Hurkacz Races Into Metz QF
Top seed Hubert Hurkacz cruised past Lucas Pouille 6-2, 6-3 on Thursday to reach the Moselle Open quarter-finals and continue his push to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals.
The 24-year-old, currently ninth in the FedEx ATP Race To Turin, produced a dominant performance against 2016 champion Pouille, breaking three times as he dictated with his powerful groundstrokes to advance after 68 minutes.
“It was a good match from my side,” Hurkacz said in his on-court interview. “Lucas is a great player, he is playing very aggressively. He is coming back and I have high hopes I will see him closer to the Top 10, he has the game. It was really great to play here in front of you guys, it was a lot of fun.”
[FOLLOW ACTION]Hurkacz, who was competing for the first time since his second-round exit to Andreas Seppi at the US Open, now leads Pouille 3-1 in their ATPHead2Head Series and will next face former World No. 1 Andy Murray.
“I was able to practise here a couple of times on this court, so that helped for sure. I played two doubles matches with my friend [Jan Zielinski],” Hurkacz added. “I really enjoy playing here and it is nice to see the crowd. It is always a great atmosphere.”
The Pole is aiming to win his third tour-level title of the season on hard courts this week, after capturing titles in Delray Beach and Miami.
In other action, German qualifier Peter Gojowczyk’s strong form continued as he overcame seventh seed Karen Khachanov 6-3, 7-6(2) to reach his third tour-level quarter-final of the season.
The 32-year-old, who lifted the trophy in Metz in 2017, enjoyed a run to the fourth round at a major for the first time at the US Open. The World No. 101 will next face Marcos Giron after the American upset fourth-seeded Australian Alex de Minaur 7-5, 7-6(5) to improve to 2-1 in their ATPHead2Head Series.