Lucas Pouille faced match point in his second-round qualifying match at the Winston-Salem Open on Sunday against Noah Rubin. But after rallying past the American, the Frenchman found his form and on Monday dismissed Spanish veteran Feliciano Lopez 6-1, 6-4 to reach the second round of the main draw.
The former World No. 10 saved all four break points he faced and won 83 per cent of his first-serve points to earn his first tour-level win since April at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, where he reached the third round. Pouille now has won five consecutive matches against Lopez and leads their ATP Head2Head series 5-1.
Next up for the 27-year-old qualifier will be third seed Daniel Evans, a wild card who received a bye in the first round. The Briton won the pair’s only previous clash in four sets at the 2019 US Open.
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