Ons Jabeur

Ons Jabeur is a Tunisian tennis player. She won her first WTA singles title at the Birmingham Classic in June 2021.

She began playing tennis when she was just three years old, with her mother having inspired her to take up the sport.

Ons enjoyed a promising junior career and won the junior French Open title at Roland Garros in 2011, becoming the first North African woman to win a junior grand slam tournament.

She made her WTA main-draw debut when she was 17 years old after being handed a wildcard at the Premier 5 Qatar Open in February 2012.

Jabeur finally won her first WTA level title at the Birmingham Classic grass-court tournament in June 2021. Her second WTA title followed at the WTA 1000 Madrid Open in May 2022. She then lifted the third title of her career at the Berlin Open in June 2022.

Jabeur was the first Arab player – male or female – to break into the world’s top 10.

So, what do we know about Ons’ journey to becoming the talented tennis player she is today? This is her story.

Early Life, Parents And Upbringing

Ons Jabeur was born on 28 August 1994 in Ksar El Hellar, Tunisia to mother Samira and father Ridha. She has two brothers called Hatem and Marwen – and one sister named Yasmine.

By the age of six, Jabeur had begun competing in national tournaments, and internationally four years later.

When she was 12, she moved to the capital city of Tunis to train at the Lycee Sportif El Menzah.

She enjoyed a promising junior career, which peaked with her title-winning triumph at the 2011 junior French Open.

Jabeur is known for her unique playing style, which is not based around pure power. In an interview with The Guardian in June 2022, Jabeur revealed why she enjoys playing drop shots so much.

“I am a huge fan of the drop shot,” she said. “The drop shot can always work because the other player is not really sure what to expect, a flat ball or drop shot. It can really surprise the other player, wrong-foot them.

Ons Jabeur (Photo: China Images / depositphotos.com)

“And also, when you do a drop shot, they don’t know what to expect [in future]. They know you can do it. They know they have to run. And some people, they’re not really happy with running forward all the time.”

First WTA Titles

After making steady progress up the rankings, Jabeur finally won her first WTA title in June 2021, when she triumphed at the Birmingham Classic tournament in the build-up to Wimbledon.

Speaking after clinching the trophy, Jabeur said that she hoped her success would help to inspire a new generation of Arabic players.

“I knew I had to go for it, I had to win this title to at least breathe, and give an example,” Jabeur said during the on-court trophy presentation after the victory in Birmingham. “There’s not a lot of Tunisian or Arabic players playing, so I hope this could inspire them, and I want to see more Arabic [players] and Tunisians playing with me on tour.”

Jabeur then won her second career title just under a year later, triumphing at the WTA 1000 Madrid Open in May 2022.

She won the title with an up-and-down 7-5 0-6 6-2 victory over American Jessica Pegula, making her the first Arabic woman won win a WTA 1000 level title.

Ons Jabeur (Photo: China Images / depositphotos.com)

“I’m so happy that I didn’t wait long [for the title], because I was really disappointed after Charleston and Stuttgart,” Jabeur said after winning in Madrid. “I was really close and I know I was playing really good there. But I have been doing a lot of hard work to see that it’s paying off. I cannot describe how I feel right now.”

More Progress

Jabeur continued her impressive form in 2022 by winning her third career title, this time at the WTA 500 Berlin Open.

She overcame Belinda Bencic in the final, after her Swiss opponent was forced to retire due to an ankle injury while trailing 6-3, 2-1. The win handed her her second grass-court title.

“I think [Jabeur] really deserves this title and she’s playing great tennis at the moment,” Bencic said after the final.

Earnings And Prize Money

Jabeur has won a total of US$ 6,239,483 in combined prize money for singles and doubles in her career so far, as of June 2022.

She has a sportswear sponsorship deal with Lotto.

Life Away From The Court

Jabeur is married to Karim Kamoun, a Russian-Tunisian former fencer who has also served as her fitness coach. The couple got married in 2015.

She speaks Arabic, English and French, and has also been learning Russian.

She is a football fan, and her favourite teams are Juventus and Real Madrid.

Ons Jabeur (Photo: China Images / depositphotos.com)

What Have Others Said?

Belinda Bencic, speaking after beating Ons Jabeur in the Charleston Open final in April 2022: “I think Ons, she took everything from me today. And at some point I just really didn’t know what to do anymore, and I think she played great in the second set. … I was just trying to fight every point.”

Simona Halep, speaking after beating Ons Jabeur in the second round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships in February 2020: “I feel she’s a little bit more stronger than last year when we played. I was injured, but I felt her game pretty well at that moment. As I said, it’s really tough to read her game because she doesn’t give rhythm. She can make unbelievable shots. She can miss a little bit too easy, but she’s improving a lot. I’m sure that she can do it better.”