- The star competes in both tennis and pickleball and was injured playing latter
- She took to social media to explain how she suffered the freak injury in training
- A recovery time was also given as she looks to return to competition soon
A former Wimbledon finalist has been rushed to hospital after suffering a freak injury while playing pickleball.
Eugenie Bouchard, 30, of Canada, is a professional tennis star but also plays pickleball, which is a game that combines elements of badminton, tennis, and table tennis and can be played indoors or outdoors.
Active on the pickleball tour, she has achieved varied success in the sport, including a win over world No 3 Lea Jansen. She is one of a number of former tennis pros to make the jump, also including Jack Sock and Donald Young.
In tennis, meanwhile, she has one singles title to her name and a career high ranking of five. She is currently ranked 1007, 10 years on from her career high.
She reached the final of Wimbledon in 2014, losing against Petra Kvitova, while she also reached the semi-finals of the Australian and French Opens in her most successful year in the sport.
And while she continues to try and spin a number of plates, her immediate focus is on her health, after she ended up in hospital with a freak sporting injury.
Eugenie Bouchard was rushed to hospital after picking up a freak injury playing pickleball
The former Wimbledon finalist took to social media to share the news to her 2.3m followers
The Canadian explained how the injury was picked up via ‘a shank off my partner’s paddle straight into the eye’
Reaching a career high rank of 5 in the world in 2014, she missed out in the Wimbledon final
Taking to Instagram, the star told her 2.3million followers: ‘Got hit in the eye with a pickleball during training today.
‘It was a shank off my partner’s paddle straight into the eye. Went to urgent care and have a scratched cornea.
‘The things we do for this sport! Will be healed in a matter of days.’
Accompanying the posts were two photos of the star – one showing off her swollen eye, which was closer, and other with her thumb up as she donned an eye patch.
It wasn’t the first time she has been in the wars in pickleball, either. Last month, one opponent slammed the ball at her from point-blank range, though there were no lasting injuries.
