After winning the first WTA Tour Event of her career on the eve of the 2014 French Open, Eugenie Bouchard proceeded to not only make it to the semi-finals at Roland Garros but also reached the Wimbledon Final before falling in straight sets to Petra Kvitová. Within the blink-of-an-eye the young Canadian had become the talk of the tennis world and appeared to be headed for certain stardom as the next big thing in the women’s game.

Fast forward nearly seven weeks into the future and suddenly things no longer look so cut and dry as they did just a short time ago, following a trio of less than stellar performances from the Montreal native.  As bad as Bouchard looked in falling to Shelby Hunter during what was truly a disastrous showing at this year’s Rogers Cup, she frankly hasn't improved a whole heck of a lot over the last couple of events.

Be it crashing out of the Western and Southern Open during her second round match against Svetlana Kuznetsova or Wednesday evening’s stunning 6-2, 6-2 thrashing at the hands of Australian veteran Sam Stosur in Connecticut, something has clearly gone awry with this kid’s game and one can’t help but wonder what has brought it on.

After being the aggressor in almost every single one of her matches since taking home the winner’s cheque in Nuremberg in late May to her memorable run at the All England Club in late June/early July, Bouchard as inexplicably become nothing more than a bystander in three of the four matches she has played following her extended hiatus away from the court.

Instead of dictating the pace of play and daring her opponents to come at her as she has for much of this historic run, the twenty-year-old has seemingly morphed into a completely different player overnight. Gone are the trademark swinging half volleys, punishing groundstrokes and ultra-aggressive return game only to be replaced by an approach with no real direction and in all honesty…she looks almost lost out on the court.

In her defense, Bouchard has not been the only player to suffer a number of setbacks since the conclusion of the season’s third major, as many of the top seeds in both the men’s and women’s draws have fallen victim to poor play in recent weeks. However, as previously mentioned, Eugenie has not come close to resembling the player who essentially forced her way up the WTA World Rankings over the last seven-plus months.    

So what gives? Was she just a flash in the pan who got hot at the right time but has now come crashing back down to reality or is it something else? While some might be starting to wonder if it wasn't just a lucky run, my money is on it being the latter. There are just too many signs pointing to this being nothing more than a bump in the road for a young player.

While she could be suffering from a minor injury, as her left thigh was heavily bandaged during both here matches in New Haven, perhaps the most glaring and perplexing difference we have seen in Bouchard’s approach over her last handful of matches has come in the lack of belief she has shown in her on abilities and an unwillingness to fight through and tough it out. Clearly the lack of on court success coupled with the loss to Hunter unfolding in the manner it did has left her rattled and she has yet to recover.

Eugenie is not the first nor will she be the last athlete to lose their confidence. It comes with the territory and how one deals with it, generally determines how good they will ultimately become. Over these last eight months, Bouchard has shown the ability to elevate her level when it mattered most, which is something a player who lacks belief in their own abilities cannot do.

If anything, her self-confidence and willingness to do whatever is necessary to stay in a match have already become staples of this young ladies’ make-up and while that may no longer be the case for the moment, to think it just disappeared without any sort of warning makes absolutely no sense. In this writer’s mind, expecting her to bounce back immediately from the Rogers Cup debacle didn't make much sense but surely she would be ready to go for the US Open.

Now while that may still occur, it is no longer a sure thing. Over these last two tournaments, it has become painfully obvious this kid is running on nothing but fumes. She has become erratic from both wings and her groundstrokes on the whole have next to no zip and almost always lack any sort of real depth. Her second serve, which was already a weakness, looks even slower and she has struggled mightily to win points on her first serve.

For a player who tends to usually dominate with a power game, all of these signs point to a player being tired and in the case of Eugenie Bouchard, it is more likely to be a case of exhaustion. This season has been one heck of a whirlwind for the kid and the demands on her time have become numerous. At twenty- years of age perhaps expecting her to continue this magical ride to the end of the calendar year might be asking a little too much…especially with the gas tank running on empty.