Tunisia’s Own Ons Jabeur Breaks Into World’s Top 5 Women’s Tennis Rankings

The highest-ranking Arab tennis player in both the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) and Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) history. Tunisia’s own Ons Jabeur made even bigger strides as she broke into the WTA’s top-five ranking.

27-year-old Jabeur took the number four ranking on the international stage. Where she placed just before Poland’s Iga Swiatek, Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit, and Spain’s Paula Badosa.

The Tunisian star has been working hard to get where she’s at right now, earning an impressive 4,150 points so far after several winning streaks. 

How Far Is She From The Competition?

While it’s going to be hard to catch up with the current number one holder, Swiatekm, who accumulated 8,631 points after winning the women’s French open, that can’t be said about the other two players.

Jabeur is hot on their heels, with a difference of just 95 points between her and Badosa. The gap isn’t that big with Kontaveit either, as only 176 points separate the two, offering a sliver of hope to improve her ranking.

Who Is She?

But who is Ons Jabeur? Born in Ksar Hellal, Tunisia, and inherited her love for tennis from her mother, who used to play it recreationally, Jabeur’s mother introduced the world of tennis to her at the tender age of three.

The up-and-comer at the time bounced around for some time, starting to train in hotels that had courts on their premises before going to Lycée Sportif El Menzah in the capital, Tunis.

She would later travel to Belgium and France at 16, where she flourished further. The tennis player shared that it was because of her parents she progressed.

“My parents sacrificed a lot of things – my mom used to drive me everywhere around Tunisia to go play the tournaments, and she encouraged me to go to a special school to study,” said Jabeur back in 2019.

“That was a big sacrifice to see her little girl going for a dream that, honestly, wasn’t 100% guaranteed. She believed in me and gave me the confidence to be there,” she continued.

Arab & African Pride

She’s one of the biggest tennis players to come out of the region after making a huge splash the past few years.  Last year, she broke an impressive record by becoming the first Arab player to make it into the WTA’s top 10, and last month, she became the first Arab and African to win a WTA Masters 1000 event.

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