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Rabat – Tunisian tennis player Ons Jabeur qualified today for the finals of Wimbledon 2022, becoming the first Arab player and African woman to reach a Grand Slam final in the history of the tennis tournament.
The 27-year-old player beat her close friend, German Tatjana Maria, in three sets (6-2, 3-6, 6-1) on Thursday.
“I don’t know what to say. It’s a dream coming true… from years and years of work and sacrifice,” Jabeur said in an on-court interview following her victory, adding that she is “really happy that it’s paying off.”
“I’m a proud Tunisian woman standing here today and I know in Tunisia they’re going crazy right now,” Jabeur added, noting that she hopes to inspire not only Tunisian, Arab, and African players but also the youth.
“I just love this game and I want to share this experience with them,” she stressed.
Jabeur praised Maria’s performance, saying: “I definitely wanted to share the moment with her at the end because she’s such an inspiration for so many players and including me … coming back after having two babies, I still can’t believe how she did it.”
The two tennis players shared a long embrace at the end of the game as the crowd applauded.
Jabeur took to Instagram to celebrate her milestone achievement with a caption that read: “Finals baby!!”
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On Saturday, the Tunisian player will meet the winner of the other women’s singles semi-finals between Romanian Simona Halep and Kazakhstani Elena Rybakina.
Jabeur had already made history at Wimbledon 2022 as the first North African and Arab woman to compete in the semifinals of the oldest tennis tournament in the world.
Last month, Jabeur climbed to second place in the WTA world rankings, a new historic achievement for Tunisian, Arab, and African tennis. She also made history last year after becoming the first Arab player to break into the top 10 in the singles rankings.
In 2020, She became the first Arab player to qualify for the quarterfinals at the Australian Open.
