Bouchard tours Auckland via helicopter

After reaching the finals of the Luxembourg and then the Hawaii Open, Eugenie Bouchard is continuing her hot streak into the new year by winning her first two rounds at the Auckland Open. Defeating Madison Brengle, 6-3, 6-3, and then Bibiane Schoofs in a tight three setter, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-4, the Canadian seems reinvigorated after a lackluster 2018 season.

“I think the second half of the year I started doing better, started winning some matches, just about improving my game and bringing it out on the match court,” Bouchard said. “It’s all about kind of being physically and mentally at your peak when it’s the tournament and that’s so hard to do. The great ones do it consistently, and that’s the goal.”

On her day off, she took a trip around Auckland, which included visiting the horse races as a fashion judge, taking a helicopter to Waiheke Island and ziplining.

“I can’t ask for anything more, I’m being treated like royalty here,” Bouchard said. “You don’t often get a chance to see the country or city that we’re in so to be able to have a couple of these organized activities for me before the tournament has been really nice. It’s all about enjoying life.”

Bouchard will face Julia Gorges in the quarterfinals.