Tunisian Ons Jabeur moves to 2nd round of Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships

CAIRO – 18 February 2020: Tunisian Ons Jabeur moved to the second round of Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships after beating the American Alison Riske 7-6, 1-6, -3.
Jabeur will meet top seed Simona Halep in the next round for the second time, as Jabeur leads the head to head by one victory.

"I asked my coach to come on court as I had too many negative thoughts I wanted to get rid of. He directed me with very good tactic points," Jabeur told Egypt Today.

Tunisians were seen everywhere at the Centre Court, cheering for the first Arab woman to enter the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam.

"The Tunisian crowd made it sound like a football match," Jabeur said happily. "It really made a difference. I am very grateful that they attended the match, and I hope they attend the upcoming matches as well," She added.

On how her life changed since the historic win at the Australian Open Championship, Jabeur said, "Things have changed, Tunisians know me better now; they support me and this is a great responsibility, as I have to win and make the Arab world proud. I hope I can be an inspiration for them. Not all the fans were Tunisians.There were also Egyptians. I am happy that all Arabs support me."

The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, owned and organized by Dubai Duty Free,is held under the patronage of Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum. The event begins with the WTA,which will run until February 22,followed by the ATP tournament, which features Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, StefanosTsitsipas and Roberto Bautista Agutbetween February 24-29.