Ons Jabeur ready to make a dent at the Australian Open

Ons Jabeur's brilliant consistency in the 2022 season was overshadowed by only Iga Swiatek's monster season and the limited limelight on her could just help her win the Australian Open 2023.

Ons Jabeur ready to make a dent at the Australian Open

Ons Jabeur - IMAGO / tennisphoto.de

Ons Jabeur is loving it that all the focus at the Australian Open is on Iga Swiatek. At the same time, anyone who is going to ignore World No.2 from making a dent in women’s singles in the coming fortnight is being foolish. The 28-year-old Tunisian professional, who is returning Down Under after 2020, is happy with what she achieved in 2022.

Though it did not translate into Grand Slam titles, she is patient, eager, and not putting too much pressure on herself. Anyone from the Arab world in sports with a Muslim identity makes big waves in the Western media. She had to answer all kinds of questions on this topic, of being a Muslim and being the face of the Arab world at the press conferences last year at The Championships in Wimbledon and the US Open.

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Sadly, she was runner-up at both events. Physically, Ons Jabeur is solid. She is strong, physically, and ready for the grind. In the dry heat and hard courts of the Rod Laver Arena and Margaret Court Arena, Ons will have plenty of support. Australia today has a mixed population. There is a heavy sprinkling of people from Muslim nations who will come just to support her.

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One saw in the recently concluded FIFA World Cup in Qatar how Arab teams competing — Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and Iran — made the news. Whether it was due to potential or performance, they made the news. Ons is different, she is World No.2 and that is a big deal.

Related: Novak Djokovic wants to be the best, he can do it at Australian Open

Ons Jabeur’s brilliance was overshadowed by only Iga Swiatek

Ons Jabeur and Iga Swiatek
Ons Jabeur and Iga Swiatek with their respective trophies won at the 2022 US Open

International tennis is full of youngsters waiting to make a dash in the draw. If Iga is eager, then there are many like Coco Gauff and company hungry to roar. Ons is watching and waiting like the predator going for the kill. “I will try to use that experience from last year [of losing two Grand Slam finals]; it was tough and my goal is to not lose any more finals but to use that to be ready for the next one,” said Jabeur on Sunday.

Her losses in the Wimbledon final and the US Open were painful. To say that she choked would be wrong, for she lacked strategy, not the skill and will to live. Maybe, her serve let her down in London and in New York, the new kid on the block Iga was in Boom Form. Ons is not hassled about being 28, she is mature and strong in that sense.

She derives great inspiration from being the face of the Arab world in tennis. After all, not many on the distaff side have made it big. One Grand Slam title is all she needs to show to the world that Arab women are not conservative when it comes to using the tennis racket. She uses the racket, does not create a racket and that matters a lot.

“I feel like there isn’t much pressure on me at this tournament, I’m just going to try to play my game and be there match by match and see what’s going to happen,” said Jabeur. A lot of people were looking at Google maps last year when Ons was making waves at Wimbledon. After all, one does not hear about Tunisian players competing hard in tennis. The reference to Tunisia is more for natural sources, lovely beaches, and fab tourist spots.

Ons has seen the best of Tunisia and the rest of the world. She knows, if she can grind through the fortnight with her groundstrokes, she can grab the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup, presented to the AO winner in the women’s section. She has saved that trophy image on her phone, already.

“I tell you guys I want to win Grand Slams. OK, you’re expecting me to win. I can’t disappoint you,” said Ons Jabeur, which was an emphatic statement. She starts with a first-round match against Slovenian Tamara Zidansek on Tuesday. In 2020, Ons made it to the quarter-finals in Melbourne. There is a difference between then and now, with her growth not a mere manifestation of a rise in WTA rankings.

“I just want to give every round what it deserves. For me the goal, as the No 2 in the world, is to make finals,” stressed Ons, a woman on a mission. Her words echo beliefs and goals to achieve. She wants 2023 to be memorable. With some of the big names like Serena Williams and Ash Barty now retired, Ons is fancying her chances. And, why not?

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