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Eugenie Bouchard leads Canada to a Fed Cup win over Slovakia, and makes Canadian tennis history

Stephanie Myles

QUEBEC CITY – It may have seemed like a fait accompli to most because when it has come down to crunch time in Fed Cup, Montreal’s Genie Bouchard has been money.

And though it wasn’t routine, the 20-year-old from Montreal came through again Sunday, defeating Jana Cepelova of the Slovak Republic 7-6 (6), 6-3 to clinch the World Group I playoff tie for Canada.

The victory earns Canada a promotion into the prestigious World Group I, where admission is restricted to the top eight nations in women’s tennis and where the members actually have a chance to compete for the big trophy.

It's a first in Canadian tennis history.

“I’m happy. I’m always proud to play for my country, and for Canada to be among the best countries in the world in tennis, I think it’s something special for Canada,” Bouchard said, after the squad and support staff did a triumphant flag run around the stadium in the Université Laval’s PEPS complex, and after she met with the local chapter of the ever-growing Genie Army and accepted another armful of stuffed animals to add to her collection.

Bouchard said she never felt entirely comfortable all weekend, and it showed.

“I found it tough. Sometimes I didn’t feel that great on the court with my tennis, but I was proud that I fought hard and played better when I had to – like (Saturday) in the third set and today in the second, I think I raised my level a bit. And that’s what I have to do in the important moments,” Bouchard said. “I was on clay for two weeks, and now to come back on hard courts, and indoors. And now I’m going to the red clay in Europe. So maybe it was just adapting a bit.”

Bouchard was down 3-5 in that first set. And after coming back and taking that set, she raced off to a 4-0 lead in the second.

Then, she faltered momentarily.

“It was important for me to not think about winning, the consequences of winning, what might happen after the match. Maybe I lost my concentration a bit. She played some good points, I made mistakes I wouldn’t make normally,” Bouchard said. “But when I had the serve again at 5-3 I said, ‘it’s time’. I ran for some tough balls, played some good points on defence to get the match point.

“At that point, I just said, ‘Serve REALLY hard’. That’s what I did, and it worked.”

For Cepelova, it's the end of a long, eventful two-month trip in the U.S. and Canada, the

last three weeks of which were spent basically alone after her coach returned to Europe in early April.

After nearly two weeks in Quebec City, trying to practice, waiting and thinking about how, with limited experience playing for her country, she was going to lead a squad that was without its three best players, she was pretty spent both physically and emotionally.

“It was tough for me. I tried every ball, every point, but I was physically really down,” Cepelova said.

Was it the calf she strained on Saturday? “A little bit, yeah,” she said, and then laughed. “But – all the body.”

Sharon Fichman and Gabriela Dabrowski took the court in doubles to finish out the tie, after the fourth singles match was not played.

They lost 6-4, 5-7, [11-9] to the team of Janette Husarova and Anna Schmiedlova.

Canada must now wait until early June to find out who its first opponent will be in the first round of World Group I in 2015, a tie that will be played right after the Australian Open in early February.

It could be a powerhouse like Italy or the Czech Republic. But the way the Fed Cup host-nation rules work, both of those ties would be played in Canada.

In the meantime, Bouchard and the rest of the squad will head to Europe to begin the clay-court season leading up to the French Open in late May.

Bouchard leaves for Portugal Wednesday night, and will play a smaller tournament there – a joint WTA and ATP Tour event – beginning a week from Monday. Countryman Milos Raonic will also be there.

Here are excerpts from Bouchard's post-match press conference.