Canada's Eugenie Bouchard headlines exhibition at Delray Beach Open; Frances Tiafoe enters
Canada's Eugenie Bouchard, a former Wimbledon finalist and top 10 player, will headline a Women's Tennis Challenge that will proceed the men's Delray Beach Open.
Meanwhile, Frances Tiafoe is coming to the Delray Beach Open - which starts Friday and runs through Feb. 18 - to join Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul. Tiafoe, who moved to Boynton Beach during the pandemic, is the fourth Top-20 player in the ATP event and arguably the most popular American.
Tiafoe, who won the 2018 Delray Beach Open as a wildcard, made the semifinals of the 2022 U.S. Open and is one of the key Americans touted to break the 20-year Grand Slam drought.
Tiafoe is ranked 17th. Fritz (No. 12) lives in Miami and just lost to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open quarterfinals in four sets. Paul(No. 14) has resided in Palm Beach County since he was 13. . Rounding out the Top 20 quartet will be No. 19 Frenchman Adrian Mannarino.
At the 2018 Delray Beach Open, Tiafoe was ranked No. 91 and defeated five higher ranked players, including No. 10 Juan Martin del Potro, to capture his first ATP Tour title. The Washington D.C. native won two ATP events in 2023 and made the top 10 for the first time in his career, however briefly.
Bouchard will face in an exhibition the reigning junior Wimbledon titlist, American Clervie Ngounoue on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 8 p.m. The Saturday spectacle is part of the first weekend at the Delray Beach Tennis Center that will also include the Bryan Brothers in a doubles match against retired Tommy Haas/Sam Querrey on the day card.
Bouchard had historic run at 2014 Wimbledon finals
Bouchard, 29,had a historic run to the 2014 Wimbledon finals to become the first Canadian - male or female - to reach a Grand Slam final. A native of Montreal, she also was the first Canadian to reach a career-high world ranking of No. 5 to cap her 2014 season that also saw her reach the Australian and French Open semifinals
The blonde righthander is still ever popular with 2.4 million Instagram followers and was part of Canada's Billie Jean Cup team last month that shockingly won its first title.
More: Tommy Paul ready for pro tennis' Australia swing after spending winter in Palm Beach County
Tiafoe is ranked 17th in the world. Fritz (No. 12) lives in Miami and recently lost to Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open quarterfinals in four sets. Paul (No. 14) has resided in Palm Beach County since he was 13. Rounding out the Top 20 quartet will be No. 19 Frenchman Adrian Mannarino.
At the 2018 Delray Beach Open, Tiafoe was ranked No. 91 and defeated five higher ranked players, including No. 10 Juan Martin del Potro, to capture his first ATP Tour title. The Washington D.C., native won two ATP events in 2023 and made the top 10 for the first time in his career, however briefly.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Eugenie Bouchard playing Delray Beach Open exhibition, Frances Tiafoe enters
