“I am proud and honored to be the first Arab woman to play the Mubadala World Tennis Championship" - Ons Jabeur
Ons Jabeur will become the first Arab woman to feature at the Mubadala Tennis Championship when she takes on Belinda Bencic on Thursday. Jabeur will compete at the tournament, due to Emma Raducanu's last-minute withdrawal after testing positive for COVID-19.
Speaking about the remarkable accomplishment, Jabeur said she was "proud and honored" to be playing at the exhibition event.
“I am proud and honored to be the first Arab woman to play the Mubadala World Tennis Championship. 2021 has been a terrific year for me and I know that the Championship is the best start to an exciting 2022 season," Jabeur said.
Tunisia's Ons Jabeur all set to make history as first Arab woman to play in Mubadala World Tennis Championship - WAM EN dlvr.it/SFMmyK
Ons Jabeur will face Belinda Bencic in a one-off exhibition match in Abu Dhabi. The head-to-head currently stands at 1-0 in favor of the Swiss player.
Ons Jabeur is the first Arab woman to make the top 10 of the WTA rankings
This is not the first time Ons Jabeur has registered her name in the history books. After reaching the semifinals at Indian Wells in 2021, the Tunisian star became the first Arab player to rank inside the WTA top 10.
#Tennis #WTAIndianWells #Eurosport 'The beginning of great things' - Jabeur makes history after reaching semis: "Ons Jabuer is set to make history by becoming the first Arab man or woman to reach the top 10 in the tennis world rankings. The Tunisian… eurosport.com/tennis/wta-ind… https://t.co/4q5HsJ4n5r
"This is a dream coming true. Top 10 I know is the beginning. I know I deserve this place from a long time since I was playing well. But I want to prove that I deserve to be here, I deserve to be one of the top 10 players," remarked Jabeur after achieving the historic feat.
In 2021, Jabeur participated in a total of 20 tournaments. Highlights of her season include victory at the Birmingham Classic and runner-up finishes at the Chicago Fall Tennis Classic and MUSC Health Women's Open. She also made the semifinals at Indian Wells and the quarterfinals at Wimbledon.
Unfortunately, Jabeur injured herself during her first-round match against Ekaterina Alexandrova at the 2021 Kremlin Cup and hasn't played since. On her comeback at the Mubadala Tennis Championship, Ons Jabeur will look to recapture the form she had earlier in the year.
Also read: Mubadala World Tennis Championship 2021: Ons Jabeur vs Belinda Bencic preview, head-to-head & prediction