Ons Jabeur on a mission to lead the way for Arab female athletes - "I don't play for myself anymore"

Tunisian star Ons Jabeur enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2021, winning her maiden WTA title at Birmingham this summer and reaching a career-high of World No.7 in November before ending the year ranked 10th.

Jabeur is the highest-ranked Arab player of all time, male or female, and has lofty goals for 2022. In an interview with The National, she explained how her mission transcends tennis.

“I don’t play for myself any more. I play for my country, my continent, my region. Tennis for me is not just a sport,” said Jabeur “I try to set an example for people who want to be here one day, to have that opportunity to compete.

“I know there are a lot of women in other countries who are not able to do that, and by me representing Arab women, I can lead by example. It’s very important for me and hopefully I can succeed in sharing this message.

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“I know I have a lot of people behind me, a whole region behind me. It’s a mission for me. I feel like I have this job, this mission to rise and set this example; to work even harder and get even better and keep setting higher goals. I want to continue and make everyone proud.”

The 27-year has always been ambitious, judging by the goals she set for herself at the start of the 2021 season. She made it abundantly clear that her target was the top 10 and titles. With both of those aims achieved — after a “crazy year” and a “dream” grass-court season — it's time to raise the bar even higher.

“I like to set high goals; I like to say them out loud to put pressure on myself,” revealed Jabeur. “I want more titles and I want to be in the top five, top three. I want to win the big titles. Those are the main goals.

“I gained a lot of experience from last year and I want to challenge myself and see if I can continue this level and try to improve even further.”