The Canadian tennis player spoke in an interview with WTA while at the Mutua Madrid Open, where she is currently enjoying herself. Eugenie Bouchard was realistic about how she lived all these months on injury leave and how it affected her throughout the process. That’s why he also told the media what he expects on his official return.
tournament draw
tournament results
Eugeni Bouchard seems to be living again a sense of relief to enjoy his tennis again. In Madrid, he can regain everything that was sidelined by his recent injury. For this reason, in some of the WTA’s statements, which were repeated by AS, he wanted to express several details that need to be taken into account.
You want to compete to get your confidence back
“Yes, and it hasn’t been a great moment. I’ve had a couple of good matches and I’m proud to have the opportunity to play another match.. Matches are what I need now, I’ve been playing on and off for a while. Now it’s like starting from scratch.»
A drastic change in the blink of an eye
«It’s a big question how I became a modern player compared to a girl who dazzles in tennis. It’s hard to reconcile the two, they’re almost like two different careers. I feel like it was a long time ago and recently at the same time. I still regret it, but sometimes it’s like, «Oh my God, it’s been so long!» I am a different person and player. I keep the memories, the confidence and the belief in what I was, but I also realize that was a decade ago and I have to move on and be who I am now to face the players I now have to measure myself against.
About his recent injury
“A shoulder injury is like being forced not to do something you love, forced rest. It takes a lot of patience and it’s taken me a while to get back. And I’m really not that patient, so I’ve had to work hard on it. But I know I always wanted to come back because I wasn’t going to let the injury dictate my career.»
tennis is his life
«I can live comfortably for the rest of my life without hitting the ball. You know, I could relax for the rest of my life, but I’m not like that. That’s why I achieved the successes I have because I’m a fighter and I love to work hard. And I could sit on my couch watching Netflix, and of course that sounds tempting, but after two days I’d go crazy. I needed a project, something to do and I was like, «As long as I feel physically young, why don’t I keep playing tennis?» I will continue with other projects laterbut now let’s see what I can do until I decide not to play anymore.
all are mortal
“If you look back, I was still in the top 50 in the world. It’s great to be in the top 50. And you can’t win all the time unless you’re Novak Djokovic or Rafa Nadal.
Comparison with what Emma Raducanu experiences
«I see a lot of similarities between me and Raducanu. I feel bad for him in that sense. He has a great life, he’s prepared and he’s done well. But I kind of understand the pressure and the trials he’s going through.. He Tweets something, he puts something non-tennis one day and people are like «why don’t you work out?» For me, it was like, «Oh my God, I’m back six or eight years ago.» Haters will always hate you, you know what I mean?
About the reality of things
«All this time I have known who I am and what I do. And look, many tennis players post more than me these days. I am very glad that this is more normal these days. As long as it doesn’t distract you too much, focus on your number one goal. Why not? life is fantasticSo don’t put us in a box.»
