Eugenie Bouchard got the result she most wanted at the Australian Open. While there was heavy opposition from French star Oceane Dodin, the Canadian overcame and won her opening round match 6-3, 7-6(5) on Court Two at Melbourne Park Tuesday. The first serve was the main key to Bouchard’s victory averaging 63 percent and 75 percent of points from her first serve.
This was a first-time matchup between the two where both careers needed a pick me up at a slam. For the last few years, the Canadian has been having the hardest time since her finals finish at Wimbledon. She had been unable to get dug into her last two tournaments making her match against the French star important. Dodin hasn’t been in action since September having dealt with some issues with an injury. Getting the edge of Bouchard would come in handy to make 2018 a good start for herself.
They started the set with holds on one another with the Canadian leading the way smoothly. Dodin didn’t have anything serious to bring to the table but held off a break chance in the fourth to remain even. A battle for control ensued in the fifth with Dodin hunting for the first break. Bouchard slammed the door shut defending her serve on the third break to continue leading. A solid line drive return awarded Bouchard with a second straight victory that gave her a 4-2 lead on Dodin.
Things clearly looked well for Bouchard as she had a serve that was getting the best of the French player to pressure the Lille native into submitting to a set defeat. Dodin refused to let the set end on her watch as she held the Montreal native in the eighth to make her do the work. She did exactly that handing Dodin a shutout in the ninth game that finished the first set in 39 minutes. The Canadian had seven aces in her set win serving slightly better than Dodin which had her in good shape.
Dodin knew that she had to challenge Bouchard to falter. In response, the 21-year-old attacked with two game wins right from the start wanting to dictate a good part of the match. She watched Bouchard climb back to level the score at two all and then rallied to even things at three all. Dodin regained the lead in the seventh making it clear of her intentions to send things into a third and final set. After Bouchard got a hold in the eighth, Dodin was first to reach five games and battled the Canadian to give it to her. Bouchard went to deuce with the French star before securing the win on serve that pushed the set onward.
The 21-year-old fired back by earning a break that put the Canadian on notice but her response in the 12th was a boost of confidence. Bouchard fought tooth and nail to break Dodin in kind and did so to force the tiebreak. Dodin got a 2-1 lead but was overtaken with a set of points that gave Bouchard a shot at winning her opening round. She began to let Dodin back blowing two match points in the process. She got lucky as a return shot from Dodin resulted in the Canadian’s big victory of the day completing 1 hour and 40 minutes.
While it was a much needed win, Bouchard would have a massive obstacle in her way facing world number one Simona Halep on the center stage Thursday.
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