Lucas Pouille, beaten Tuesday in the first round of the Masters 1000 in Paris by Gilles Simon, has seriously complicated the task of Captain Yannick Noah in view of the final of the Davis Cup in late November in Lille.

The equation was suddenly complicated for the captain of the France team. The final against Croatia in Lille is looming (23-25 ​​November) and its leader continues to sink.

In the image of his defeat against Simon, unable to revolt against this spiral that mine for 9 months now. A spiral that has made it fall from the 10th place in the world in March, its best ranking, in 32nd place worldwide this week. A vertiginous drop that his number of victories this season in Masters 1000 sums up pretty well: 2. Could this dynamic deprive him of the final?

"From March to September, I did not win matches. So it is not with my results that I was called for the half for example. It's Yannick who will decide, " said one of the artisans of victory in the semifinals against Spain. "It's all well and good to be selected but then you have to try to win and bring back your point. If he calls me, I'll go. But if he decides to take someone else, I will not be able to say to him + ben no, you make a bad choice + " .

The Gilles Simon case

The choice is therefore difficult for Yannick Noah who begins, however, to get used to it. To deprive himself of the player he has erected as leader of his team for two years or bet again on him? But another element has been added to weigh down the equation: Gilles Simon.

The case of one of the four new Musketeers seems thorny: he has never been called this season in the French team but here he is, in this very end of the season, which comes as one of the best French, 31st world this week, just behind Richard Gasquet (28th) and Gael Monfils (30th).

His victory against Puglia focuses a strong symbol and an inevitable question: how could Yannick Noah do without the services of his 3rd best player in the standings?

"I have no news (about the Davis Cup final, Ed). I'm just trying to play well and finish my season, " said Gilles Simon after his victory, " I'm just focusing on what's in my hands . "

"If we need me, I'm here, but for the moment, I'm not called, so when I'm asked, if I'm concerned, not necessarily, because I still know how it works." ", he added.

Pair still candidate

Is there a problem Simon in France team? Hard to say. But its end of the season puts it theoretically in the short-list of the contenders.

A short-list including Benoit Paire, despite his defeat in the first round against the Hungarian Marton Fucsovics (42nd World) 6-4, 6-4, still hopes to be a member.

"If I'm not part of it, I'll be sad, but anyway, I'll go and cheer for the final because it's important. I had the chance to taste the semifinal. I want to do this final, " he said.

The defeats of the other two Frenchmen Jeremy Chardy and Pierre-Hugues Herbert Tuesday, unable to cross the cut of the first round, a fairly respected practice for the Blues this season in the Masters 1000, should they have little impact on the choices from Noah.

The first fell on an experienced and hard-to-man, Fernando Verdasco, beaten 6-4, 6-4. Herbert spent a little more time on the court but lost to Kazakh Kukushkin in three sets 3-6, 6-3, 7-5.