Injured Pouille pulls out of Tokyo

Paris - French No 1 Lucas Pouille has pulled out of the men's ATP event in Tokyo after failing to recover from a muscle sprain, he confirmed on Tuesday.

The injury forced Pouille to pull out of Metz last week, an event won by compatriot Gilles Simon.

"I'm still suffering from this muscle sprain, but I'm working hard to return to competition as soon as possible," said Pouille, who is 19th in the ATP rankings.

Pouille is gearing up for a demanding end-of-season campaign.

He is scheduled to play in two Masters 1000 events, in Shanghai and Paris, and will be pivotal to France's chances of winning the Davis Cup final, against Croatia, in Lille on November 23-25.

I’m really sorry but I have to withdraw from the @rakutenopen ?? I’m still suffering from that muscle tear, but doing everything to be back on Tour as soon as possible. Sorry for the tournament and the fans in Tokyo...

— Lucas Pouille (@la_pouille) September 25, 2018