Top players can relate to Bouchard’s struggles
Simona Halep boosts her confidence by posting motivational quotes on Instagram. Caroline Wozniacki got hers back after taking a break from tennis. Garbine Muguruza believes in herself when she knows she’s done everything possible to prepare.
The world’s top tennis stars all have their tricks to help them bounce back after tough stretches, but Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard may still be looking for one that works for her. Bouchard said she was “obviously a bit low on confidence” after losing her firstround match against qualifier
Donna Vekic at the Rogers Cup on Tuesday. Asked what she needed to do to get that confidence back, the Westmount, Que., native replied dryly: “Win matches.” Muguruza — the world’s fourth-ranked player and reigning Wimbledon champion — agrees. But for her, there’s a lot more to it than that.
“If you win, it makes you more confident, of course, but the first step is to feel that you’ve done everything you can to (prepare) for the tournament,” the 23-year-old Spaniard said Wednesday. “Everybody wants to win, but me feeling I did my homework, you know: ‘I’m here, I’m ready.’ That’s helpful.” Muguruza won the French Open in 2016, but then hit a rough stretch, losing her opening match at the Madrid Open before being bounced from Wimbledon in the second round by a 124th-ranked player.
She said she felt pressure to do well following her first Grand Slam title, which made things more difficult. Now she has a different approach. “I’m concentrating a lot on working hard, being very humble,” Muguruza said.
“Most people think that if you win a Grand Slam, you know, you have that extra confidence, so much confidence that you’re going to win matches by miracle. In fact, it’s not like that, because you have all these opponents that they just want to beat you, and they’re playing very well as well.” Bouchard rose to fame in 2014, reaching a career-high No. 5 ranking when she made the Wimbledon final after two straight Grand Slam semifinal appearances. But since then Canada’s top women’s singles player has slid down the WTA ranks to No. 70.