"Everybody is lying" - Lucas Pouille opens up about how tennis players conceal mental health struggles behind a facade

Lucas Pouille spoke about the mental health struggles faced by tennis players. He explained that most players are aware of the issues but often prefer to hide behind a facade, avoiding openly addressing anything.

Pouille has been a familiar presence on the ATP Tour for over a decade. His career highlights include reaching the semifinals of the 2019 Australian Open and the quarterfinals of both Wimbledon and the US Open in 2016. In March 2018, he achieved a career-high ranking of World No. 10.

The Frenchman, who has been competing more frequently in Challenger tournaments recently, gave an exclusive interview with CLAY. where he shared his thoughts on whether admitting personal weaknesses in tennis is considered a "taboo."

"In life in general it's a taboo, it's a big taboo. The tennis players are imrpoving on that, but, you know, every day you're seeing everybody, you say 'Hey, how are you?', and the first answer is like, I'm good, but actually everybody is lying," he said.

"You cannot be good every day, every single day of your life, so it's normal not to tell the truth to anyone, because you're not going to talk about your problem to anybody. The good things is that more and more athletes are talking about it, and it's important," he added.

---

Lucas Pouille: "People have to understand that it's okay to sometimes feel bad, to feel weak"

Lucas Pouille pictured at Wimbledon 2021 | Image Source: Getty

After a strong 2019 season, Lucas Pouille's career took a downturn. He initially struggled with the physical toll of an elbow surgery in 2020, and later faced mental health challenges, battling alcoholism and depression, which brought him to the brink of quitting the sport.

Pouille has been candid about his struggles highlighted in his widely discussed interview with L'Equipe last year. He spoke about taking a sabbatical from tennis in 2020, feeling it was necessary for his mental health, and shared how his depression became so severe that he went days without being able to sleep.

Reflecting on his interview with the French daily, the 30-year-old was asked by CLAY if publicly discussing his mental health struggles had been helpful. He replied:

"For me was so important, because you know, being an athlete, being a tennis player, you always have to give a good image of yourself. You always want to be proud on the court, not to show too much emotions, showing that you are strong."

"But people have to understand that it's okay to sometimes feel bad, to feel weak, to feel sad sometimes. We are human beings, and it's important to talk about it, and to feel free, and not to feel guilty, or ashamed to talk, that's important," he added.

Fast forward to 2024, Lucas Pouille has made significant progress. He reached the third round of Wimbledon and most recently returned to the Top 100 of the ATP rankings, achieving a ranking of World No. 96 as of October 23.