2023-07-15 12:58:13
The tournament takes place on the courts of the Tunisian Tennis Club in the Alain Savary district near the city centre, which was the first club in the country.
On the loamy terrain, sometimes sheltered from the sun by tall trees, Lina, Yasmine and Amna hit the yellow ball. Their families, mostly from the Tunisian middle class, came to encourage them.
Ibtisam Trimesh, the mother of one of the players, confirms the enthusiasm for Jaber, telling AFP, “When they see Anas Jaber participating two years in a row in the Grand Slam tournament and then reaching the final, this inspires children and parents who encourage their children more to practice this sport.”
In all, the boys and girls play eight matches.
“To become like Anas Jaber”
“I am able to become like Anas Jaber and participate in Grand Slam tournaments such as Wimbledon and Roland Garros,” says her 9-year-old daughter, Lina El-Shazly, bravely.
The player, who is considered a national symbol and is called the “Minister of Happiness” in Tunisia, has aroused unprecedented enthusiasm for tennis in the past three years, especially among young girls in a country where football is the most popular sport.
Yasmine Ben Mabrouk (9 years old) has no doubts about her talent. “I think I will become a great player like Anas Jaber, and I will participate in major matches.”
Not far away, Amna Bartagis believes that she can become “better than Anas Jaber”.
Those aspiring to catch up with the national star, who is proud of her “100% Tunisian product”, praise her for her dynamic style of play, her balls falling behind the net and her camaraderie.
Her tenacity and ability to overcome a series of injuries, to the wrist and calf that kept her out for part of the 2022-2023 season, are also impressive.
Before Saturday’s final against Vondrousova, the world number six explained, “I learned to be very patient, and accept all the repercussions of injuries.”
Anas, who comes from an average family from the suburbs of Sousse, is very close to the fans, and spends a lot of time after the matches signing memorial photos and taking selfies with the fans.
After her strong debut in January 2020 at the Australian Open, when she became the first Arab player to reach the quarter-finals of a major tournament, the soon-to-be 29-year-old has become a Tunisian pride.
It contributed to raising the morale of its citizens in a country going through a serious economic and political crisis.
Jaber seeks to be a solid third when she plays against Vondrousova, ranked 42 in the world, on Saturday, which will make her the first Arab and African player to lift a major championship trophy in the history of the yellow game.
Jaber flirted with the title twice last year, by reaching the first major final of her career at Wimbledon, which she lost to Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina, before falling nearly two months later in the US Open final against Poland’s Iga Schwyvontec, the first in the world.
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