Alexander Zverev Cruises Past Lucas Pouille in Straight Sets

Alexander Zverev, the second seed at the Australian Open made a strong start to his campaign with a straightforward 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 victory over French wildcard Lucas Pouille. The 27-year-old German, who reached the semi-finals in Melbourne last year, displayed clinical tennis and faced only two break points against the 103rd-ranked Pouille. Zverev will next face Spaniard Pedro Martinez in the second round.

Despite Pouille’s past success including a semi-final appearance in 2019, Alexander Zverev never looked under serious threat and seems to be in excellent form as he targets his first Grand Slam title. Zverev’s quest for a major title has been a journey of near misses in recent years. He reached the semi-finals in Melbourne last year but lost to Daniil Medvedev after taking a two-set lead.

He also finished as the runner-up at the 2023 French Open where he faced Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz in the final.  As he plays his 10th Australian Open, Zverev is aiming to win his first Grand Slam title at the 36th attempt. Should he succeed, he will join Stan Wawrinka as one of the players with the most attempts before winning a major in the Open era. In other action, Kei Nishikori made a triumphant return to Melbourne after a four-year absence, edging Brazil’s Thiago Monteiro in a five-set thriller.

Nishikori, who had contemplated retirement after a series of injuries, saved two match points to win his first Australian Open match since 2019.  Meanwhile, sixth seed Casper Ruud battled through a five-set match to defeat Spain’s Jaume Munar, avoiding the first top-10 upset of the tournament.