[8] Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) vs Lucas Pouille (FRA)

Each man stands to gain a pretty big trophy with a win plus 500 ranking points.  The runner-up will still grab 300 points.  This should be a great match with Pouille having more variety and youth while Tsonga can be overwhelming on an indoor court and has much more experience.  A guy like Tsonga in a different era may have won 1 or more majors.  He has been in or around the top 10-15 players in the world since 2008 and made multiple deep runs in majors.  Pouille is one of the guys with the youth and tools to begin to unseat the reigning order.

I think this match comes down to Pouille’s serve.  If he can more or less match Tsonga’s serve, his imaginative shot-making and youth likely make the difference.  Tsonga has logged a decent amount of tennis over the past two weeks and might be a bit leg weary.  I think Pouille plays well and grabs a nice trophy late in the 2017 season.

My Prediction: Lucas Pouille d. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7-6, 6-4