It's always the way when you have been in a slump - events conspire against you to make the rut more and more difficult to climb out of.
This is exactly what seems to be happening to Eugenie Bouchard, having shown improved form to beat Kerber and Sharapova in Madrid, making the quarter finals - losing at this stage to Kuznetsova. This was a good performance, but then a right ankle injury forced her to withdraw from Rome and, she is still trying to shake it off.
Genie was made to work hard against Ozaki
The 'Genie Army' could barely watch in the first set of Genie's 1st round match against Risa Ozaki, as the Canadian started slowly and moved gingerly in losing the set 6-2.
There seemed no way back for Genie, but she dug deep and found the angles to race through the rest of the match - taking the next two sets 6-3, 6-2.
The immediate area of focus for Genie, given her restricted mobility - is to work on that first serve percentage. In the above match it came in at a measly 65%, forcing her to work hard to win 88% of points on second serve. This approach severely tests her mobility and cannot be relied upon until her fitness is at least 85%.
Eugenia Bouchard V Anastasija Sevastova in the 2nd round
The agile Latvian and 17th seed: Anastasia Sevastova beat Germany's Annika Beck in straight sets to book her second round slot against Bouchard.
The head-to-head record between these two players stands at 1-1.
Sevastova won the last encounter on grass in Mallorca last year, preceded by a Bouchard victory on the hard court in Doha. The pair have not yet met on clay and it is a shame that they are both not at full fitness, as it would definitely be a closely matched contest.
Bouchard building fitness for Wimbledon
For Bouchard to make the second round at Roland Garros has indubitably been an achievement in itself - given that her participation in the event was in doubt until the last minute.
For the colourful Canadian, the focus will be upon not aggravating her injury and building her strength and mobility for Wimbledon 2017 and the grass court season.
Bouchard is a previous runner up at Wimbledon and with Serena's absence - she will fancy her chances of a deep run.
Sevastova is building in stature on clay
The likable Latvian is growing in confidence on the clay this season and currently has a 10-4 record on the surface. This will make her an extremely tough opponent for Bouchard.
Prediction: Sorry 'Genie Army', but Sevastova is fancied to take this one.
