Bouchard named 2013 Tennis Canada female player of the year

November 26, 2013, Toronto (ISN) – Tennis Canada announced Tuesday that Eugenie Bouchard (Westmount, Que.) has been named 2013 Tennis Canada Female Player of the Year. A former Junior Player of the Year, Bouchard also is receiving honours for Most Improved Female Player for the second straight year.

In her first full season as a professional, 19-year-old Bouchard rose over 100 spots in the rankings from a 2012 year-end of world No. 144 to a high of No. 32, her current position. She reached her first WTA final at Osaka in October, defeated four Top 15 players throughout the course of the year, and was named WTA Newcomer of the Year. Rounding out the female high performance Excellence Awards is Gabriela Dabrowski (Ottawa), who is receiving the Female Doubles Player of the Year award for the first time.

“Eugenie’s career is just starting but what she has already accomplished in one short year on the WTA tour is very impressive,” said Michael S. Downey, president and CEO, Tennis Canada. “Her ceiling is so high, and Eugenie is so focused and determined to create even more success for herself and her country. She is well on her way to becoming a star not only in Canadian tennis but all over the world. Congratulations to Eugenie, and best of luck in what I’m sure will be an exciting 2014.”

Bouchard, who became the first Canadian to win a junior Grand Slam singles title at Wimbledon last year, started off her season having to play qualifying at WTA events. She made her first big push at the Premier tournament in Charleston in April, where as a qualifier she reached the quarter-finals, defeating fellow up-and-comer Laura Robson and world No. 9 Samantha Stosur en route. She then made the semifinals at Strasbourg – her first at the WTA-level – before playing in her first career Slam main draw at the French Open, where she fell to Maria Sharapova in the second round. At Wimbledon, she played on tennis’ biggest stage and made the most of the opportunity, ousting No. 12 Ana Ivanovic on Centre Court to reach the third round.

She added another semifinal at Quebec City in September before eliminating No. 13 Sloane Stephens and No. 10 Jelena Jankovic at Tokyo on the way to a quarter-final finish. In her second-last tournament of the year, Bouchard made her first WTA final, where she lost to Stosur in three tough sets. Also leading Canada’s ascension into Fed Cup World Group II for next season, going 6-1 through the year, Bouchard has thoroughly earned her place as the nation’s No. 1-ranked WTA player.

“It’s great to be recognized with these awards for the first time,” Bouchard said. “2013 was a great season for me with so many firsts and so many highlights that I will always remember. I learned a lot in my first full year on the Tour. I’m working really hard in my off-season and can’t wait for next year.”

Dabrowski is the recipient of Female Doubles Player of the Year for her incredible season in which she became Canada’s top-ranked doubles player and reached two WTA finals. Finishing 2012 as the No. 138-ranked doubles player in the world, Dabrowski reached a high of No. 60 this season. She played in her first WTA final at Brussels in May, finishing as runner-up alongside partner Shahar Peer. Later in the season, she also was a finalist at the WTA event in Linz with Alicja Rosolska. One of her biggest results was defeating the world’s No. 1 doubles pair of Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci at Rogers Cup presented by National Bank in Toronto. She and fellow Canadian Sharon Fichman (Toronto) ousted the three-time Slam champions to advance into the semifinals. Dabrowski also made her Fed Cup debut in 2013, winning the deciding doubles rubber with Fichman to send Canada into the World Group II play-offs. In addition, the 21-year-old captured three ITF Pro Circuit titles to bring her career total to nine and she reached one other final. 

The Tennis Canada Excellence Awards are selected by a committee comprised of high-ranking Tennis Canada personnel and the country’s top national coaches.

TENNIS CANADA EXCELLENCE AWARD PLAYER OF THE YEAR HONOURS