Lucas Pouille

1.1. Early life and background

Pouille was born in Grande-Synthe, France. Standing 6.1 ft ^{(1.85 m)} tall, he is known for his right-handed play with a two-handed backhand. His mother is a Swedish-speaking Finn from Närpes, Finland, making Pouille of Finnish and French descent. His family originates from Loon-Plage, near Dunkirk in northern France. He has two brothers. In his youth, Pouille looked up to Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer.

1.2. Family and residence

In September 2019, Pouille married his long-time girlfriend, Clémence Bertrand. Their daughter, Rose, was born in January 2021. Pouille initially relocated to Dubai in 2015 for training purposes, but by 2020, he moved back to France, settling in Rennes. His current major sponsors include Le Coq Sportif and Babolat.

2.1. Early career (2009-2012)

Pouille began his tennis career in 2009, primarily participating in singles events at ITF Men's Circuit tournaments held in France. In 2010, he competed in an ATP Challenger Tour event in Saint-Brieuc and four ITF tournaments. His participation expanded in 2011 to include seven tournaments, maintaining his focus on singles. He officially turned professional in 2012, competing in one ATP Challenger Tour tournament in Quimper and 15 ITF Men's Circuit events. During this period, he secured two consecutive ITF Men's Circuit singles titles in Mexico without dropping a set and was a singles runner-up at two other ITF tournaments in Sweden and Serbia.

2.2. Grand Slam and Masters 1000 debut (2013-2014)

Pouille made his Grand Slam singles debut at the 2013 Australian Open after receiving a wildcard for the qualifying competition, where he lost in the second round. His ATP World Tour singles debut came as a wildcard at the 2013 Montpellier tournament, followed by an appearance in Marseille, losing his opening matches in both. He entered the main draw of a Grand Slam for the first time at the 2013 French Open with a wildcard, winning his first-round match against American wildcard Alex Kuznetsov before falling to Grigor Dimitrov in the second round. In June, he qualified for his first ATP World Tour main draw at the grass-court tournament in 's-Hertogenbosch. He also won his second ITF Men's Circuit singles title of 2013 in Estonia, and reached his best ATP Challenger Tour singles performance at that time by reaching the semifinals in Kazan. He finished 2013 ranked world No. 192.

In 2014, Pouille received wildcards for the main draws of the 2014 Australian Open and the 2014 French Open, losing in the first round of both. In September, he reached his first career ATP Challenger Tour singles final in Meknes, where he was defeated by Kimmer Coppejans. At the 2014 Paris Masters, he qualified for the main draw and advanced to the third round by defeating Ivo Karlović and Fabio Fognini, before losing to the No. 2 seed Roger Federer in straight sets. This performance propelled his ATP singles ranking to world No. 134, and he concluded the year as the youngest Frenchman in the ATP singles Top 150, with a 28-17 record on the 2014 ATP Challenger Tour.

2.3. Entry into Top 100 (2015)

At the 2015 Heineken Open, Pouille entered the main draw as a lucky loser and reached his first career ATP World Tour singles semifinal, where he lost to Adrian Mannarino. He was defeated in the first round of the 2015 Australian Open by Gaël Monfils in a five-set match despite leading by two sets. At the 2015 Monte Carlo Masters, he defeated Dominic Thiem to reach the second round, where he was stopped by Rafael Nadal. On 20 April 2015, Pouille broke into the ATP singles Top 100 for the first time, achieving a career-high ranking of world No. 98.

He suffered first-round losses at the 2015 French Open to Gilles Simon and at Wimbledon to Kevin Anderson. At the 2015 German Open in Hamburg, he qualified for the main draw and reached his second career ATP World Tour singles semifinal (and first at an ATP Tour 500 series event), losing to Fabio Fognini. On 3 August, he reached a new career-high singles ranking of world No. 64. In the latter half of the year, Pouille reached the quarterfinals of two ATP World Tour tournaments in St. Petersburg and Moscow, losing to Roberto Bautista Agut in both. He also reached his second career ATP Challenger Tour singles final in Mouilleron-le-Captif, losing to Benoît Paire. He finished 2015 with a 17-8 record on the ATP Challenger Tour and an overall singles ranking of world No. 78.

2.4. Breakthrough season and first titles (2016)

The 2016 season marked a significant breakthrough for Pouille. At the 2016 Australian Open, he and partner Adrian Mannarino reached the doubles semifinals, defeating previous champions and top seeds before losing to Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares. In singles, he continued his trend of first-round exits at the Australian Open.

In March, at the 2016 Miami Open, Pouille defeated No. 8 seed David Ferrer to reach the round of 16. In April, at the 2016 Monte Carlo Masters, he upset No. 9 seed Richard Gasquet before losing to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. He reached his first ATP World Tour singles final at the 2016 BRD Năstase Țiriac Trophy in Bucharest, but lost to Fernando Verdasco. At the 2016 Mutua Madrid Open, he saved four match points to defeat No. 12 seed David Goffin.

Pouille's success continued at the 2016 Italian Open in Rome, where he became only the second lucky loser in history to reach a Masters 1000 singles semifinal, after defeating David Ferrer and Juan Mónaco. He lost to No. 2 seed Andy Murray in the semifinals. This performance propelled him into the ATP singles Top 32 at No. 31, ensuring a seed at the upcoming French Open. Seeded 29th, he was eliminated in the second round of the 2016 French Open.

At the 2016 Wimbledon Championships, Pouille, seeded 32nd, defied his 0-4 career record on grass to reach his first Grand Slam quarterfinal, defeating Juan Martín del Potro and Bernard Tomic along the way. He lost to Tomáš Berdych in the quarterfinals, reaching a career-high ranking of world No. 21.

At the 2016 US Open, Pouille delivered a major upset by defeating No. 4 seed Rafael Nadal in a thrilling five-set match in the fourth round, advancing to his second consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal. This marked the first time in the Open Era that three Frenchmen (Pouille, Gaël Monfils, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga) reached the singles quarterfinals of the same Grand Slam.

In September, Pouille won his first ATP World Tour singles title at the 2016 Moselle Open in Metz, defeating top seed Dominic Thiem in the final. This victory elevated his ranking to world No. 16, making him the French No. 3. He reached the third round of the 2016 Shanghai Masters, losing to Andy Murray, whom he also faced in the third round of the 2016 Paris Masters. He ended the year at world No. 15 and was awarded the ATP World Tour Award for Most Improved Player of the Year. In December 2016, Ion Țiriac became his manager.

2.5. Davis Cup champion and diverse surface titles (2017)

Pouille's 2017 season began with an injury at the 2017 Brisbane International, forcing him to retire in the second round. This injury also impacted his performance at the 2017 Australian Open, where he lost in the first round as the 16th seed.

He rebounded at the 2017 Open 13 in Marseille, reaching his third ATP World Tour singles final, where he lost to fellow Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Pouille then reached the singles semifinals at the 2017 Dubai Tennis Championships, losing to world No. 1 Andy Murray.

At the 2017 Monte Carlo Masters, he reached his second Masters 1000 singles semifinal, defeating players like Ryan Harrison and Pablo Cuevas before losing to Albert Ramos Viñolas. He then won his second career ATP World Tour singles title at the 2017 Hungarian Open in Budapest, saving two match points in his second-round match before defeating Aljaž Bedene in the final. This win propelled him to a new career-high ranking of world No. 13 on 8 May 2017.

Pouille reached the third round of the 2017 French Open for the first time in his career, losing to Albert Ramos-Viñolas in five sets. In June, he claimed his third title at the 2017 Stuttgart Open, saving a match point in the second round and defeating Feliciano López in the final. In October, he secured his first ATP Tour 500 series singles title at the 2017 Erste Bank Open in Vienna, beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the final. Remarkably, Pouille finished the 2017 season as the only player to win at least one ATP World Tour singles title on each of the three main surfaces: clay (Budapest), grass (Stuttgart), and indoor hard courts (Vienna).

In the 2017 Davis Cup World Group final against Belgium, Pouille secured France's tenth Davis Cup title-and their first since 2001-by defeating Steve Darcis in straight sets in the decisive fifth rubber, giving France a 3-2 victory.

2.6. Top 10 debut (2018)

Pouille's 2018 season began with a fifth consecutive first-round exit at the 2018 Australian Open, losing to Belgian qualifier Ruben Bemelmans. He later withdrew from his 2018 Davis Cup World Group first-round match against the Netherlands due to torticollis.

He won his fifth ATP World Tour singles title at the 2018 Open Sud de France in Montpellier, overcoming two match points in the semifinals against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga before defeating Richard Gasquet in the final. Following this, he reached consecutive finals at the 2018 Open 13 in Marseille, where he lost to Karen Khachanov, and the 2018 Dubai Tennis Championships, where he was defeated by Roberto Bautista Agut. On 19 March 2018, Pouille achieved a career milestone by entering the ATP singles Top 10 for the first time, reaching world No. 10.

After winning both his singles matches in the 2018 Davis Cup World Group quarterfinal tie against Italy, Pouille experienced a dip in form, suffering early exits in several clay-court tournaments. In June, he reached his fourth ATP World Tour singles semifinal of 2018 in Stuttgart, losing to Milos Raonic. At Wimbledon, he was eliminated in the second round.

Pouille struggled in the latter half of 2018, failing to advance beyond the round of 16 in any of the eight tournaments he played, including the 2018 US Open. However, he maintained strong form in the Davis Cup, winning all three of his singles matches in the quarterfinal and semifinal ties against Italy and Spain, helping France reach the final. In the final against Croatia, Pouille lost his decisive singles match against Marin Čilić, which secured Croatia's 3-1 victory. He ended the year ranked world No. 32.

On 8 November 2018, Pouille announced the mutual termination of his coaching partnership with Emmanuel Planque, who had coached him since 2012. A month later, on 6 December 2018, it was reported that Amélie Mauresmo would become his new coach starting in 2019. Mauresmo subsequently resigned from her position as captain of the French Davis Cup team to avoid a conflict of interest.

2.7. Grand Slam semifinal and coaching changes (2019)

In 2019, Pouille reached the first Grand Slam semifinal of his career at the Australian Open. His season began with a first-round loss at the 2019 Sydney International.

At the 2019 Australian Open, seeded 28th, Pouille secured his first main-draw singles victory at the event, defeating Mikhail Kukushkin in straight sets. He then advanced past Maximilian Marterer and Alexei Popyrin before overcoming 11th seed Borna Ćorić in the fourth round. In his first Grand Slam singles quarterfinal since the 2016 US Open, he defeated 16th seed Milos Raonic. He eventually lost to top seed Novak Djokovic in the semifinals. This strong performance marked a significant turnaround for Pouille in Melbourne, given his previous first-round exits.

Following his Australian Open success, Pouille experienced a slump, losing his opening singles matches in five consecutive tournaments. To regain form, he entered the ATP Challenger Tour tournament in Bordeaux, where he won the singles title by defeating Mikael Ymer in the final. The following week, at the 2019 Mutua Madrid Open, he defeated 13th seed Borna Ćorić but lost to qualifier Hubert Hurkacz in the second round.

He reached his third Masters 1000 quarterfinal at the 2019 Western & Southern Open, achieving his first Top 10 win in nearly three years against world No. 9 Karen Khachanov. He again lost to Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals. Pouille also lost to Djokovic in the quarterfinals of the 2019 Japan Open in Tokyo. His 2019 season concluded prematurely after the 2019 Shanghai Masters in October due to a right elbow injury. He finished the year ranked world No. 22.

2.8. Injury hiatus and return (2020-2023)

Pouille's 2020 season was severely limited due to his right elbow injury. He played only one official tournament on the ATP Challenger Tour in March before undergoing right elbow surgery in mid-July. He ended the year ranked world No. 70.

He returned to competition in January 2021 at the 2021 Open Quimper Bretagne, where he lost in the first round as the top seed. He received wildcards for the 2022 Australian Open and the 2022 French Open. In 2021, Pouille's ranking significantly declined due to a series of early exits at various tournaments. He recorded his first top-100 victory since 2019 at the 2021 Monte-Carlo Masters, defeating Guido Pella and Alexei Popyrin before losing in the third round. Despite this, he lost in the first round of the 2021 French Open, 2021 Wimbledon Championships, and 2021 US Open. He ended 2021 ranked world No. 155.

In 2023, ranked No. 670, Pouille successfully qualified for the main draw of the 2023 French Open, defeating Jurij Rodionov in the final round of qualifying. He then defeated Rodionov again, who entered as a lucky loser, in the first round of the main draw, before being eliminated in the second round. He also qualified for the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.

2.9. Return to Top 100 (2024-)

Pouille continued his comeback in 2024. Ranked No. 273, he received a wildcard for the qualifying competition of the 2024 BNP Paribas Open and successfully reached the main draw. He won his first-round match against Daniel Altmaier, which propelled his ranking back into the top 250 on 18 March 2024. In April, ranked No. 241, he qualified for the 2024 Estoril Open.

In May, Pouille won his first Challenger title in five years at the 2024 Upper Austria Open in Mauthausen, defeating Jozef Kovalik in the final. This victory helped him climb over 60 positions to return to the top 165 on 20 May 2024. Ranked No. 213, he qualified for the main draw of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships after a two-year absence from the major. He defeated Laslo Djere in five sets, marking his first main draw win at Wimbledon in five years, and advanced to the third round after Thanasi Kokkinakis retired. As a result, his ranking moved up over 60 spots into the top 150.

In September, Pouille reached the final of the 2024 Saint-Tropez Open, losing to Gijs Brouwer. In October, he secured another Challenger title on home soil at the 2024 Open de Vendée in Mouilleron-le-Captif, pushing his ranking to just outside the top 100 on 14 October 2024. Following another Challenger final appearance at the 2024 Open Saint-Brieuc a week later, he successfully re-entered the ATP Top 100 on 21 October 2024. He ended 2024 ranked No. 97.

2.10. Achilles heel injury (2025)

In February 2025, Pouille retired in the final of the 2025 Play In Challenger in Lille, France. He later confirmed that he had suffered a rupture of his Achilles heel, raising concerns about its impact on his ongoing career. He started the 2025 season with a first-round loss at the 2025 Australian Open.

2.11. Coaching

Lucas Pouille has been coached by several notable figures throughout his career. He was coached by Emmanuel Planque from 2012 to 2018. In 2019, Amélie Mauresmo became his coach until 2020. More recently, his coaching team has included Thierry Ascione, Nicolas Renavand (from 2021 to 2024), Éric Winogradsky (from 2023), and Nicolas Copin (from 2024).

3.1. Grand Slam performance timeline

3.2. ATP Tour singles finals

3.3. Top 10 wins

Pouille has recorded several notable victories against players ranked within the ATP Top 10.