Tunisia's Ons Jabeur becomes first Arab tennis player to break singles top 10
Tunisia's Ons Jabeur becomes first Arab tennis player to break singles top 10
The 27-year-old player defeated Estonia's Anett Kontaveit 7-5, 6-3 at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, guaranteeing that she will enter the top 10 in singles once the rankings are updated.
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Ons Jabeur has won 48 matches so far in 2021 [Getty]
Tunisian tennis player Ons Jabeur has become the first Arab tennis player, male or female, to break into the top 10 ranking for singles.
The 27-year-old player defeated Estonia's Anett Kontaveit 7-5, 6-3 at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, guaranteeing that she will enter the top 10 in singles once the rankings are updated this coming Monday.
The victory also qualifies her for the ongoing tournament’s semi-finals.
Jabeur has won 48 matches so far in 2021, more than any other woman player this season.
“Feels amazing,” Jabeur said on the court after her victory. “We’ve been working hard for years. The end of last season I said I wanted to be in top 10. We're going to go further, hopefully, and now focus on this tournament."
— Ons Jabeur (@Ons_Jabeur) October 15, 2021
Jabeur is projected to rise to number eight in Monday’s ranking, but go as high as five if she wins the ongoing BNP Paribas Open. She will face Spain’s Paula Badosa in the semi-finals.
Jabeur was named the Arab Woman of the Year in Sports in 2019. In 2020, she became the first Arab woman to reach a grand slam quarterfinal at the Australian Open. She earned her first career title this year at the Viking Classic Birmingham and also reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon this year.
In July, Jabeur again made the news after auctioning off her winning Wimbledon tennis racket to help Covid efforts in her home country.
