EUGENIE BOUCHARD – THE NEW WONDER GIRL OF TENNIS

Currently ranked world No.8 in tennis, Eugenie Bouchard has emerged as a dominant player in recent times .The year 2014, has raised the stakes quite high on her career . She started with her surprise run to the semifinals of the Australian open, defeating world No. 9 Ana Ivanovic .This was the very first time that a Canadian player reached beyond the quarterfinals of a grand slam in the last 22 years, since the US open in 1992.But she was soon eliminated from the slam after facing a defeat from No.4 ranked Li Na. This was her best performance yet at any grand slam and she made a crossover to the world’s top 20 rankings for the first time.

In the BNP Paribas open, Bouchard reached the fourth round after defeating Sara Errani in the third,  that being her third win over a top 10 WTA player. At the Family Circle Open, she managed to reach the semifinal for the first time, defeating Venus Williams and 8th ranked Jelena Jankovic which marked  her 4th win over one of the top 10 players .Just before French Open, Bouchard also won her first WTA singles title of her career with a victory over Karolína Plíšková in the final at the Nürnberger Versicherungs cup, a French Open warm up tournament . She was also named WTA newcomer of the year.

In the French Open, Eugenie reached the semifinals before being eliminated by the title winner,  Maria Sharapova. On her way to the semis, she thrashed world No. 9 Angelique Kerber in straight sets, in just under 60 minutes to reach the quarterfinals,  one of her best games this year.

At Wimbledon, Bouchard reached her third consecutive Grand Slam semifinal without dropping a set, defeating   Daniela Hantuchová, Silvia Soler Espinosa, Andrea Petkovic, Alizé Cornet, and Angelique Kerber. She became the first WTA player in last 5 years to reach the semis of first three Grand Slams of the season and guaranteed her first ever top 10 WTA ranking following the tournament.

She then went on to defeat world No. 3 Simona Halep in straight sets to become the first Canadian woman to make it into a Grand Slam singles final .In the much talked about Wimbledon final, Bouchard faced defeat by 6-3, 6-0 to 2011 champion Petra Kvitova,  a former champion who was playing one of the best matches of her career, in straight sets. She was clearly the crowd’s favorite on the big day and after the match she addressed the audience with the  humble words

“I don’t know if I deserve all your love today, but I really appreciate it.”

She started this year as if she had nothing to lose and began as just a kid in tennis terms, but went on to play the best tennis of her life . She might not have the best forehand or the killer serve like Serena Williams, but she always manages to remains calm and steady between the runs for her shots and her forehands, backhands, volley and serve combined with her mental toughness can prove to be lethal .

Her hard hitting tennis and fast movement around the court has been difficult for other players to match .After being  defeat by Genie at the 2014 Australian Open, Ana Ivanovic said that Bouchard is “a very aggressive player” .It’s sometimes very hard to read her game. There are no real patterns, like with other players. She’s a great mover.

Her this year’s run in all the three slams makes her one of the most perilous players to have in the upcoming 2014 final Grand Slam – The US Open .In the first round ,she is faces  Orga Govortsova and if she makes her way to the quarters ,she is most likely to play Ana Ivanovic or we could see a rematch of the 2014 Wimbledon finals against Petra Kvitova, as long as there are no major upsets in slam. Though there are chances of a few surprises. As for Eugenie – Its hard court season and she has struggled in some recent hard court events, most recent being  the  Connecticut Open where she was knocked out in the second round. But that was all in the past .All she has to  do now is give her best  and Prove to the world that she is every bit  worthy of the fame, love, trophies  that she has been getting in recent times for her beautiful looks and charm. which adds up along with her powerful and herculean game .She is one young angel to watch on the court in the recent years and can dominate the upcoming tennis scene.But still, its all about that one day when you go out to the court and try to give your best on that occasion. The hopes are high from Eugenie in the last slam of the season and we hope for the best tennis from her .

She has earned the nickname #selfiequeen on Twitter for the glamour shots she posts. But she is also a player whose game is strong enough to justify her results this year and get a modest amount of attention from fans, advertisers and even the W.T.A. Now that women’s tennis has become a game of power, players are supposed to be at their best in the mid-20’s.  Bouchard, who just turned 20 in February, could be acclaimed for her potential alone for years to come .She is young and has a bright career ahead .The tennis legends across the world are waiting to see what she’s going to offer the tennis world in the coming years.