By Mike McIntyre
It shouldn't really come as a surprise that Genie Bouchard lost 6-3, 6-4 in the opening round of the Rogers Cup on Tuesday in Toronto. The World No. 70 required a Tennis Canada wildcard to gain entry to the event and was up against the 51st ranked Donna Vekic of Croatia. Vekic is two years younger than Bouchard but won the Wimbledon tune-up event in Nottingham earlier this summer and is a player who is clearly on the rise. Add to that the fact that Bouchard has never fared well playing in front of her Canadian fans and it would have in-fact been a shock if she had found a way to win.
Bouchard and Vekic shake hands at the conclusion of their match on Centre Court.
The match itself started in the worst way possible for the once promising Bouchard as she dropped her first three service games to Vekic. Spraying errors all over the court with her over-aggressive style, Bouchard seemed to lack a Plan B to fall back on. A typically quiet day-crowd in Toronto offered the occasional "Let's Go Genie" but they too seemed to lack any real enthusiasm or focus for the match.
A less-than-full Centre Court for Canada's No. 1
Genie's struggles in Canada are nothing new. We are talking about a 23 year old who was thrust into the spotlight back in 2014 when she experienced incredible success over a very short period of time. Everyone was clamoring over the new tennis star particularly in her home country that had been deprived of ever having a legitimate threat in singles. Yet Bouchard has never managed to make it past the third round in either Toronto or her home town of Montreal. The Canadian No. 1 (for how long remains to be seen) has talked about enjoying being back in front of her fans but she has never really demonstrated that there is any truth in that statement. She has incredibly not played internationally for Canada in the Fed Cup over the past two years despite Tennis Canada trying to entice her with home competitions held in Montreal.
Canada's Fed Cup team from this past year is missing its No. 1 player
Bouchard never truly seems comfortable playing at home and Tuesday morning appeared tense in her practice session on a remote Court on the Aviva Centre grounds, perhaps purposely chosen to limit the attention she might receive. No autographs after her workout and a terse hello to rising Canadian star Bianca Andreescu who began her own practice when Genie had finished hers.
Genie walking past Andreescu at the conclusion of her morning practice.
When Bouchard walked onto Centre Court early Tuesday afternoon she did not acknowledge the cheering crowd while even Vekic offered a polite wave. The approach was all-business but what followed was anything but. Unfortunately for Bouchard her game didn't click until about two hours later when she played a virtually meaningless doubles match with Karolina Pliskova - the new singles No. 1 in the WTA Tour rankings.
Bouchard walking out for her singles match.
With the real pressure off and a smaller crowd packed onto Court 1, Bouchard was smiling and high-fiving her partner in what felt like the equivalent of a tennis exhibition match. The crowd was entertained but if it's merely entertainment that Bouchard is seeking then perhaps she should focus more on her doubles game.
Bouchard and Pliskova smiling as they take the first set in their doubles match.
To step away from the negativity for a moment it should be stated that Bouchard said many of the right things in her post-match press conference. She didn't make up excuses or duck any questions thrown her way. Her assessment of her performance against Vekic was accurate. "I just made too many unforced errors...I'm obviously a bit low in confidence right now. So it's tough to get through matches when you're in a moment like that."
Bouchard speaking to the media after her singles and doubles matches.
It will be interesting to see how Bouchard handles the eventual rise of 17 year old Andreescu who seems destined for at the very least a solid professional career. They did hit together earlier in the week though her understudy admitted it was short on conversation. Asked in press today about her opinion on Andreescu's potential and Bouchard gave an answer than touched more on her own limitations, "I think she's a good player...So you know, someone else can carry the burden of Canada."
Maybe allowing someone else to carry the torch for Canada is what's best for Bouchard in the longterm. Stepping back from the spotlight as Canada's go-to female tennis star might allow her to take a step forward with her own career.
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