Bouchard not worried about ranking

Eugenie Bouchard has declared she is not concerned about an imminent ranking fall.

Ranked as high as No.5 in 2014, the 23-year-old will fall outside the top 100 next week after a first round loss at this week’s Hobart International.

Bouchard entered the tournament as the world No.83, but is projected to slide to about No.112 in next week’s WTA rankings after her points for reaching last year’s Sydney International semifinals are removed.

“It is what it is,” Bouchard conceded.

“My ranking will obviously drop a little bit after this week and I have points to defend next week, but it’s not something I think about too much in terms of defending.

“For me, I just try to see it as I start the year at zero and try to do as well as I can. This thing of defending points I’ve never really understood.”

Bouchard has been ranked inside the top 100 since April 2013 – and her fall will make it difficult for the Wimbledon 2014 finalist to enter many top-level tournaments.

“I’ll just try and make up the points wherever I can. If I have to play smaller tournaments, then that is fine,” she said.

A disappointed Bouchard is now preparing for next week’s Australian Open after her 6-4 6-3 loss to Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka today.

“It’s not where I want to be,” Bouchard admitted after the match. “But I’ll just take away another match, another learning process and just keep going.”

MATCH REPORT: Sabalenka ends Bouchard’s campaign

Bouchard has now lost her past nine singles matches, stretching back to August last year.