Eugenie Bouchard has progressed to the Hobart International final with a win that has left her happy and disgusted.
The Canadian former world No.5, on comeback from injury, on Friday defeated Dominika Cibulkova 6-1 4-6 6-4 in a rollercoaster semi-final.
The 21-year-old raced through the 22-minute first set in a clinical fashion.
“I can’t remember the last time I played that well,” Bouchard said.
“But now obviously, the important thing is trying to keep that and have that consistently.”
In the second set, it was the resurgent Slovakian who directed play with Bouchard unable to win a single service game, leaving her so frustrated that she smashed her racquet walking off court.
“I didn’t hold (serve) once in the second set which is absolutely disgusting,” she said.
“I was so disappointed in myself for that – I should definitely do better.”
Bouchard also acknowledged her racquet smashing.
“I definitely want to control my emotions a little bit better.”
In Saturday’s title decider, the world No.47 meets the winner of the second semi-final between France’s Alize Cornet and Johanna Larsson.
Bouchard says she is focused on the Hobart tournament before turning her attention to the Australian Open where she’s drawn world No.121 Serbian Aleksandra Krunic.
“Whoever I play in the first round, everyone’s going to be going for it – it’s a grand slam,” Bouchard said, adding that she had practised with Krunic at Flushing Meadows.
Bouchard has a good record at Melbourne Park where last year she reached the quarter-finals and in 2014 was a semi-finalist.
For world No.37 Cibulkova, her attention shifts entirely to the Open where she meets France’s Kristina Mladenovic, who is seven places higher in the rankings.
Cibulkova enters the grand slam, where she was a finalist in 2014, wanting to maintain her aggression.
“Melbourne is somewhere I have great memories and it just keeps coming back and I feel like this is the tournament I can play really well and I’m prepared and now with this confidence I’m going there,” she said.
