aspiring pro player and content creator with his brand name Gladiators Tennis. He has been a hitting partner to top pros like Medvedev and Rublev and documents his journey on the ITF Tour on his YouTube channel. He is refreshingly honest and energetic, and we had a lot of fun in this hour of conversation.
There are a few recurring themes in recent episodes of the Tennisnerd podcast—the struggles of being a pro on the lower levels of the tour, content creation in tennis, and the future of tennis. You can follow my interview with Grisha via the time stamps below. I hope you enjoy it and if you do, please like and subscribe.
The podcast is available on YouTube (usually at 9 CET on the evening of release day), Spotify, iTunes and other podcasting platforms. You can also listen via the embedded player below.
Timestamps
00:00 Intro and Life on tour
05:00 ITF Futures experience
12:33 Was your passion always to go pro?
14:43 Talk about your YouTube journey
20:08 Ultimate Tennis Showdown and the future of tennis
29:00 Who was the toughest to train with, Rublev or Medvedev?
35:13 How was it to be a hitting partner in Dubai?
38:00 Content creation in tennis
45:00 From five Gladiators to one
50:30 Working with sponsors
52:55 From Kaliningrad to Barcelona
56:17 Staying true to your tennis soul
