Marin Cilic put away Mikhail Kukushkin 6-1 6-1 6-1 on Sunday to send Croatia into the Davis Cup semi-finals.
Cilic clinched the quarter-final against Kazakhstan 3-1 on indoor clay after the two-hour match — the easiest of his three career wins over Kukushkin.
Twenty-nine-year-old Cilic did not serve to his usual standard but saved all four break points against him, broke Kukushkin seven times, and hit twice as many winners.
Croatia, who have staged both of their ties this year, will also host the United States on September 14-16, likely on clay. Croatia have not lost a tie on clay in five years.
The Croatians have a 4-0 win-loss record against the Americans. They last met in the 2016 quarter-finals, en route to Croatia’s second final appearance.
By beating Kukushkin, Cilic equalled Ivan Ljubicic’s national record of 36 Cup match wins. Ljubicic famously led the team of 2005 to Croatia’s only Davis Cup title.
