Emma Raducanu sends message to Eugenie Bouchard | Sports News

Emma Raducanu has prolonged her help to Eugenie Bouchard, who just lately retired from skilled tennis on the Canadian Open.

Former world No.5, Bouchard, accepted a wildcard into the WTA 1000 in Montreal as a farewell gesture and managed to win her opening match earlier than succumbing to seventeenth seed Belinda Bencic in a intently contested three-setter on Wednesday evening.

The emotional retirement ceremony noticed the 31-year-old combating back tears. Tributes have since poured in from the tennis group for the previous Wimbledon finalist, with Raducanu being the most recent to specific her admiration for Bouchard.

Raducanu, the British No. 1, shared a snapshot of Bouchard’s retirement on her Instagram story, penning a heartfelt message: “@geniebouchard thank you genie, loved watching you compete and play. Wish you all the best for your next chapter.”

Bouchard had beforehand drawn parallels between Raducanu’s profession trajectory and her own. The Canadian made waves when she reached the 2014 Wimbledon last at simply 20 years outdated.

However, she confronted criticism all through her profession for her online persona and social media exercise. Raducanu’s victory on the 2021 U.S. Open as a teenage qualifier catapulted her into the limelight, main to a number of model endorsements.

The British participant has additionally had to defend herself towards critics who steered that she was more centered on sponsorships or claimed they could possibly be a distraction from her tennis.

“I’m training five or six hours a day, I’m at the club 12 hours a day. But I put one post in the car on the way to practice and all of a sudden I don’t focus on tennis,” Raducanu stated in 2022, months after changing into a Grand Slam champion.

Bouchard understood exactly what the world No. 33 was experiencing and shared Raducanu’s remarks, writing: “I feel you, Emma.” During her look on the 2023 Madrid Open, the previous Wimbledon finalist emphasised the parallels between herself and Raducanu.

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The former world No. 5 revealed: “I see a lot of similarities. I feel for her in that sense. She has a great life, she’s set for life, and she’s had great achievements. But I can understand a little bit, possibly the pressure, the scrutiny.

“She tweeted one thing, posted one thing about not doing tennis sooner or later and people had been like, ‘Why do not you go practise?’ I used to be like, ‘Oh my God, I went by that six, eight years in the past’.”

While Raducanu progressed to the third round of the Canadian Open on Wednesday, defeating 32nd seed Peyton Stearns, Bouchard’s career reached its conclusion on the center court.

She held a break advantage over Bencic in the deciding set but fell 6-2 3-6 6-4. Bouchard was emotional following the handshake and then addressed the audience: “I feel it is so particular to play my final match right here in Montreal on this courtroom in entrance of you guys. I bear in mind being a little child, sitting in these stands, hoping and dreaming that I’d play on this courtroom sooner or later.

“I grew up playing on these courts and courts all around Montreal and near here, so it feels like such a full circle moment to finish my career here. Tennis has given me so much, I am filled with so much gratitude for this sport and for the people who helped me along the way.”