Eugenie makes winning start

AUCKLAND: Former Wimbledon finalist Eugenie Bouchard launched her comeback year in winning form as she cruised through her first round match in the WTA Auckland Classic on Monday. Olympic champion Monica Puig also sailed through to the second round on a day in which none of the seeded players appeared. Former world number five Bouchard has earmarked 2019 as her comeback year after sliding down rankings following a standout 2014 when she made the Wimbledon final and was a semi-finalist in Melbourne and Paris. Now ranked 87th, the Canadian proved too strong for the 88th ranked Madison Brengle, taking just over an hour to beat the American 6-3, 6-3. The 24-year-old mixed glimpses of her previous best with some unforced errors but overall gave herself a pass mark. Puig was untroubled in her 6-3, 6-2 win over American wildcard Bethanie Mattek-Sands while 2017 champion Lauren Davis advanced with a 6-2, 6-2 win over Spain’s Lara Arruabarrena.

from The News International - Sports http://bit.ly/2EXDOCS