Spotlight: Lucas Pouille secures first Challenger title in five years with Mauthausen triumph

Who doesn't love a good comeback story?

On Sunday, Lucas Pouille defeated sixth seed Jozef Kovalík, 6-3, 6-3, to triumph in Mauthausen. The victory cemented the 30-year-old's first ATP Challenger title in five years, as he continues to make an inspiring climb back up the proverbial mountain.

In 2018, Pouille cracked the Top 10 of the ATP rankings. The following season, he emerged as a Grand Slam semifinalist at the Australian Open.

But toward the latter part of 2019, a right elbow injury set off the beginning of a dark period for the Frenchman. Struggling to regain his fitness and form, Pouille nearly walked away from the sport for good in 2022 when alcohol became a coping mechanism for his battle with depression.

Courageously resetting in early 2023, Pouille was ranked No. 678 this time a year ago. He would successfully qualify at Roland Garros and win a main-draw match to nearly cut that number in half.

The Grande-Synthe native has since returned to the Top 250, having begun the 2024 season by finishing runner-up at the Nonthabur Challenger in Thailand. He's continued to grind it out each week, qualifying across a pair of tour-level events that include a Masters 1000 return at Indian Wells.

As of Sunday, Pouille was four spots away from moving into the qualifying draw of his home major. Could this week’s effort do the five-time ATP champion an even better solid by swaying the FFT that he merits a main-draw invitation?

Pouille is projected to jump to No. 163 in the live rankings.