• After passing the three qualifying rounds, Lucas Pouille managed his entry into the final draw perfectly, outclassing Austrian lucky loser Jurij Rodionov on Sunday.
  • To achieve this clear success (6-2, 6-4, 6-3), the 29-year-old Northerner benefited from the "hallucinating" atmosphere on the small court number 14.

At Roland-Garros,

At this rate, the young court number 14 of the Porte d'Auteuil could bear in the coming years the name of Lucas Pouille. It's simple, the two biggest hits of this beginning of Roland-Garros 2023 systematically go hand in hand, with the key to an explosive cocktail four times in seven days. Since the first round of qualifying, for which he was invited by the organizers, the 29-year-old Northerner has taken up residence on this field number 14 which can in theory accommodate only 2,158 spectators. In fact, they were more than 2,500 to take place everywhere, including on the stairs, in the heart of this small cauldron ideal for French players.

At the time of meeting the Austrian Jurij Rodionov, whom he had beaten with difficulty Thursday in qualifying (1-6, 7-5, 6-0), Luca Pouille fed Sunday on a fervor that he describes as "unreal" to transcend himself. Aggressive first balls, passes of incredible violence and precision, and unfailing malice in the most hooked exchanges, the former member of the ATP Top 10 rose for nearly two hours to an unexpected level to win 6-2, 6-4, 6-3. And according to him, the short number 14 played a key role in his recital.

I feel like every day it's getting crazier and crazier for me here. The energy around me is incredible, from the first point to the last. Since the first round of qualifying, people have been pushing me like I've never been here. Playing on this court where people are close to us and can experience emotions more than on a very big court, it creates something incredible. »


"Come on, the second week now Lucas"

After having lived all the match on this famous court, we tell you in six points why this first round of the final table a priori any, between the 134th ... And the 675th player in the world, has turned into a crazy nameless.

  • On Sunday evening, there was a queue of more than a hundred people, all hoping to see spectators leave their places as and when this meeting was very crowded.
  • The variety of chants was as varied as that of the offensive shots deployed by Lucas Pouille on Sunday. "Let's go Lucas, let's go", Seven Nation Army, the We quibbled them famous by RC Lens, everything went there.
  • It was a real nightmare for the nerves of Jurij Rodionov, caught in flu by the whole court number 14 as soon as he deigned to address the referee or suspect a ball out.
  • The referee of the match had life barely easier. She spent her evening asking the spectators "Chuuuuuuut" between the points, like a mother embarrassed to see her toddlers flip a Ouigo wagon.
  • Even the words of encouragement for Pouille were often unusual to say the least: "It's for you Roland-Garros this year Lucas", "Come on, the second week now Lucas".
  • Finally, the climax of the evening came from a Marseillaise of madness launched twice by the spectators, including once just after the match, with an emotional Lucas Pouille, hand on heart.


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A highlight of his career, which would almost be worth in his eyes the Marseillaise of the Davis Cup 2017 won against Belgium in Lille (in front of 27,000 fans). "I wanted to share this moment with the spectators, as soon as they started singing it," explains the one who had disappeared from the ATP radar for several seasons. The fault is injuries and depression, which led him to consider quitting high-level tennis permanently.

"Give people back everything they bring to me"

Star faller of Daniil Medvedev at the 2018 edition of Roland-Garros, Lucas Pouille passes for the first time a round of Grand Slam since the US Open 2019. "Who was it against? I don't remember that victory," smiled the Northerner. The time seemed very long. If I had been told that in 2019, the year I reached the semi-final in Melbourne, I wouldn't have believed it. »

Before this spectacular renaissance on court number 14 of Roland-Garros for a week, he had to resolve to chain Challengers tournaments. What he will have to multiply again in the coming weeks to gradually grab the ATP ranking. Hence the idea of a happy parenthesis for him at Roland, which he describes with passion, after spending about thirty minutes chaining selfies and autographs with all of his fans.



That's also why I enjoy every moment, all these moments of communion with the public. People all give 1,000%, they are amazing. I kept hearing some people say "We waited all day to see you, we're here for you". It's heartwarming, and when the match ends, I want to stay on the court as long as possible to spend time with them, thank them, sing with them. I try to give back to people everything they bring to me on the court since the beginning of this Roland-Garros. It is also thanks to them that I manage to have this energy and play at this level. On another tournament, that probably wouldn't have been the case. That's the magic of Roland. »

And more precisely the magic of the number 14, where Lucas Pouille hopes to return Wednesday to challenge Benoît Paire or Cameron Norrie, who face each other on Monday. "When I have that attitude and determination on the pitch, I'm hard to beat," he insists. And even almost unplayable in the Bombonera of the Porte d'Auteuil.

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