8th May, 2022
Tunisian Ons Jabeur used four words Saturday night to describe her euphoria after winning her first WTA 1000 title in Madrid.
“Dreams do come true”, she wrote on her Facebook page. And then she thanked her fans and team.
“I love you all!! 🙏🇹🇳Thank you Madrid, thank you to everyone who came and supported me. I am so grateful. Thank you to my family and to the best team: Karim, Issam & Mélanie, you guys are amazing”.
Jabeur sealed her first WTA 1000 title after defeating American Jessica Pegula 7-5 0-6 6-2 in an entertaining Madrid Open final on Saturday.
She had been in scintillating form at the claycourt tournament and the 27-year-old produced a determined display against Pegula to end her journey in the Spanish capital on the perfect note.
Jabeur had a slow start, being down 1-4 in the opener, but took advantage of a handful of loose baseline errors from Pegula to make it 4-4.
The first Arab player and the first African to crack the top 10 of the world rankings, Jabeur showed flair and fighting spirit as she saved a set point at 4-5 before closing out the set on her serve.
The Tunisian, however, lost her grip in the second set where she was handed a bagel by Pegula, who recovered remarkably and looked unstoppable.
The decider saw world number 10 Jabeur at her aggressive best — the Tunisian fighting through a long deuce game and breaking on her first chance to earn a double-break lead and chance to serve out the win.
Jabeur fell to her knees after completing the biggest win of her career, becoming the first African player to win a WTA 1000 title.