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Winning a Grand Slam remains my ultimate goal, says Arab tennis icon Jabeur

In an interview with Khaleej Times, Jabeur, the first Arab woman to reach a Grand Slam final, opened up about mental health issues during injury layoffs

Having lost her third Grand Slam final at the 2023 Wimbledon, Arab tennis icon Ons Jabeur was hoping to go a step further and make history in 2024.

But her season was cut short by a shoulder injury as the Tunisian had to pull out of the US Open.

The 30-year-old now is back on court for another tilt at Major glory.

Her singles ranking may have fallen to 40, but her spirit remains high as she prepares for the first Grand Slam of the year at the Australian Open (January 12-26).

During an interview with Khaleej Times, Jabeur, the first African and Arab woman to reach a Grand Slam final, opened up about dealing with physical and mental pain as an athlete and why upcoming tournaments in Abu Dhabi and Dubai could help her rediscover her mojo.

Q. You started the last season with great expectations, but then your season was cut short by the shoulder injury. How are you feeling now that you are making a comeback?

I am actually very proud of how I played in the Australian Open warm up tournaments. I didn’t know what to expect after not playing for so long. So I am very proud of the level. I think I am feeling really good, I am starting to find my shots and my points in the game. And most importantly I was playing without shoulder pain. That was very important for me. Looking forward to continuing and training and working hard for my matches now. Hopefully, it will be a very good season for me.

Q. Not feeling the pain…as an athlete, how big a factor is it when you come back from an injury, the fear of feeling the pain? When you return from injury, you have some so many dreams, and expectations. But do athletes also return with a fear in the mind that what if the pain returns?

We know how to manage the injuries. I wasn’t feeling the fear of pain because I had managed the injury well. For me the most important thing is to continue doing the rehab. But if you feel little bit of pain, it’s also a part of an athlete’s journey. So the most important thing is to be patient. When you return from a long injury layoff, your immediate goal is not getting instant results on the court, but finding the way on how to avoid getting any pain in the future.

Q. When you are away from the game for a long time due to an injury, how do you keep your spirits up mentally? Of course, physically do all the work, the rehab and everything. But what about the mental side of it?

Yes, I think it was one of the reasons I didn’t want to come back immediately after I felt better physically. I needed a bit of time to relax because it has been intense years for me as a professional tennis player, and some disappointments in losing all the (three) Grand Slam finals. I think that affected me more than that (the shoulder pain). I think one of the reasons injuries show up because our brain is trying to tell us something and that’s what happened with me. And I am very proud of myself that I decided to take a break. I used the time to a do a few things that I was not able to do, spending time with my family. It was very refreshing. And then when I felt ready to come back, I told my team that ‘let’s get back slowly’.

Q. And how important is the role of a family in moments like that for an athlete?

It’s very important, and I am a family woman and very lucky to be travelling with my husband all the time. I am very lucky to see my niece and nephew, my sister, brother and my parents. It’s is always nice to have the family around because you feel the real, love, you feel the real support.

Q. You spoke about the disappointment of losing the Grand Slam finals. But you have already made your country and the whole Arab and African region proud by reaching those finals. Obviously winning it will be a different feeling. Now that you are back, do you still have that same passion and zeal to go one step further and become first player from this region to win a Grand Slam?

Of course, it’s always my ultimate goal to go and win a Grand Slam, you know, it’s funny because we always look at perfection as athletes. So when you make it to the final and you lose, you get disappointed. It’s a great result for me, to be in three Grand Slam finals is really unbelievable. Definitely, the break I took now is to recharge and take a deep breath and get ready to spend two weeks in a Grand Slam and get to end (the final). That’s why I gave myself time to know myself better and use my experience and hopefully to get to another final and win it this time.

Q. Talking about representing the Arab region, you will be back in Abu Dhabi next month for the Mubadala Open. You will also be back for WTA Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships which is celebrating its 25th anniversary next month. How nice is it to play with so many fans backing you in Abu Dhabi and Dubai?

It's one of my favourite months on the calendar, playing in the Middle East. The Abu Dhabi tournament was added two years ago. Very honoured to be playing there. I love playing in the UAE, I love being in Abu Dhabi. It feels like home with so many people coming to support me and that’s something really nice and it feels just unbelievable. Hope that energy could help me now. I am feeling good about this year and I hope I can come back in a good shape and win a lot of matches.