Bouchard needs French Open ‘miracle’

Eugenie Bouchard has withdrawn from the Nuremberg Cup tennis tournament with a right ankle injury and her French Open campaign is in jeopardy.

The 2014 Nuremberg champion informed tournament director Sandra Reichel of her decision late Monday, when an MRT scan showed she had torn a ligament in training the previous week.

The injury put the Canadian’s participation in the French Open in doubt.

“She told me she needs a miracle,” Reichel said Tuesday. “She sent for her doctor from Canada.”

If she misses the French Open it will be the first grand slam event Bouchard has missed since debuting at the 2013 French Open and will mean both herself and Maria Sharapova, who she has been at odds with over the Russian’s return from a doping ban, will miss the tournament.

Defending champion Kiki Bertens won her opening match, beating German wildcard entry Katharina Gerlach 6-2 6-1. The top-seeded Bertens will next play Annika Beck, who defeated Lena Rueffer 6-3 6-3.

Also, seventh-seeded Yaroslava Shvedova beat Anna Zaja 3-6 7-5 6-1 and Carina Witthoeft defeated Johanna Larsson 6-1 6-0.