Ons Jabeur to play on home soil in Tunisia WTA tennis tournament

Tunisian tennis heroine and US Open finalist Ons Jabeur is to play in a WTA 250 tournament on home soil for the first time in October, the North African country's tennis association said on Monday.

The news came after Jabeur, 28, on Saturday for a second time missed becoming the first Arab or African woman to win a Grand Slam title, defeated by Polish world number one Iga Swiatek in straight sets.

Tunisian Tennis Federation (FTT) chief Salma Mouelhi told AFP that world number two Jabeur would take part in the Jasmin Open in the coastal city of Monastir which is occurring from 3 to 9 October.

Jabeur has become a national heroine in recent years but this will be her first WTA tournament back on home soil.

She also became the first Arab woman to reach the final of Wimbledon in July, but has yet to win a Grand Slam.

.@Ons_Jabeur struggled to hold back the tears after losing a second consecutive Grand Slam final on Saturday. While the Tunisian said her #USOpen defeat to Iga Swiatek was tough to take, she vowed to come back swinging. For now though, she climbed the ranks and is now world #2 💯 pic.twitter.com/ljjjbnXbqp

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) September 12, 2022

After her defeat on Saturday she said she had "nothing to regret".

"I'm not someone that's going to give up. I am sure I'm going to be in the final again and I will try my best to win it," she said.