Tennis players switching to pickleball: Former Wimbledon final Eugenie Bouchard says ‘I feel like I belong a little more’ | Sport-others News
Eugenie Bouchard, the former World No.5 and 2014 Wimbledon final has found a new love — the fast-growing sport of pickleball.
Bouchard, now 30, is ranked 565th in the world because she is focussing more on pickleball.
“I was like, you know, ‘I’d love to challenge myself to try something new.’ And also to be a part of something that is so trending and growing so much, that was really appealing to me. It was also something I could do while still playing some tennis tournaments. So that’s why I was like, ‘Yeah, sign me up,’” she told tennis.com
Bouchard competes in the Pro Tour of Pickleball and has played just four pro-level tennis matches in 2024, according to tennis.com.
Bouchard, however, said that she was just learning the ropes.
“I still have a long way to go but at least I feel like I belong a little more,” Bouchard added.
Last month Bouchard reached her first professional pickleball semifinal at the Rate Championships in Las Vegas.Bouchard is not the only former top tennis player switching to pickleball.
Sam Querrey, the former World No.11 with 10 ATP singles titles, is now a pickleball player and so is his fellow American Jack Sock.
Querrey said that making the transition is not as easy as some tennis pros feel it is.
“It’s the nuances and the positioning, the changing of direction,” Querrey told ppatour.com. “It’s so many little things. At the highest level, it’s a lot harder than it looks.”
