Making the switch to
pickleball as opposed to continuing to play full-time tennis, it was an attractive proposition for former Wimbledon finalist
Eugenie Bouchard. But in practice, her first tournament couldn't have gone any worse as she was easily beaten in most of her matches as a pickleball pro and didn't look at home on the court.
Speaking at the Dallas Open where she faced Caroline Wozniacki in a tennis exhibition as she kept her eye in when it came to tennis, she admitted that she wanted to throw up and in an honest revelation said she got 'totally smoked' when it came to her debut in the sport.
Others have been more adept to the variation on tennis which will also get a spot at the Miami Open including Jack Sock who defeated the World No.4 and also showed his skills on the court when he played in the Pickleball Slam 2. This saw Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf take a $1million prize and has given new life to rivalries between legends for a ton of cash including John McEnroe and Maria Sharapova who they faced. But for Bouchard, it is more of a continued learning curve.
"I played in Palm Springs for my first event in mid-January, and I was very, very nervous, like wanting to throw up before my first match. I got totally smoked in the first game that I played. I improved as the day went on, I had singles and mixed doubles and then women's doubles, all in the same day," said Bouchard.
"By the last match, I was feeling much more comfortable on the court. I had great partners who helped me and gave me advice and tried to tell me what to do a little bit. I think playing more tournaments will help me get into it."