Eugenie Bouchard Backs Infamous Twirl Which ‘People Saw as Sexist Thing’

Eugenie Bouchard hung up her tennis racket in 2025 and currently plays pickleball.

Eugenie Bouchard Backs Infamous Twirl Which ‘People Saw as Sexist Thing’

Eugenie Bouchard (Image via X/New York Post)

In Short
  • Eugenie Bouchard defended her 2015 Australian Open twirl, stating it was not sexist but a way to showcase her outfit.
  • She faced criticism for complying with the request from on-court interviewer Ian Cohen, which was perceived as sexist by some.
  • Bouchard's rebellious phase, including a drastic hairstyle change, led to the loss of her Rolex sponsorship due to brand misalignment.

Eugenie Bouchard found it funny when an “old guy”, that is, the on-court interviewer Ian Cohen, asked her to twirl following her win over Kiki Bertens in the second round of the 2015 Australian Open. Cohen’s request was considered sexist, and Bouchard’s compliance with his wishes led to her also facing a lot of criticism.

Bouchard was asked to do “a twirl, like a pirouette,” and after doing as she was told, she blushed as the Margaret Court Arena started to cheer for her. The reason she was asked to twirl was because of her tweet the previous night about how she loved Serena Williams‘ outfit.

Bouchard recently recalled her infamous twirl during the Ok Sweetie Show podcast, explaining why her action was not sexist at all.

People just saw it as such a sexist thing, but I was like, I care about what I look like. I want to show off my cute outfit. My outfit’s cute, guys.

In 2017 and 2018, Bouchard was ranked No.10 and No.9, respectively, in Forbes’ World’s Highest-Paid Female Athletes list thanks to her sponsorship deals with brands like Nike, Coca-Cola, Rogers, and Aviva, among others.

In that 2015 Australian Open, Bouchard went on to reach the quarterfinals, where she was defeated by none other than five-time Grand Slam champion Maria Sharapova, who later lost in the final to Williams. The previous year, Bouchard produced her best performance at the Melbourne Slam by reaching the semifinals.

In 2014, Bouchard made her first and last Grand Slam final at Wimbledon, where Petra Kvitova dismantled her. After her quarterfinal run at the 2015 Australian Open, Bouchard made the fourth round of a Grand Slam event just once, at the US Open the same year.

Eugenie Bouchard’s rebellious phase cost her a Rolex deal

At 22, Eugenie Bouchard was dealing with a rebellious phase that led to her cutting her hair, without knowing its ramifications. She shot to fame after her runner-up finish at the 2014 Wimbledon, but the expectations from the tennis world took a toll on her mental health, and she was trying to find different ways to express herself.

Eugenie Bouchard (2)
Eugenie Bouchard (Image via X/TENNIS)

During the aforementioned OK Sweetie Show podcast, the 32-year-old revealed that her undercut hairstyle was the reason Rolex ended up not renewing her contract due to misalignment between the brand and her.

I had a very late rebellious phase. I feel like that happens in your teens. So, for me, it happened at 22. I shaved the side of my head. To be fair, I wanted just a very small undercut thing, and I don’t know what happened, but it was literally half my head. I felt I looked like a cancer patient. I was like, ‘This is not the look I was going for.’ It caused me to not get my Rolex deal renewed. I think they sent an email to my agent along the lines of like, ‘this doesn’t align with our brand,’ or something like that.

Bouchard won just one singles title from eight finals and called time on her career last year after playing the Canadian Open, where in singles, she lost to Belinda Bencic in the second round. The lone title that she won was the 2014 Nuremberg Cup by defeating Karolina Pliskova. The last time she made a final was at the 2021 Abierto Zapopan, losing to Sara Sorribes Tormo.

Bouchard also won a doubles title in five finals. In her penultimate doubles final at the 2019 Auckland Open, the pair of Bouchard and Sofia Kenin beat Paige Mary Hourigan and Taylor Townsend. In 2024, she started her career as a pickleball player.

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