McIntyre Tennis

Tuesday's Women's Results at the Australian Open

By: Mike McIntyre

Photos: Jimmie48 Tennis Photography

Petra Kvitova was playing in her first Australian Open since 2016.

Kvitova was beaten in an epic match by Andrea Petkovic 6-3, 4-6, 10-8.

US Open finalist Madison Keys opened with a 6-1, 7-5 victory against Qiang Wang of China.

8th seeded Caroline Garcia of France with a routine 7-5, 6-3 win against Germany's Carina Witthoeft.

Garcia will next face 18 year old Marketa Vondrousova who is already ranked 62nd in the world.

The 22 year old Witthoeft is currently ranked 50th in the WTA rankings right now, hovering near her career high.

Garbine Muguruza was able to finish her first match in three tries in 2018 without injury difficulty. She advanced with a 6-4, 6-3 win against Jessika Ponchet.

Donna Vekic raises her arms following a 7-5, 6-3 win against Japan's Nao Hibino. She will face Angelique Kerber next.

Maria Sharapova was fired-up in her return to Melbourne.

Sharapova is one of two players along with Kerber who have won the Aussie Open in their careers. The two are expected to face one another in the third round.

A selfie with her fans after a 6-1, 6-4 win against Tatjana Maria.

Canada's Genie Bouchard trying to cool-off in her first round match with Oceane Dodin.

The Genie Army has stuck with their player through tough times the past few years.



It's nice to see Bouchard smiling once again on the court. We'll see how long that lasts however as she will next face World No. 1 Simona Halep.

Burden of the Rogers Cup Proves Too Heavy for Genie Bouchard

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.

Women's Wimbledon Preview 2017

By Mike McIntyre

Waking up to the release of the Wimbledon draws feels a lot like waking up Christmas morning. Some of the players on Friday probably felt like they were either receiving presents or a lump of coal depending on who they drew as their first round opponent. Here is a closer look at the (once again) wildly unpredictable Grand Slam women's draw that tennis fans will be enjoying over the next two weeks.

First Quarter

What are the chances that the (for now) World No. one Angelique Kerber will do better than her first round exit at Roland Garros? Kerber does not have a nice draw and will face qualifier Irina Falconi in the opening round. Beyond that she faces either of the talented Kristen Flipkens or Misaki Doi in round two, the tricky Lucie Safarova potentially in round three and then likely the 14th seeded Garbine Muguruza in round four. With Kerber's confidence at a seemingly all-time low I can't see her making it out of there in one piece.

Former Wimbledon finalist Aga Radwanska is in this quarter of the draw but her game has been in steady decline over the past year it seems so I wouldn't get my hopes up for her to go deep in the tournament either. Radwanska faces a player whose career is even more in decline in Jelena Jankovic in the opening round.

So who should we keep an eye on in the top quarter of the draw then? Dangerous players include 7th seeded vet Svetlana Kuznetsova along with Olympic gold-medalist Monica Puig, the always dangerous Ekaterina Makarova and French Open semi-finalist Timea Bacsinszky.

I'm going to go with a Muguruza vs Bacsinszky quarter-final.

Second Quarter

Karolina Pliskova is the 3rd seed and has a nice path in her section of the draw. Of the top seeds hers is the quadrant with the least amount of known obstacles towards the quarter-finals. Sloane Stephens makes her return to the Tour after a foot injury that kept here away from the game for nine months and opens against Alison Riske and has a potential second round match against 12th seed Kristina Mladenovic. Coco Vandeweghe would be the likely third round opponent in that section. ESPN Body Issue cover-girl and former World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki is a good pick as a potential fourth round match-up.

This quarter seems like the most stable to me and I expect a Pliskova vs Wozniacki quarter-final to emerge.

Third Quarter

There are just so many incredible first round matches happening at the All-England Club this year. Dominika Cibulkova gets Andrea Petkovic in this quarter, Sabine Lisicki makes her return as well to competitive tennis and faces Ana Konjuh the 27th seed and Elina Svitolina the 5th seed will face recent Birmingham finalist Ashleigh Barty.

On top of that we have Venus Williams, French Open champ Jelena Ostapenko and Madison Keys in this quadrant. Ostapenko and Keys could provide a terrific third round match here.

I'm going with Williams vs Svitolina for the quarter-finals. Gosh I wish I could be more bold with my picks!

Fourth Quarter

Finally we have 2nd seed Simona Halep opening against Marina Erakovic and on-course for a tough third round match against one of: Carla Suarez Navarro, 2014 finalist Genie Bouchard or up-and-coming Marketa Vondrousova. Victoria Azarenka is yet another player making her return to the court at Wimbledon and gets a very difficult opening match against CiCi Bellis. In the upper portion of this quarter Petra Kvitova - who won in Birmingham last week - is going to be on a collision course with home crowd favorite Johanna Konta. There is simply no shortage of capable players who could be hoisting the Venus Rosewater dish in 2017 and many of them are in this quarter of the draw.

My picks for the quarter-finals are Kvitova and Azarenka for an enticing battle of the recent comeback players.

 

Tuesday Women's Results at Roland Garros

By Mike McIntyre

Photography: Jimmie48 Tennis Photography

Tuesday at the French Open saw the upsets continue in the women's draw with 7th seeded Johanna Konta taken out by 109th ranked Hsieh Su-Wei of Tapei. Konta's success on the hardcourts did not translate onto clay this year as her record on the red dirt now sits at 2-4.

Alize Cornet gave the home crowd something to cheer about as she dismissed Timea Babos in three sets 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-2. Cornet was 1-3 on clay this year coming into the match but no-doubt drew on the French support for inspiration. Her best result here is the fourth round back in 2015.

Babos - showing some visible frustration above - finishes the clay court season with but a single win in the five events she entered.

The French also had the pleasure of watching 28th seed Caroline Garcia advance with ease 6-2, 6-2 over Nao Hibino of Japan. With Konta now out of the draw, Garcia has a clearer path towards a possible quarter-final against 9th seed Aga Radwanska.

Garcia was all smiles as she moved onto the second round.

Anastasija Sevastova lost her balance but not the match as she knocked-off German Annika Beck 6-2, 6-4. The Latvian is coming in hot with a 9-4 record on clay including victories over Sam Stosur, Karolina Pliskova and Johanna Konta.

Mona Barthel was visibly upset with her result today and joined a throng of other Germans who made an early exit this year at the tournament. Barthel was dismantled by Tsvetana Pironkova 6-0, 6-4.

Romanian Sorana Cirstea was pumped-up with her smooth 6-3, 6-1 victory over Shuai Peng who was playing in her 10th Roland Garros and won the doubles crown here in 2014. For Cirstea it is another step in the right direction for someone who is currently ranked 64th but was once ranked just outside of the top-twenty and and made the quarter-finals in Paris back in 2009.

 Elina Svitolina is getting a lot of buzz as a potential French Open winner and dispatched the always tricky Yaroslava Shvedova 6-4, 6-3 in her opening match. Shvedova was a quarterfinalist here in both 2010 and 2012. Svitolina could see Ana Konjuh in the third round and Sevastova in the fourth. A blockbuster quarter-final against Halep would be fun to watch as Svitolina knocked-off Halep in the finals in Rome recently.

Take a good look at Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic. The 17 year old lefty phenom has been crushing her opponents since entering the qualifying draw here and has only dropped 8 games through 4 matches. On Tuesday she destroyed Amandine Hesse 6-1, 6-0.

 Amandine Hesse was feeling the pain after that dismantling from Vondrousova.

 Back in action was Madison Keys who delivered the 6-3, 6-2 win over Ashley Barty. The 12th seed made the fourth round here a year ago but has struggled with a wrist injury this year that has limited her to but five events. Tuesday marked her first win on clay this season so maybe she is about to turn things around.

Third seeded Simona Halep is likely the favorite at this point if she has recovered from an ankle issue that bothered her coming into the tournament. She advanced in straight sets on Tuesday 6-2, 6-3 versus Jana Cepelova.

If Halep can avoid any issues with the ankle she could finally have the Grand Slam breakthrough that people have been waiting for ever since she made the finals of Roland Garros back in 2014. With Serena Williams out of the picture, this would be the perfect opportunity for the Romanian.

And finally, for Canadian tennis fans it has not been easy following Genie Bouchard since her breakthrough performance back in 2014. She started slow today against Risa Ozaki from Japan but recovered to move into the second round with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory.

Bouchard will next face the tournament's 17th seed in Anastasija Sevastova.

Tuesday at the Rogers Cup in Pictures

By Mike McIntyre

With play all but rained out on opening day of the main draw at the Rogers Cup in Toronto on Monday, all of the courts at the Aviva Centre were packed on Tuesday as the tournament tried to get back on schedule. Tennis fans got to see some of the best talents on the WTA Tour including the return of 2013 Toronto champion and world No. 1 Serena Williams, Canadian content in the form of Francoise Abanda, Carol Zhao and of course Genie Bouchard, and a host of other players that we will share with you in some of our best photos below.

The newly named Aviva Centre and poster child Genie Bouchard greet fans as they arrive on site.

Serena Williams on the practice court ahead of her first match. It's all good.

Coach Patrick Mouratoglou having a laugh at the expense of Serena's backhand.

Always important to make sure your nails look good on court. Federer does this all the time too.

Serena's hitting partner was getting frustrated with his play. Dude it's ok - she's a legend.

Many feel that Victoria Azarenka could be Serena's biggest challenge. She tweeted this pic of mine to her fans. I'm sure she'll give me credit one day!

Azarenka is currently ranked 21st but most consider after injury issues she's still top 10 material

Today she took out Elina Svitolina in straight sets 6-1, 6-4

Waiving to the two Belarusians hanging out in the bleachers

Qualifier Yanina Wickmayer's intensity in this shot was absent for much of her loss today unfortunately

Carina Witthoeft delivered a mild upset over "You Go Glen" Coco Vandeweghe

Fresh off a tournament win in Standford Sunday, Angelique Kerber was ready to rock in Toronto

She defeated Misaki Doi easily 6-0, 6-1. Ouch!

Monica Puig practicing her Superwoman look here as she leapt into the second round.

Now back to Serena who took the court mid afternoon against an opponent she was 6-0 against

Rockin' the neon green like she's Andre Agassi. Serena somehow found herself down a set and a break.

But then this happened.

Followed quickly by this. Serena advances 2-6, 6-3, 6-0.

When I asked her about being the only player left from 2001 still in this event she said she feels, "like a nice vintage wine...getting better with age."

When you try too hard to convince the umpire that it's raining.

Oh there's some rain...oh wait, I mean tears.

Zarina Diyas wins the coolest first name in the tourney IMO

But she doesn't win the match as that honour is taken by Julia Goerges who's slightly happy to move on.

A glimpse into the future of Canadian tennis. Francoise Abanda is only 18 but has loads of talent.

She pushed the 16th seed to three sets but could not close it out after leading 1-0.

Dominika Cibulkova warming up for her night match.

She's got the right mentality for sure.

The first match tonight saw Genie Bouchard make her first appearance on hard courts this summer.

The rust was evident as she lost the opening set 6-0.

She showed flashes of her 2014 self in the 2nd set which she came back to win 7-5.

Her opponent Belinda Bencic saw her grip on the match momentarily spin out of control.

But not for long as the Canadian was handed a 6-0, 5-7, 6-2 defeat.

Lots to ponder from this one as Bouchard tries desperately to salvage something of a difficult year on the WTA Tour.

Genie Bouchard Ready to Start Fresh at the Rogers Cup

By Mike McIntyre

While Canada's Genie Bouchard may have slipped in the rankings and by her own admission hasn't been quite herself so far in 2015, you'd never know it based on the attention she received in Toronto Friday at the draw ceremony for the Rogers Cup. Bouchard was the face of the tournament presented to the media, corporate sponsors and other special guests at the Hilton Hotel to kick-off the premiere Canadian tennis event of the year. Yes she has struggled with a 4-13 record so far this season on the WTA Tour, but Canada's tennis hopes on the women's side still begin and end with the 21 year old from Westmount, Quebec. 

There has been much for Bouchard to reflect upon so far in 2015

Dressed in a playful striped crop-top and black overalls, Bouchard was all business while addressing the press. She succinctly stated that her goals for the event are, "to have a good performance whether I win or lose." This start from scratch mentality also involved jettisoning her coach Sam Sumyk with whom she had been working since just after the Australian Open in February. Bouchard says she is looking for someone who can help her address, "the technical side, the tactical side, the mental side (and) the physical side" of her game. She continued to say that she needed someone, "who has the experience at the top level and who can help me improve daily." While I'm not sure how many available coaches out there fit that bill, it was positive to hear Bouchard admit that there are many facets of her game that require improvement for her to get back to playing more confident and successful tennis.

Whether that will happen here in Toronto remains to be seen. Bouchard drew a tough first round opponent in Switzerland's Belinda Bencic. The 18 year old Bencic is currently ranked No. 22 in the world (compared with Bouchard who sits at No. 26) and is playing in the doubles finals of the Citi Open in Washington, D.C. this weekend before arriving for the Rogers Cup. The match between her and Bouchard will take place Tuesday night at the Aviva Centre in front of a packed house no doubt. Then we will see if Bouchard's fresh start is able to yield the encouraging results that both she and her fans are looking forward to.

The Junior edition of the Genie Army was present Friday to say hello

 

Eugenie Bouchard Parts Ways With Coach Sam Sumyk

By Mike McIntyre

Struggling Canadian tennis player Eugenie Bouchard has split with her coach Sam Sumyk after roughly six months of working together. 'Roughly' would be the appropriate word to describe their time together as the former world No. 5 struggled mightily since uniting with the Frenchman in February of this year. Her record has been an abysmal 4-13 during that short period of time that has witnessed a collapse of Bouchard's on-court game and usually strong mental resolve.

Sumyk was no slouch as a tennis coach, having helmed the ascent of former top ten players Vera Zvonareva and more recently Victoria Azarenka whom he parted ways with earlier this year following the Australian Open. Unfortunately for Sumyk (and Bouchard), he was unable to recreate that type of success with the 21 year old Canadian.

While the coaching change comes as a shock to nobody, the timing of the news is somewhat mystifying. Revealed on Twitter by tennis reporter Matt Cronin, the story surfaces just days before Bouchard is set to take to the court in her country's biggest tennis tournament - the Rogers Cup. While it is possible that Bouchard simply could not see herself continuing any longer with Sumyk, it seems odd to make such a decision while on the cusp of having your national media shine a spotlight on you for the week. Rather than coming in with lower expectations and perhaps reduced attention from the press - as she had a year ago following her runner-up result at Wimbledon - Bouchard will now certainly face a barrage of questions related to the coaching move. Did somebody say distraction?

While Bouchard arrived in Toronto late Thursday night, she will be front and centre Friday afternoon at the Hilton Hotel downtown where she will  be the WTA player representative present for the selection of the Rogers Cup singles draw. Previously it had been announced that Maria Sharapova would fulfill that role, but that was suddenly changed without explanation a day ago to Bouchard. One would think that initially Bouchard would have been the logical choice to be at the draw ceremony. Despite her struggles she is still at the moment Canada's best and only viable hope of winning the tournament. Regardless of these logistics, as it stands now it will be Bouchard on the hot seat Friday and hopefully she will be able to shed more details on this breaking situation.

Ultimately our judgment on the dismissal of Sumyk will have to be made at the end of the current season. While Bouchard still has pretty much all of the hardcourt swing ahead of her, it will not be as simple as flicking a switch to rediscover her form from 2014. Many questions still linger and the most important of those perhaps is the state of her health following this past week's withdrawal from the Citi Open in Washington, D.C. due to a lingering abdominal injury.

Check back with us later in the day for full coverage of the Rogers Cup draw ceremony along with reaction from Bouchard herself on what has finally prompted her to move in another coaching direction and why she felt compelled to make that decision now.

Milos and Genie Let Fans Get Closer in Toronto

By Mike McIntyre

What better way to spend a sunny afternoon along the waterfront in Toronto than watching Canada's two tennis stars Milos Raonic and Genie Bouchard conducting a clinic for kids on a makeshift barge sitting on Lake Ontario?

Both coming off disappointing results at Wimbledon where injuries limited their effectiveness, the twenty-something King and Queen of Canadian tennis were all smiles while they encouraged the next generation of tennis stars in their home country. Hitting with the kids was something both players seemed to genuinely enjoy and it sure makes one appreciate how fortunate we are in Canada to have these two players engaged in inspiring our youth. Up until just a few years ago there really were no big names for kids in Canada to look up to on the tennis court. With the relatively newfound success of Raonic and Bouchard you can pretty much guarantee that more kids are going to be picking up a racquet and trying their hand at tennis. 

Here are some pictures we took today that truly capture the motto for the day - #getcloser

Perfect conditions for tennis on a barge!

The crowd gathers by Lake Ontario in anticipation of Milos and Genie's arrival around noon.

Shortly thereafter the two tennis stars arrived with a typically Canadian sized entourage around them.

 

Just in case you forgot what country Raonic represented. The players were mic'd up and looked like they were ready to run an aerobics class rather than a tennis clinic.

 

Hosts for the day were Evanka Osmak and Ken Reid from SportsNet.

Working on her overhead while some happy youngsters look on.

The next Genie?

After hitting with the kids Genie and Milos rallied a little for the crowd.

 There were a few rare smiles from Milos today, a player more known for his reserved demeanor on court.

Talk about canoeing in the right place at the right time!

Genie's toss was right where it needed to be today.

And that's a wrap!

Canadian tennis fans will get the chance to see both players when they return to home soil for the Rogers Cup running August 7-16 in Montreal for the men and August 8-16 in Toronto for the women.

Canadians Dominate at Wimbledon

By Mike McIntyre

While the term "dominate" might be a bit of a stretch, Canada can be proud to say that they have representation in the final four at Wimbledon in both the men's and the women's singles draws.

Just four years ago John McEnroe told me that, "If tennis was played on ice, Canada would have a top-ten player." Today thanks to victories on grass, not ice, Canada will have two players in the top-ten of professional tennis when the updated rankings come out Monday.

With her quater-final victory over Angelique Kerber, 20 year old Canadian starlet Genie Bouchard is going to jump into the top-ten on the WTA Tour next week and join Milos Raonic who broke into the top-ten on the ATP Tour in April of this year.

Also still alive in doubles action at Wimbledon are icon Daniel Nestor who is active in both the quarter-finals of the men's doubles with partner Nenad Zimonjic as well as the mixed doubles with Kristina Mladenovic. And don't forget Vasek Pospisil who along with American Jack Sock are also in the quarters of the men's doubles draw.

While Canada Day was July 1st, it is proving to be Canada Year in the world of professional tennis as seemingly every week on both the men's and women's tour there seems to be groundbreaking results for players from the Great White North.