the returning Lucas Pouille qualified for the second round, it also goes for Clara Burel and Constant Lestienne

The three Frenchmen made a successful debut on Thursday during the first round of the Masters 1000 at Indian Wells.

French tennis is celebrating. Clara Burel, Lucas Pouille and Constant Lestienne qualified on Thursday March 7 for the second round of the Masters 1000 at Indian Wells. The French number 2 reversed the course of her match against the Chinese Xiyu Wang, like Constant Lestienne against the American Denis Kudla, while Lucas Pouille delivered a great performance by eliminating the German Daniel Altmaier.

Lucas Pouille is a real ghost. Ranked 273rd in the world, the native of Grande-Synthe (North) reached the second round of a Masters 1000 for the first time in almost two years. He without trembling eliminated Daniel Altmaier, 53rd in the ATP ranking, in two sets (6-4, 6-3) and less than two hours of play. The semi-finalist of the 2019 Australian Open, victim of numerous injuries and a depression in 2022, continues its rise in the ranking.

Lucas Pouille came out of tournament qualifying beating the Australian Rinky Hijikata (5-7, 6-1, 6-3), his first victory against a player in the top 100 for two years, and the French Harold Mayot (0-6, 6-4, 6-2). His last appearance in the second round of a Masters 1000 dates back to May 2022, in Madrid. After beating Karen Khachanov, he failed in the second round against Stefanos Tsitsipas. Coincidence of fate, it is precisely the Greek, 11th in the world, who awaits Lucas Pouille in the next round.

Clara Burel and Constant Lestienne at the end of their effort

Opposed to the Chinese Xiyu Wang (52nd in the world), Clara Burel won a long-term showdown (4-6, 6-2, 6-4 in 2h33) to qualify for the second round of the Masters 1000 in Indian Wells . She started the match perfectly by breaking from the start, but finally lost the first set after more than an hour of play. The Breton reacted well by largely winning the second set, then overcoming her opponent in a tense third set.

Clara Burel, 47th in the world and French number 2, will face one of the tournament favorites, world number 3 Coco Gauff, in the 2nd round. The young American, who will celebrate her twentieth birthday during the tournament, failed in the quarter-finals at Indian Wells in 2023, against Aryna Sabalenka. She has never won the Californian tournament yet.

Constant Lestienne (100th) beat the American Denis Kudla (179th) by overturning the third set (6-3, 2-6, 6-4) after coming back from a break behind. The match had been interrupted the previous night at a set all. The Amianois will face the Canadian Félix Auger-Aliassime (31st) in the second round.