Canada's Eugenie Bouchard doesn't have a ranking high enough to get into the main draw of an important tournament like the 2017 Rogers Cup. However, the Canadian setting for the tournament means that wild cards will generally go to Canadian players. Accordingly, Bouchard is into the main draw of the Rogers Cup and she has to like the situation she's in in terms of her draw.
Bouchard picked up a qualifier in the first round, meaning that she will face another player that wasn't ranked high enough to make the tournament directly. For an unseeded player, that's about all you can hope for.
However, Bouchard also picked up what could be a win in the second round.
Bouchard vs. Kerber possible early
You can't really hope to keep playing low-ranked players if you proceed in a tournament like the Rogers Cup. That being the case, the top player that Bouchard would want to face, if you hand picked one for her, would probably be Angelique Kerber. Bouchard is 4-2 against Kerber and the wins aren't just from the old days (ie. 2014) when Bouchard was actually a force on tour.
Bouchard beat Kerber earlier this season in Madrid and the Canadian defeated the German in 2016 in Rome. Those wins over Kerber came at times when she was ranked No. 1 and No. 2 respectively. The former World No. 1 is now third ranked on tour and not really looking poised for a deep run in Montreal.
In short, Bouchard, as a wild card and as Canada's most marketable player, has picked up a draw to the third round that she might actually negotiate. If she survives the 2nd round she would then have the perspective of the third seed in the draw, meaning that the other high-ranked players would be in other sections of the tournament.
Andreesu another Canadian hopeful
Other Canadians in the draw include Bianca Andreescu. She was fortunate to get a wild card as she received Maria Sharapova's after the Russian pulled out of Toronto. Francoise Abanda is also in the tournament, accounting for all three wild cards into the field. Andreescu has picked up a bit of draw luck as well as she will face Timea Babos in the first round.
Surviving that the Canadian would face either Coco Vandeweghe or Agnieszka Radwanska. Vandeweghe is in sharp form but she's deep into another tournament this weekend. Radwanska is certainly a proven talent, but her 2017 has been forgettable and it's tough to know what to expect from her.
The final for the Rogers Cup is next Sunday. Canadian tennis fans won't be expecting an entrant into that match. Instead the contenders look like Karolina Pliskova, Simona Halep, Garbine Muguruza, and a small selection of more peripheral players.
