Eugenie Bouchard, the 2014 Wimbledon finalist who was once Canada’s top-ranked player, has announced her retirement from professional tennis. The 31-year-old confirmed she will step away from the sport after one final appearance at the 2025 Canadian Open in Montreal, the city where her tennis journey began.
“You’ll know when it’s time. For me, it’s now,” Bouchard wrote in an Instagram post confirming her decision. The National Bank Open, which responded publicly to her announcement, will serve as the final stop in a career that began with soaring potential and later came to be defined by its sharp decline.
Bouchard’s rise to international stardom was rapid. After a successful junior career that included a Wimbledon girls’ singles title in 2012, she made her Grand Slam debut in 2013 and immediately caught attention with third-round runs at Wimbledon and the US Open, as well as a second-round showing at Roland Garros. But it was 2014 that transformed Bouchard from promising prospect into household name.
Her 2014 breakout season
That year, she reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and French Open, beating a string of higher-ranked opponents and showcasing a brand of fearless, aggressive tennis. By the time she arrived at Wimbledon as the 13th seed, Bouchard was already being talked about as one of the faces of the next generation.
Eugenie Bouchard celebrates a point (Getty Images)
At SW19, she played the best tennis of her career. She cruised through the draw without dropping a set, defeating players like Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep en route to her first Grand Slam final. There, she faced 2011 champion Petra Kvitova. Although Bouchard started strongly, Kvitova’s power and experience proved decisive. After taking the first set 6-3, the Czech dominated the second 6-0 to win her second Wimbledon crown.
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Despite the one-sided nature of the final, Bouchard left London optimistic. “I am very motivated to win a Grand Slam,” she said in her post-match press conference. “It’s been, you know, a lifelong dream of mine. I feel like I’ve taken steps in the right direction to achieve that.”
Eugenie Bouchard and Petra Kvitova after the 2014 Wimbledon final (Getty Images)
During her time on the tennis tour, Bouchard earned $6.9 million in career prize money, placing her among the highest earners of her generation, and reached the World No. 5 in October 2014. But what looked like the beginning of a breakthrough era for Bouchard soon turned into a long and frustrating struggle.
Injuries and time off tennis
She returned to a Grand Slam quarterfinal at the 2015 Australian Open, where she lost to Maria Sharapova, but her results quickly declined. She also struggled with several injuries.
Bouchard underwent shoulder surgery and sustained a concussion at the 2015 US Open after slipping in a locker room. That incident led to a legal battle with the United States Tennis Association, which was eventually resolved through a settlement.
Eugenie Bouchard suffered from several injuries (Getty Images)
Her last notable showing at a major came at the 2020 French Open, where she reached the third round. That marked her best result at Roland Garros since her semifinal run in 2014. After that, Bouchard’s appearances became sporadic, and her time on the sport’s biggest stages began to fade.
Bouchard is among a small group of current and former tennis players who have embraced the growing popularity of pickleball. She climbed as high as World No. 17 in the pickleball rankings. While she said she wasn’t necessarly “burned out” from tennis, she wanted a “new opportunity”, as she told Associated Press.
Her most recent years
In recent years, she tried to work her way back by entering Grand Slam qualifying tournaments, but those efforts ended in disappointment. From 2021 through 2025, Bouchard played five qualifying events at the majors and failed to reach the main draw in all of them.
For Bouchard, the story will end where it began. She will step away from tennis in front of her home crowd in Montreal, where she first emerged as a rising star. The Canadian Open will serve as a final tribute to a player who helped raise the profile of tennis in her country and inspired many to pick up a racquet.
