Eugenie Bouchard celebrates return to court after shoulder surgery

After tearing her subscapularis muscle in March last year at the Guadalajara Open, Eugenie Bouchard is on the road to recovery as she participated in her first exhibition set of tennis in over nine months.

The Canadian participated at the SoCal Honda Dealers Helpful Cup in California, which is the first new mixed team event on the Champions Series Tennis tour. The 2014 Wimbledon runner-up recorded wins in the singles and mixed doubles events, where she teamed with retired ATP pro Tommy Haas.

“I played better than I expected,” Bouchard said. “We had really tough conditions. We’re both very cold out here and it’s hard to serve sometimes with the wind. But I just tried to hit the shots I’ve been doing in practice since I’ve been training for my comeback.”

The 28-year old took to Instagram soon after the event, updating fans on her progress and conditioning.

"I had the best time playing in front of a crowd. My cheeks hurt from smiling the whole time!” Bouchard captioned the post. “This mixed format @championsseriestennis is so fun. One small step…”