Eugenie Bouchard holds off Caty McNally in straight sets win at Abierto Zapopan

Genie Bouchard in action during a rally with Caty McNally at the Abierto Zapopan in Guadalajara, Mexico. 

Eugenie Bouchard kept herself strong to come through again at the Abierto Zapopan Thursday night. The Canadian kept her game well rounded with unforced errors and winners that gave her a 6-4, 6-3 win against Caty McNally on Cancha Centrale at the Panamerican Tennis Center. This was the biggest winning streak for Bouchard since her run at Istanbul last year. 

The Canadian’s two wins had an increase of improvement while using patience to let her opponents make the critical mistakes that led to her winning. McNally was in her path as yet a new opponent never faced in her career. The American became the second player for the Canadian, who went three sets in her last match. Tamara Zidansek gave the 19-year-old a challenge deep in every set, but despite her second set tiebreak win, couldn’t break the pace that got her into the last eight. With Bouchard in her path, McNally knew that errors would determine who could make less, hold their serve together and endure. 

Bouchard opened the match but couldn’t build the ground to separate herself from McNally. The American forced deuce, gaining a breakpoint on the second. The 27-year-old killed it off and clinched the service on the third break setting the set into place. McNally forced extra shots to Bouchard, who found herself down but climbed back on free points from the teen. McNally got back on track, forcing her opponent to err on the returns to secure the serve. 

She consolidated it by breaking Bouchard’s service in the third before taking a big 3-1 lead. Bouchard knew that she couldn’t trail long and proved her efforts in the fifth. Errors from McNally gave the 27-year-old a chance to hold serve, but an error from her end forced deuce. Bouchard saved the breakpoint and held on the second break to contain her end. She covered the spread in the sixth when the American double-faulted twice. Bouchard got to breakpoint, winning it on a long ball from the teen that leveled them at three-all. 

Bouchard had the momentum and used it to perform well in the seventh, which earned her the lead. McNally tightened up in the eighth to hold serve, making it a serious point to keep the pressure on while feeling it herself. The Canadian did well to hold well in the ninth, putting all the nerves onto the young American who served to stay in it. She had set point until McNally forced deuce with a great winning return. 

When she thought the door was open, she found out that difficulty remained with Bouchard hunting down the key points needed to overturn her. On Bouchard’s second set point, she delivered a big forehand that McNally couldn’t get back, securing the first in 42 minutes. The Canadian leveled the winners to unforced errors from her side of the court that got her through the set with a first-serve percentage of 73. The American had twice the double faults of her opponent, getting the message that more had to be done with a stronger point. 

She tried breaking Bouchard in the opening game of the second set, but lost ground and end up on deuce. It took the 27-year-old three breaks to lock down the service, but her efforts paid off in the following game. The 19-year-old came out struggling and practically handed Bouchard the break. The Canadian backed up the two wins with a third, holding off McNally who trailed far back in the third. 

The teen got herself on the board with a service hold, but there was a lot of work to be done to come back, with Bouchard halfway to the match win. She gained a much-needed break, pressuring Bouchard enough for her to double fault and sit a game down after the fifth. Bouchard denied her the chance to back up the break and broke the American in response. Bouchard gifted the seventh game, putting too much pep on the ball during rallies. 

Despite keeping her in reach, the Canadian continued her path out front, scoring the break back for the 5-3 stand. With balls in hand to serve for the match, the 27-year-old had to prevent the fifth game from being broken. She watched McNally err on the first point, and then smashed a crosscourt winner on the next. The 19-year-old put her on match point with an unforced error but soon killed one chance off. A second try came on a forced error from McNally bringing an end to her tournament in 1 hour and 23 minutes. 

“The last couple of days have been a whirlwind and I’ve Just had matches every single day so I haven’t had time to think about it,” said Bouchard. “I’m just so grateful to stay here another day and keep playing.”