Lucas Pouille admits the match he played on Sunday at a Challenger event in Lille could be the last of his career after he seriously injuring his leg.
The Frenchman was 5-3 up in the second set against Arthur Bouquier in the final when he fell to the ground in pain. He immediately went to hold his right leg and the seriousness of his injury was soon realised. Pouille retired from the final and exited the court before making a return for the trophy presentation in a wheelchair.
Addressing fans in the stands, the 30-year-old reveled that he is fearing the end of his career.
“The news is, I think, not good,” he said. “I don’t want to make any statements until there have been tests. But there is a chance that this will be the last match of my career. I think it’s a complete rupture of the Achilles tendon.
“Playing tennis again at a high level after that is complicated. I’ll do everything in my power to come back, at least I’ll try. I’ll talk to the doctors and surgeons. That’s the way it is, that’s life.”
Following those comments, Pouille confirmed on social media that he has completely ruptured his achilles tendon and will undergo surgery. The Achilles tendon connects your calf muscles to your heel bone. Issues regarding this area of the body can be resolve either surgically or non-surgically depending on the severity of the injury.
“The results are what we thought.. Complete rupture of the Achilles tendon.. thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your messages,” Pouille wrote on X.
“I’m going to have surgery in the next few days and do everything I can to come back.”
Pouille has been ranked as high as 10th in the world and is a former Australian Open semi-finalist from 2019. He has also reached the quarter-finals of both Wimbledon and the US Open in 2016. On the ATP Tour, he has won five titles with four of them being at 250 events and another at a 500 in Vienna.
He is currently ranked 102 in the world.
