After outplaying France’s Caroline Garcia in the US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 8, 2022, Ons Jabeur became the first African and Arab woman ever to reach a US Open final. The Tunisian-born tennis player who made her professional debut in 2010 has risen through the ranks to be named the No. 1 Tunisian player, and the highest-ranked African and Arab tennis player in WTA and ATP rankings history. Away from her career, Ons Jabeur is a dedicated wife and she is fluent in at least 3 languages.
Ons Jabeur Was Born In 1994 And She Started Playing Tennis At 3
Ons Jabeur was born on 28 August 1994 to her parents, Samira and Ridha Jabeur in Ksar Hellal, a small town in Tunisia. However, she grew up in the larger nearby coastal town of Sousse. Jabeur has three siblings namely Hatem, Marwen, and Yasmine. The 36-year-old is fluent in Arabic, English, and French. Also, she is learning how to speak Russian.
Jabuer’s mother who used to play tennis recreationally introduced her to the sport at the age of three and since then, she has not turned her back on the game. She also said that her mother used to take her to tournaments all across Tunisia and encouraged her to enroll in a specialized school. According to Jabeur, that was a big sacrifice for a dream that wasn’t 100% guaranteed.
She started training with a club that did not have a court
Ons has when she started training at the club level, her club did not have its own tennis courts and she could only train on courts at nearby hotels. However, she relocated to Tunis’ capital city when she was twelve years old to attend Lycée Sportif El Menzah, a national sports high school for the nation’s aspiring athletes, where she continued with her tennis training in a better and more conducive environment.
Ons Jabeur Began Playing ITF Junior Circut In 2007
In the week leading up to her 13th birthday in August 2007, Jabeur started competing on the ITF Junior Circuit. She won the doubles event of her first competition, the Grade 5 Al Fatah ITF Junior Tournament in Lebanon, with her countrywoman Nour Abbès. She continued to put on a strong performance, and in the 2011 French Open, she made history by winning her only junior Grand Slam tournament and becoming the first North African woman to do it. Additionally, she became the first junior since Ismail El Shafei won the Wimbledon boys’ title in 1964 to win a junior Grand Slam singles title and the first Arab female to do so in history.
She Turned Pro In 2010
In May 2010 in Antalya, Turkey, Ons Jabeur won her maiden match at the $10k level in singles. Two months later, she won the singles and doubles matches at another $10k tournament in Casablanca, Morocco. Also, at the Australian Open, she made a significant advancement. She won in three sets against Caroline Wozniacki in the match that ended Wozniacki’s career after overcoming both Johanna Konta and Caroline Garcia in the opening two rounds. Before falling to the eventual champion Sofia Kenin in the quarterfinals, Jabeur overcame Wang Qiang, who was the fourth top 50 player she had beaten in a row. With this outcome, she debuted in the top 50 and became the first Arab woman to advance past the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam.
Moving on, At Wimbledon, Jabeur, seeded 21st, defeated five-time champion Venus Williams to emerge the very first Tunisian tennis player, the first Arab woman, and the first woman representing an African country since Cara Black from Zimbabwe in 2005, to reach the third round (or quarterfinals) at Wimbledon. She also made her sixth straight third-round appearance at a major with her performance.
Meanwhile, Ons Jabeur is known to have reached the quarterfinals at the 2023 French Open with a win over two lefthanders Olga Danilovic and Bernarda Pera. This feat has again made her the first Tunisian and Arab woman to reach that stage at Roland Garros.
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Her Husband Is Also A Sportsman
Jabeur is currently married to Karim Kamoun, a Russian-Tunisian former fencer turned fitness coach. Karim and Ons announced their wedding on November 1, 2015, via a tweet. According to sources, the pair started dating in 2013.
Jabeur and Karim have been married for about a decade now, but they haven’t had children yet. Meanwhile, Karim’s role transcends being a husband in his wife’s life. More to that, he has been Jabeur’s personal coach for many years. He is also his wife’s biggest fan and has supported her career all along.
How Rich Is Ons Jabeur?
The tennis star has made a descent sum in her 15-year-long career. As of 2023, her net worth is estimated at about $10 million. Tennis is apparently her major source of income. But she is known to have signed a partnership contract with Qatar National Bank Tunisia. Furthermore, Ons became the ambassador of HAVAL in 2012. In December 2020, she became sponsored by the Tunisian telecommunications operator Tunisie Télécom. In February 2022, she signed another sponsorship contract with Talan, an innovation consulting firm among many others. All of these contracts and endorsement deals have unquestionably added to her fortunes.
When She Is Not Playing Tennis…
When Ons is not on the tennis court, you may find her taking pictures. Yes, photography is one of the things she loves. Furthermore, you could find her biking or sea diving. The tennis pro has also said that she works as a commentator occasionally.
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