Genie off to Australian Open second round
Eugenie Bouchard seems to have a different level of comfort and confidence when she plays down under.
In her first Grand Slam match of 2015, the seventh-seeded Bouchard made quick work of German Anna-Lena Friedsam. Genie, the WTA’s Most Improved Player of 2014, hit 20 winners and was only broken once en route to a 6-2, 6-4 first round victory. Her next opponent will be Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands.
In 2014, Melbourne was the start of a very big year for Genie as she stormed her way to a first-ever Grand Slam semifinal. She followed up the impressive Australian Open showing with a semifinal appearance at the French Open as well as a trip to the final at Wimbledon.
In addition to playing well in Australia, Genie has a big following down under. It was at this time last year that we were first introduced to the enthusiastic group of Australian supporters who call themselves the Genie Army.
The army was out in full force and could be heard cheering Genie on throughout the first-round matchup. Bouchard told TSN that she definitely notices the insane amount of support that she gets in Melbourne.
Fellow Canadians Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil don’t have “armies” of their own per se, but they will be looking to follow Genie’s lead when they play their first round singles matches.
Milos will kick off his tournament at 9pm EST tonight (Tuesday in Australia) against Ukrainian Illya Marchenko while Vasek will be looking to defeat American Sam Querrey.
