Abanda and El Tabkah to meet in a Challenger final
Montreal, January 19, 2014 – On Sunday in Melbourne, Eugenie Bouchard (Westmount, QC) became the first Canadian to reach the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam since Patricia Hy-Boulais at the U.S. Open in 1992.
Playing in her first Round of 16 at a Major, Bouchard defeated Casey Dallacqua, the last Australian remain in the women’s singles draw, 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-0 under the lights at Rod Laver Arena. The 19-year-old Canadian was effective on serve, hitting six aces and winning 77 percent of her first serve points. Bouchard, who is competing in the Australian Open main draw for the first time in her career, will face Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic in the quarter-finals. Ivanovic upset World No. 1 Serena Williams in the fourth round.
Bouchard and Ivanovic will meet for a second time. Bouchard won their first encounter 6-3, 6-3 last summer on Centre Court at Wimbledon to reach the third round.
Abanda against El Tabakh
After both playing their way through qualifying to make the main draw, Françoise Abanada (Montreal, QC) and Heidi El Tabakh (Toronto, ON) will face off in the singles final at the $25,000 Port St. Lucie Challenger in Florida. Both players have played eight matches this week. Abanda defeated Tedora Mircic of Serbia in the semifinals 7-6(7), 7-5 while El Tabakh got the better of German Laura Siegemund 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. Abanda won their only previous meeting.
