Ons Jabeur reaches Wimbledon final in historic comeback win

Ons Jabeur hits a return during her victory over Aryna Sabalenka in the Wimbledon women's singles semifinals.

By HOWARD FENDRICH

Associated Press

July 13, 2023 Updated 10:59 AM PT

WIMBLEDON, England — There was a time when Ons Jabeur might not have recovered from the deficit she found herself in during the Wimbledon semifinals. Down a set. Down a break. So close to being just a game from defeat.

She credits her sports psychologist with helping her understand how to deal with those on-court situations, with managing to keep her focus, keep her strokes on-target. Thanks in part to that, and a steadiness down the stretch at Centre Court on Thursday, Jabeur is on her way to a second consecutive final at the All England Club and her third title match in the past five Grand Slam tournaments.

Now she wants to win a trophy. The sixth-seeded Jabeur earned the right to play for one again by beating big-hitting Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3.

“I’m very proud of myself, because maybe old me would have lost the match today and went back home already. But I’m glad that I kept digging very deep and finding the strength,” said Jabeur, a 28-year-old from Tunisia who is the only Arab woman and only North African woman to reach a major final.

“I’m learning to transform the bad energy into a good one,” Jabeur said, explaining that she was able to get over the anger she felt after the first set. “Some things I have no control over: She can ace any time. She can hit the big serve, even if I have a break point. That’s frustrating a bit. But I’m glad that I’m accepting it and I’m digging deep to just go and win this match — and, hopefully, this tournament.”

To do that, Jabeur will need to get past Marketa Vondrousova, a left-hander from the Czech Republic, on Saturday. Vondrousova became the first unseeded women’s finalist at Wimbledon since Billie Jean King in 1963 by eliminating Elina Svitolina 6-3, 6-3 earlier Thursday.

So far, Jabeur is 0-2 in Slam finals after losing to Elena Rybakina at the All England Club last July and to Iga Swiatek at the U.S. Open last September.

Jabeur’s victory Thursday, which came by collecting 10 of the last 13 games, prevented No. 2 Sabalenka from replacing Swiatek at No. 1 in the rankings. Sabalenka came into the match with a 17-1 record at majors in 2023, including a trophy at the Australian Open.

Jabeur trailed 4-2 in the second set when she began to turn things around. But not before Sabalenka came within a point from leading 5-3 after Jabeur put a forehand into the net and fell onto her back on the grass of Centre Court.

She dusted herself off and broke to take that game and begin her big comeback. When she delivered a backhand return winner to force the match to a third set, Jabeur held her right index finger to her ear, then raised it and wagged it as she strutted to the changeover.

Sabalenka’s shots missed the mark repeatedly. She finished with far more unforced errors than Jabeur: The margins were 14-5 in the last set and 45-15 for the match.

A break put Jabeur up 4-2 in the third, but there was still some work to be done. Sabalenka, as powerful a ball-striker as there is on tour, erased four match points before Jabeur converted her fifth with a 103 mph ace.

In the first semifinal, Vondrousova reeled off seven consecutive games in one stretch. She is ranked 43rd and reached the second Grand Slam final of her career after getting that far as a teenager at the 2019 French Open.

“I was crazy nervous,” said Vondrousova, who bowed her head and knelt at the baseline when the match was over. “I was nervous, actually, the whole match.”

Ranked No. 76 and an unseeded wild-card recipient, Svitolina returned to the tour from maternity leave just three months ago. After surprisingly beating Swiatek in the quarterfinals, she was trying to become the first woman from Ukraine to make it to the title match at a major tennis tournament.

“She’s such a fighter,” said Vondrousova, who compiled a 22-9 edge in total winners, “and she’s also such a great person.”

Svitolina received loud support from thousands in the crowd at the main stadium — Ukraine’s ambassador to Britain was in the Royal Box — as applause and yells echoed off the closed roof.

Svitolina has said that she is playing more freely and more calmly nowadays, something she attributed to having the dual motivations of playing for her baby daughter, who was born in October, and of trying to bring happiness to people in her home country, where an ongoing war began with Russia’s invasion in February 2022.

“It’s a lot of responsibility, a lot of tension. I try to balance it as much as I can. Sometimes it gets maybe too much,” Svitolina said. “But I don’t want to (make it) an excuse.”

From 3-all in the opening set Thursday, Svitolina’s level began to dip, while Vondrousova’s rose. Over the ensuing half-hour, Vondrousova was in complete control, so much so that she took that set and pulled ahead 4-0 in the next.

Suddenly, though, Svitolina got within 4-3.

Vondrousova put an end to that mini-streak by collecting the last two games. She missed about six months last season because of two operations on her left wrist, but is back at the height of her powers and back in the spotlight of a Grand Slam final.

She came to England last year with a cast on that arm to enjoy London as a tourist and to watch her best friend and doubles partner, Miriam Kolodziejova, play in the qualifying rounds at Wimbledon.

“It’s not always easy to come back. You don’t know if you can play at this level and if you can be back at the top and back at these tournaments,” Vondrousova said. “I just feel like I’m just grateful to be on a court again, to play without pain.”

Asked how she plans to prepare for Saturday, Vondrousova laughed.

“I’m just going to chill now,” she replied.