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| France’s Lucas Pouille in action during his second round match against Britain’s Cameron Norrie |
French number one Lucas Pouille put down a spirited comeback by unseeded Briton Cameron Norrie to beat him 6-2 6-4 5-7 7-6(3) on Thursday to lead home hopes going into the third round at Roland Garros.
Pouille, seeded 15th, looked to be cruising after two sets late on Wednesday before Norrie roused himself after calling the doctor to the court and won the third set as the light quickly faded over the French Open.
Any hopes Pouille had of settling the match quickly when play resumed on Thursday were quashed by the British number three, who with the fourth set poised at 3-3 saved two break points with some gutsy rallying.
Pouille looked tight and at 5-4 down on his own serve Norrie had a break point. It was a make-or-break moment for the 22-year-old, but the Frenchman gave him no chance, thundering down his 10th ace of the match to save the set.
The fourth set headed to a tiebreak and Pouille duly wrapped up victory.
