In the final at the Moselle Open, Frenchman Lucas Pouille defeated top seed Dominic Thiem 7-6(5), 6-2 to claim his first ATP World Tour title at the age of 22.
Pouille takes first set via tiebreaker
Both players started their service games with comfortable holds of serve. The next seven games were close and as the set progressed they were deadlocked. With the score at 5-4 in favour of Pouille, he gained his first set point when Thiem failed to put the ball on the court. From 40-15, Thiem then went on to save both the set points, but the Frenchman came back at the number one seed after hammering a backhand down the line to which Thiem netted.
However, the Austrian denied Pouille a third set point chance after putting away a high volley to bring the game to deuce. The 23-year-old scraped through his service game by holding to bring the set level at 5-5. In the very next game, Thiem then brought up a break point with a forehand winner. An ace by Pouille, however, would save the break point as he went on to hold. Moments later, the Austrian sent the set to a tiebreak. The world number ten ranked player in the world took a 2-5 lead in the breaker but Pouille managed to compose himself and draw level at 5-5 before going on to win the breaker 7-5 and the set 7-6(5).
Pouille runs away with set; grabs first title
With the momentum and the crowd on his side, the world number 18 ranked player put Thiem under pressure in just the opening game of the second set. Having had two previous break points saved, Pouille then grabbed the break when his opponent sent a forehand long. A hold of serve made it 2-0 and the Frenchman looked confident and more upbeat. The third game saw Thiem win his first game of the set. As the set progressed Pouille continued to perform to high levels, constantly putting the top seed under pressure.
At 30-15 in the sixth game, the third seed then grabbed a break point opportunity. An attempted slice from the Austrian hit the top of the net and bounced wide to give Pouille the chance to serve for the title. The Frenchman ran away to a love-40 lead before winning the all-important point to win his first title on the ATP World Tour, 7-6(5), 6-2.
Key stats
Lucas Pouille hit 10 aces and served no double faults while going on to win 82 percent of first serves and 73 percent behind his second. He saved the only break he faced and managed to convert 29 percent of break points gained (two from seven). The number three seed won 26 percent of first return points and improved drastically on his second winning 50 percent of return points. Overall the 22-year-old won 56 percent of points en route to victory.