Jabeur first Arab woman in 3rd round
paris — Ons Jabeur became the first Arab woman to reach the third round of a Grand Slam on Wednesday.
The 22-year-old Tunisian, ranked at 114, defeated sixth seed Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia 6-4, 6-3 at the French Open, having earned her place in the main draw as a ‘lucky loser’ after being beaten in qualifying.
Jabeur, who had never won a match at the majors before her visit to Paris, has now bettered the previous best by an Arab woman at the Slams.
That mark was set by compatriot Selima Sfar who made the second round at Roland Garros twice, three times at Wimbledon and once at the US Open.
Jabeur, who was the French Open girls’ champion in 2011, goes on to face Swiss 30th seed and 2015 semifinalist Timea Bacsinszky for a place in the last 16. “I am very happy to reach the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time,” added Jabeur, who proudly waved a Tunisian flag on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
“The fans here and all the Tunisians really helped me.”
Jabeur hailed the help she has received from Sfar, a trailblazer for Arab women’s tennis.
“She is such a great inspiration, she always comes to help me and support me,” said Jabeur, who fired 30 winners to 2009 semifinalist Cibulkova’s 13, taking the match when her opponent double-faulted.
Jabeur only squeezed into the main draw when Germany’s Laura Siegemund was forced to withdraw through injury.
Gloria Pizzichini was the last ‘lucky loser’ to reach the third round in Paris in 1996.
Nicole Jagerman of the Netherlands was the only ‘lucky loser’ to make the fourth round in Paris in 1988.
Jabeur’s win has already guaranteed her the biggest pay day of her career with 118,000 euros guaranteed for third round players. — AFP