Lucas Pouille managed to reach his second masters 1000 semifinal of his career with a bizarre 6-0 3-6 7-5 victory over Pablo Cuevas.
The Frenchman started the match off in lightening quick fashion as he would capitalise on a ropey Pablo Cuevas in the first set. The Uruguayan managed to win three points on serve as the 11th seed used his big forehand and serve to pummel Cuevas’ spirit. Pouille hit a stunning drop shot to seal a 6-0 set.
The second set was completely the opposite as Cuevas began to find his rhythm in the second set and won the first four games for a 4-0 lead. Cuevas managed to use his backhand to good effect and was also managing to pass Pouille at the net with relative ease. The Frenchman briefly found his confidence that he had in the first set and began breaking down the Cuevas serve bringing it back to 4-2. However he was just delaying the inevitable and in the ninth game Cuevas sealed the second set 6-3 to force a decider.
The third set saw both men share breaks of serve in the second and third games as Pouille lead 2-1 on serve. This flat footed match was allowing both men to play to their strengths, Cuevas dictating play with his backhand and shaping the ball, while Pouille used raw power on his forehand side to battle past the Cuevas defences. However the break of serve would go to Cuevas in the seventh game through a cross court forehand that just touched the baseline, which gave him a 4-3 lead. However Pablo’s run would run out as despite serving for the match at 5-4, Pouille would reel off three games in a row to complete victory in 2 hours.
The win for Pouille means he has reached his second masters 1000 semifinal and will play Albert Ramos-Viñolas for a place in the final.
