"Definitely not someone I can say I look up to anymore" - When Eugenie Bouchard called Maria Sharapova a 'cheater' amid doping suspension
Eugenie Bouchard called Maria Sharapova a "cheater" shortly after the Russian returned to the WTA tour from a 15-month suspension for doping.
Sharapova tested positive for a substance called meldonium in January 2016, and was initially handed a two-year ban from tennis. She claimed that she used the drug only to treat magnesium deficiency and diabetes symptoms, and her ban was eventually reduced to 15 months.
The Russian returned to the WTA tour in April 2017. Her first tournament was the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart.
Eugenie Bouchard was competing at the Istanbul Cup at the time, and she expressed her displeasure at Maria Sharapova being allowed to play tennis again after her doping scandal. The Canadian claimed that Sharapova should not be allowed to play as it was unfair to other players.
"I don’t think that’s right," Eugenie Bouchard told Turkish broadcaster TRT World.
"She is a cheater. So, to me, I don’t think a cheater in any sport should be allowed to play that sport again. It’s so unfair to all the other players who do it the right way and are true."
Bouchard also said that Sharapova wasn't someone she looked up to anymore due to her doping offense.
"So, I think from the WTA it sends the wrong message to young kids, 'Cheat and we'll welcome you back with open arms.' I don't think that's right and she's definitely not someone I can say I look up to anymore because it's definitely ruined it for me a little bit," the Canadian said.
Sharapova and Bouchard locked horns in the second round of the Madrid Open, shortly after the interview. In a high-intensity duel, Bouchard won 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 to book her place in the third round of the tournament.
She went on to reach the quarterfinals, where she lost 6-4, 6-0 to Svetlana Kuznetsova. That was Bouchard's last appearance at the Madrid Open until this year. Having just qualified for the main draw of the 2023 edition of the tournament, the Canadian will take on Dayana Yastremska in the first round.
Maria Sharapova leads 4-1 in the head-to-head against Eugenie Bouchard
Maria Sharapova and Eugenie Bouchard locked horns five times, with the Russian winning four of those matches.
Their first encounter came in the second round of the 2013 Miami Open, where Sharapova won 6-2, 6-0. She then triumphed 6-2, 6-4 when they met in the second round of that year's French Open.
Sharapova and Bouchard next clashed in 2014 edition of the clay-court Major as well, this time in the semifinals. The Canadian won the opening set 6-4 but the Sharapova staged a brilliant comeback to win the next two sets 7-5, 6-2 and reach the final.
Sharapova went on to beat Simona Halep in the summit clash.
The penultimate Grand Slam meeting between the two came in the quarterfinals of the 2015 Australian Open, with the former winning 6-3, 6-2.
The aforementioned second-round clash at the 2017 Madrid Open was the last encounter between the two, and the only one where Bouchard came out on top.