Bouchard joins lifeguards for duty on Bondi Beach

While her colleagues have been paddleboarding in Sydney and scuba diving in Perth, Eugenie Bouchard has kept her feet firmly on the sand by joining the Bondi Beach lifeguards for a hard day's work.

The 22-year-old may have grown up in Canada, but she is right at home on the beach.

"It’s really awesome that they basically work at the beach—I’m jealous in a way," Bouchard said. "The beach for me is my paradise. It's my favorite thing in the world."

The world No. 49 began the new season with some disappointment in Brisbane, where she lost in the first round to Shelby Rogers. She's already done better by winning her first match of 2017 in Sydney over Zhang Shuai.

She has even made some new friends (maybe even fans).

Bouchard is well aware of the pressure to perform after not being able to replicate her Top 5 finish in 2014.

"I am hoping for a better year than 2016,” Bouchard said while celebrating New Year’s Eve in Brisbane. “I think everyone agrees that 2016 was just one of those [bad] years and we’ve got to move on from it."

So this year, it's all about improving.

"It’s the start of the season so everyone could be feeling a bit off," she said in Sydney. "I definitely don’t feel not quite up to my game yet. I’m just trying to improve every single day. Hopefully, I can play some good tennis in my matches."