Former Wimbledon Finalist Eugenie Bouchard, a tennis player, is the most well-known person to sign up for pickleball recently.
Former Wimbledon Finalist Bouchard has announced a new deal with pickleball, following a series of injuries and a lack of success in her career. (Photo: Daily Express)
According to talkSports, in a joint Instagram post with the Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) Tour, the former Wimbledon finalist informed her 2.4 million followers of her choice.
Former Wimbledon Finalist Bouchard, who once held the fifth-highest ranking in the world, made the decision to join the 2024 tour after another tennis player did the same.
Jack Sock, a two-time Wimbledon doubles champion, announced last week that he was giving up tennis entirely to play pickleball.
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The 29-year-old Former Wimbledon Finalist Bouchard has not yet commented on how this choice will impact her tennis career, which has been plagued by injuries ever since she first gained notoriety in 2014.
According to ESPN, the Canadian astounded Grand Slam spectators that year, making it to the semifinals of the Australian and French Opens before falling to Petra Kvitova in the Wimbledon final.
Unfortunately for the Former Wimbledon Finalist Bouchard, she was unable to match those heights again and was forced to deal with a crippling shoulder injury from 2021 to 2022 for 17 months.
Former Wimbledon Finalist Bouchard, who is ranked 215th in the world, last participated in a major tournament’s main draw in 2020 at Roland Garros.
Fans will be interested to see if she follows Sock into playing pickleball full-time given the growth of the sport in North America.
Another prominent tennis player from North America, John Isner, responded to the news on social media by writing: “Wimby finalist. Not bad @ppatour LFG!”
Pickleball, which is played on a court that is smaller than that of badminton and uses hollowed-out balls and plastic paddles, is often compared to tennis and ping-pong. This allows for intense rallies to be played at close range.
The sport was first played in 1965, but because of its celebrity support, it has recently experienced tremendous growth.
Courts have even recently opened up in England thanks to Tom Brady, Kim Clijsters, Nick Kyrgios, Naomi Osaka, Patrick Mahomes, and LeBron James’ investments in the game.
Even though she has criticized the sport, Martina Navratilova and Kyrgios recently got into a fight. Kyrgios is the owner of a Major League Pickleball team.
Earlier this year, when talking about pickleball and Sock’s switch, Kyrgios said: “One of my good friends is retiring at the US Open and then turning into a full-time pickleball player.
“To be honest, I love it; it encourages people to be more physically active. Tennis, in my opinion, has a playing age range of 18 to 35.
Pickleball can be started earlier, and I know people over 50 who play. It generally encourages more activity and participation, and when I turn on ESPN, I see it there. It’s expanding and it’s amazing.
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