#4 Lucas Pouille
France’s Lucas Pouille went into the US Open as the world number 25 and not many pundits expected him to reach the quarterfinals at the tournament. But the Frenchman performed exceedingly well to match the likes of Rafael Nadal and Mikhail Kukushkin at the Grand Slam event.
Pouille started his journey with a four-set victory over the Kazakhstani Kukushkin in the first round of the US Open as he defeated him by 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 and 6-2. The Frenchman then faced Switzerland’s Marco Chuidinelli in the second round whom he overpowered with a scoreline of 4-6, 3-6, 8-6, 6-2 and 6-0.
The win meant that Pouille went on to face Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut in the third round. The Frenchman did not start off well as he lost the first set but went on to win the match with the reading of 3-6, 7-5, 2-6, 7-5 and 6-1.
The win put the Frenchman in contention to face Rafael Nadal in the fourth round and to everyone’s surprise, Pouille caused the upset of the tournament as he beat the Spaniard with a scoreline of 6-1, 2-6, 6-4, 3-6, and 8-6.
However, the French player could not get past his compatriot Gael Monfils in the quarterfinals. 10th seeded Monfils defeated Pouille in three straight sets with a scoreline of 6-4, 6-3, and 6-3. It was the end of the road for the 22-year old Pouille but the start of something if he can replicate his performances in the future.
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