Eugenie Bouchard’s first singles match in 17 months ended in a hurry — and not in a good way for the Canadian.
Bouchard, returning from right shoulder surgery, lost 6-2, 6-2 to Arianne Hartono of the Netherlands in the first round of the WTA Tour’s Odlum Brown VanOpen on Tuesday in Vancouver.
A former world No. 5, the native of Westmount, Que., was playing singles for the first time since losing in the first round of a tournament in Mexico in March 2021.
Bouchard’s competitive return came Sunday when she won a doubles match.
“I was exhausted,” Bouchard, 28, said with a smile. “I started feeing tight in my body, my muscles were getting sore.
“It’s just that mental focus. To play in a match is different than practice. It’s about getting those reps in over and over again. I’ll get the endurance from that and be able to get back to playing matches totally normal, but it’s one baby step.”
Bouchard became the first Canadian to advance to the singles final at Grand Slam in 2014 when she lost in the final at Wimbledon to Petra Kvitova. She also reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and French Open that year.
Since then, Bouchard has battled multiple injuries, including suffering a concussion after a fall in the dressing room at the U.S. Open.
The Odlum Brown VanOpen ends this weekend. The tournament, which returns after missing two years due to COVID-19, has attracted 135 players to the Hollyburn Country Club battling for a combined purse of over US$274,360.
The men’s tournament, which has a top prize of $21,600, has been an ATP Challenger Tour event for several years. For the first time this year the women’s competition is a WTA 125 tournament with a $15,000 top prize.
— With files from CP
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