Eugenie Bouchard flies all the way to China, withdraws from Wuhan Open before her first match
Canadian tennis star Eugenie Bouchard, who returned to the practice court just a few days ago after suffering a concussion in a locker-room accident at the US Open Sept. 4, flew all the way from Florida to Wuhan, China to get back on the circuit – only to withdraw from the tournament Monday afternoon, a few hours before her scheduled first-round match against No. 11 seed Belinda Bencic.
The official reason from the WTA is "ongoing concussion issues".
Here is the official quote from Bouchard, as supplied by the WTA Tour early Monday morning, Canadian time.
“I am frustrated and disappointed that I won’t be able to compete at the Wuhan Open this week. Having reached the final last year, I was very much looking forward to playing for the great fans here. I travelled to Wuhan with the intention of playing. Unfortunately, my concussion symptoms came back during practice on Saturday and It would not be safe for me to go on court today. I will rest in Wuhan for the next few days to determine how I progress, and look forward to coming back here to play in this great city next year."
Bouchard had already withdrawn from her planned participation in a tournament last week in Tokyo, Japan as she recovered. She traveled from Montreal down to Florida in the middle of last week and did hit the practice courts at Key Biscayne, although clearly did not have much volume.
The 21-year-old is entered in two more tournaments in Asia – in Beijing next week and a smaller event in Hong Kong the week after that.
Eugenie Bouchard made all the way to Wuhan, but is now out of the tournament. She's trying. But didn't feel well at all today.
— Carole Bouchard (@carole_bouchard) September 28, 2015
Bouchard will be replaced in the draw by lucky loser Ajla Tomljanovic of Croatia.
What the withdrawal means for the rest of her season is obviously unclear although if she is ready to return to action in the next two weeks, she already will have dealt with the long transatlantic flight, the adjustment to the climate, and the jet lag.
The ranking points from Bouchard's effort in Wuhan a year ago, when she reached the final and lost to Petra Kvitova, have already been reflected in her ranking. Bouchard dropped from No. 26 to No. 36 in the new list, effective Monday.