In a meeting of two resurgent former Grand Slam finalists, world No. 25 Eugenie Bouchard outlasted Dominika Cibulkova in three hugely entertaining sets, 7-6(9), 4-6, 6-3 to advance to the fourth round at the US Open.
Both players have struggled with various afflictions since their breakthroughs during the 2014 season - Cibulkova with consistency and her recovery from Achilles surgery, Bouchard with shoulder and abdominal issues and her own unknowable demons.
In this match, though, each was in something close to peak form, and save for some evident yips on either side when it came time to close a set, the level of play was extremely high. Virtually the entire match played from the baseline, as the two dragged each other side to side with flat, aggressive, on-the-rise groundstrokes.
The first set was about as closely contested as a set of tennis can be. Bouchard was the first to get broken, at 2-3, but Cibulkova couldn't consolidate, and the two stayed on serve until the set went to a breaker.
Both had trouble closing, but Cibulkova was the bigger culprit, squandering five set points while tossing in a couple double-faults. Finally, after 71 grueling minutes, Bouchard hammered a second-serve return up the middle that Cibulkova could only shovel into the net. It was a massive moment for the beleaguered Canadian, who hasn't won a single match in 2015 after dropping the opening set.
In the second set, it was Bouchard who gifted back an early break, falling from ahead and losing five of the final six games as Cibulkova feasted on her second serve.
In the decider, Bouchard flipped the script one more time, answering a first-game break with one of her own (the third time in the match Cibulkova failed to hold after breaking) on the way to four straight games and a lead she wouldn't relinquish.
Even when she was battling some all-too-familiar nerves, Bouchard looked decidedly like her old self. Her unflappable courage, that immeasurable belief, showed itself in every big, searing forehand - even the ones that didn't stick.
When Cibulkova couldn't return her final serve, Bouchard dropped to one knee and let out a primal yell. It's been a hellish year for the 21-year-old. Whether or not she can keep the momentum rolling at this US Open, she deserved that moment.
