Jo-Wilfred Tsonga won his second title in his two weeks after defeating Lucas Pouille in the final 6-4 6-4.
In the battle of the Frenchman it was the world number 11 who started off the brightest as a powerful backhand forced an error from Pouille and the break was his as he lead 1-0. Tsonga continued to use his powerful serve and forehand to win points, choosing the same pattern of plays that won him the Rotterdam title last week. He faced no break points on his own serve, as a result he sealed the set with a lucky net cord, 6-4. Could Pouille start brighter in the second set than he did in the first set?
The second set saw both men serve more comfortably with Pouille starting to work his way into the match more. Some brilliant net skills saw Pouille gather momentum, but no pressure was being applied on the Tsonga serve. However in the seventh game the former grand slam semi finalist struck after a backhand slice forced a backhand into the net from Pouille, to break to 15 and lead 4-3. No more break points were created and after 1 hour and 9 minutes, Tsonga sealed the match to love, 6-4 6-4. The win means it’s Tsonga’s 12th title and his second in two weeks.
The win means Tsonga will move to world number seven, he has been in sensational form to win back to back titles and has obviously gained confidence from his quarterfinal in Australia. For Pouille it is a good return to form which will bring him confidence in the coming month.
The question is who can stop Tsonga now?
