Wild card Bouchard hopes to find best form in Dubai
dubai — Eugenie Bouchard was only 19 when she last played in Dubai. But the Canadian failed to get into the main draw of the 2014 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships having lost the final qualifying game.
But 2014 was the best season of her career as she made the semifinals at the Australian and the French Opens before losing the Wimbledon final to Petra Kvitova.
That incredible run catapulted Bouchard into stardom as she broke into the top five of women’s tennis, earning her the WTA’s Most Improved Player award.
Since then Bouchard has struggled to live up to the expectations as injuries and poor form sent her into a downward spiral.
Such was the scale of her problem that she even crashed out of the top 100 in WTA singles rankings.
Now as the world number 80 enters the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on a wild card, her fans will hope to see some of the old spark that fueled her memorable run in 2014.
“That’s the goal. To try and improve as much as I can. But I don’t really want to put pressure on myself. I just want to enjoy my game,” the 24-year-old player said when asked about her chances of replicating that glorious 2014 season.
Bouchard hopes to draw inspiration from her doubles triumph in Auckland last month – her first title on the Tour in five years.
“I will try to keep improving my game so my (singles) ranking improves. I just want to give myself chances to go deep into the tournaments. I want to give myself chances to win against the best players in the world,” she said.
“I just want to try to be the best player that I can be. If I keep pushing myself week after week, results will come. I have the belief.”
But it’s not going to be an easy ride for Bouchard in Dubai.
If she beats Vera Lapko in the first round, her next round opponent will be third seed Simona Halep.
“In Dubai, it’s like the Grand Slams. You have to be ready from the start,” she admitted.
“But I have played solid tennis in the past few months. It’s all about staying healthy and keeping a good level.”
For someone whose biggest headline act in the last three years was going out on a date with a fan after losing a Super Bowl bet on Twitter, Bouchard certainly needs some big wins to regain her top status in singles.