Eugenie Bouchard Announces Retirement from Tennis
After an impressive rise in the tennis world over the past eleven years, Eugenie Bouchard has decided to retire from the sport where she first made her name.
The 31-year-old Canadian shared her plans on Instagram, announcing that she would step away from the game following her participation in the Montreal Open at the end of the month.
“You’ll know that it’s time. For me, it’s now. Where it all started: Montreal: End Montreal,” Bouchard wrote, posting a collection of nostalgic photos from her early playing days along with highlights from her career.
Bouchard will receive a wild card entry from the tournament organizers, which Tennis Canada confirmed, allowing her to have a proper farewell.
She burst onto the scene in 2014, reaching the semi-finals of both the Australian and French Opens before making it to the Wimbledon final.
With her dynamic playing style and outgoing personality, she seemed destined to be one of tennis’s biggest stars, even achieving a career-high ranking of fifth in the world.
However, Bouchard struggled to maintain that early promise and has since dropped significantly in the rankings, currently sitting at 1,078th globally.
Once a junior champion at Wimbledon in 2012, she now spends more time competing in the Pro Tour of Pickleball.
Tennis Canada CEO Gavin Ziv expressed gratitude for Bouchard’s contributions to the sport in Canada.
“Many thought it was impossible for Canadian players to achieve success, but Genie made a significant impact in Canadian tennis throughout her extraordinary career,” Ziv stated.
“Her career highlights, such as her Wimbledon final appearance and the Billie Jean King Cup Championship, were remarkable and played a pivotal role in promoting tennis in our country. She’s still a fantastic ambassador for the sport, and we want to thank her on behalf of Tennis Canada,” he added.
This year, Bouchard has only played one tournament match, where she lost to American Anna Rodgers in Rhode Island last week.
Her career has faced challenges due to inconsistent results and injuries, including major shoulder surgery that sidelined her for 17 months between 2021 and 2022.
Additionally, she experienced a lengthy legal battle against the USTA after suffering a concussion in 2015 when she fell into an open locker room during the US Open.
This incident occurred after she reached the fourth round and was forced to withdraw due to her injuries, with the umpire placing 75% of the blame on the USTA.
Bouchard referred to 2024 as the “Experiment Year,” trying to balance her tennis and pickleball careers. But it seems that the experiment has come to an end.
