Wimbledon 2023
- Tunisia wins the epic semi-final 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3
- Jabeur, last year’s runner-up, meets Vondrousova on Saturday
Thu 13 Jul 2023 at 7pm BST
Earlier this year, long after her unforgettable breakthrough run to her first Grand Slam final, Ons Jabeur was forced to relive the joy, hope and ultimate pain of those two weeks. When she and her husband Karim watched the episode of the Netflix series Break Point that chronicled their run, they both cried.
The wounds were still fresh, the pain was still there; She would have to return this year to win it all.
True to her word, Jabeur found her way back to the Wimbledon final with immense courage and confidence. After falling a set and 4-2 behind the best player in the world this year, the Tunisian dug into the depths of her mind again and found the strength to recover. Jabeur, the sixth seed, returned to the final with an incredible 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-3 win over world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka.
Ukraine is still ‘very proud’ for Svitolina despite the end of Wimbledon.
A year after becoming the first Arab player and first African woman to reach a Grand Slam singles final at Wimbledon, she will play for her first major title again when she takes on Marketa Vondrousova in Saturday’s final. After also reaching the US Open final last year, it is the 28-year-old’s third Grand Slam final in the last five events.
“I’m very proud of myself because maybe my old man would have lost the game and gone home by now. I’m glad I kept digging deep and found the strength,” said Jabeur.
Sabalenka, meanwhile, had arrived on Center Court with a win after usurping Iga Swiatek and becoming the new world no. Instead, she suffered a second Grand Slam semifinal meltdown within two months of her brutal loss to Karolina Muchova at the French Open. “I will just keep working and keep trying. Hopefully next time I’ll be mentally stronger in the semifinals,” said Sabalenka.
Last year’s Wimbledon presented a great opportunity for Jabeur as she failed to beat any of the top 30 opponents en route to the final. However, her return to the All England Club saw her perhaps the most difficult draw ever as three title dreams stood in her way.
Ons Jabeur and Aryna Sabalenka embrace after their thrilling semi-final match at Wimbledon. Photo: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian
After defeating Bianca Andreescu in three sets, Jabeur defeated the in-form Petra Kvitova, the two-time Wimbledon champion, in round four. Against Elena Rybakina, a quarterfinal replay of last year’s final, she might have played the best match of her life. Her reward for such a tough run was the fourth Grand Slam champion and the toughest of them all.
Still, Jabeur picked up where she left off, hitting the ball softly while taking every opportunity to attack one of the greatest batsmen in the world. She made Sabalenka very uncomfortable throughout the first set, guiding her around the court with her forehand and constantly forcing the tall Belarusian to crouch low and move forward to deal with her superb slice.
Every time Sabalenka was under pressure in the first set, she reacted. She found huge serves at crucial moments and managed to bail herself out. After Sabalenka made the tie-break 2-4 down, she was 4-2 up in the second set.
As she tried to regain the break, Jabeur’s desperation became increasingly evident. She continued to impose with her forehand, she found a groove on her return of serve and Sabalenka’s errors began to flow under pressure. After being 4-2 down, Jabeur mastered the last four games with flying colors and forced a third set.
quick start Guide
Skupski and Koolhof reach the men’s doubles final
In recent years, Neal Skupski has made a name for himself as a specialist in mixed doubles, winning the title here in 2021 and 2022 alongside Desirae Krawczyk of the United States. What he wants now is to secure the men’s title and on Thursday he was one win away as he and Wesley Koolhof, his Dutch partner Matt Ebden, one half of last year’s winning duo, and Rohan Bopanna defeated India 7 -5, 6-4. The top seeds will face Spain’s Marcel Granollers and Argentina’s Horacio Zeballos in the final.
Skupski is the first Briton to reach a final at Wimbledon, excluding wheelchair users, in three consecutive years since Dorothy Round in 1937. “It’s always nice to have a Brit with us at the end of the tournament at Wimbledon,” he said. “I’ve been lucky with mixed doubles in recent years. But that’s what we want. That’s what we trained for. For me, that’s the highest achievement when we’ve managed to cross the finish line. But we still have a tough game ahead of us.”
As for streaks, this one will take a beating. Britain’s men’s wheelchair doubles duo Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid duly reached their 16th consecutive Grand Slam final together on Thursday by defeating Argentina’s Gustavo Fernández and Spain’s Martín de la Puente 7-5, 6-3.
Another example of why they’ve established themselves as the best doubles pair in the world – in every discipline – the No. 1 seeded won a narrow first set and then effortlessly progressed through the second to leave them just one win from their fifth Wimbledon together -Titles are removed. In the final they play against the Japanese Takuya Miki and Tokito Oda. Simon Cambers
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“It was very difficult for me to return her serve,” said Jabeur. “Especially if she mixed a lot. Even the speed was difficult. I was like, ‘Honestly, I don’t give a damn, I’m just going to go in and get my return.’”
The momentum continued into the final set where Jabeur served brilliantly and played clear attacking play that kept her comfortable before claiming the crucial break after a long, tense game at 3-2. With the finish line suddenly in sight, Jabeur played the match and secured the biggest win of her career.
Having started the year hoping to secure a breakthrough in the 2022 season in which she finished 2nd, it has been a tough season for Jabeur as numerous injuries including knee surgery halted her progress. Even if she was at times unable to reach her highest level, this season followed the story of her career: her success was the result of gradual, continuous growth over more than a decade.
“Maybe the injuries slowed me down and taught me to be patient and accept what’s going on,” she said.
Despite her two Grand Slam finals in the last 53 weeks, Jabeur has never played as well as she has in the last 11 days. The mental toughness and fighting spirit she displayed in those intense, crushing duels against the best players in the world seems even greater than last year, and these qualities have taken her towering talents to a new level. She will be the favorite for her first Grand Slam title.
“I want my journey to be worthwhile and I want to win [against] It’s important that all these Grand Slam winners make it to the finals,” she said. “Yes, I’m going full throttle and I hope it works this time.”
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