Eugenie Bouchard moves to pickleball, America’s fastest-growing sport | Tennis
She herself has not yet responded to the transfer. But the Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) announced its arrival on social media. “One of the biggest signings of the year.”
By name, Bouchard can already count. Not because of her impressive record, there was more to it than that. The Canadian had her breakout season in 2014, playing in the semifinals of the Australian Open and Roland Garros and reaching the final of Wimbledon. She was also ranked fifth in the WTA rankings at the time. It seemed only a matter of time before she won a Grand Slam tournament and became world number one, but her career quickly went downhill. Because of injuries, but also because of the focus on non-sporting matters. She is currently ranked 215th, and since 2020 has not been able to play in a major tournament.
In terms of appearance, PPA can of course use it. She is not shy about putting herself in the spotlight. Or sometimes she expresses her opinion inaccurately. With 2.4 million followers on Instagram, she also provides a large following for the sport of pickleball.
It remains to be seen if Bouchard will make waves in pickleball. She had shoulder surgery two years ago, and her rehabilitation after that was also difficult. The Canadian is not the first tennis player to make this switch. Doubles specialist Jack Sock retired from tennis earlier this month to focus on pickleball. Donald Young (formerly No. 38) and Sam Querrey (formerly No. 11) also made this selection in 2023.
What is pickleball?
Pickleball is a combination of tennis, padel, badminton and ping-pong. You play the game just like padel on a small court, which is about four times smaller than a tennis court. The net also hangs a little lower
Differences with padel? You are not standing in a “cage”, but simply in an open field. The racket is smooth, while a pedal paddle often has a certain texture or holes. In pickleball, players also use a small plastic ball with holes in it. The combination of a smaller court, a hidden serve, and a much slower-moving ball makes pickleball more accessible than tennis, just like padel.
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