Ons Jabeur in gut-wrenching baby admission ahead of Australian Open
The fan favourite has revealed the source to her tears after the Wimbledon final in 2023.
Fan favourite Ons Jabeur has made the heartbreaking admission she put so much pressure on herself to win the Wimbledon final last year having been determined to try for a child if she was successful. Jabeur came so close to lifting her maiden grand slam title last year when she fell to Marketa Vondrousova in the final.
Jabeur was devastated having lost her second straight Wimbledon final and admitted it was the most painful loss of her career. Many tennis fans remember the painful images of Jabeur in tears at the post-match ceremony as she fought the battle.
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And in a documentary on her career called 'This is me', ahead of the Australian Open, Jabeur made the devastating admission she was planning on having a baby with her husband after the tournament if she was to come away with her career goal to lift a grand slam.
Unfortunately, Jabeur said the plan to have a baby with her husband was also then put on hold due to the heartbreaking loss. "People think I have this pressure because I want to do it for other people, which is not true," she said on the Tod documentary.
"There was a personal thing going on there. I win that Wimbledon final, I could have a baby right away. And that dream faded. I was haunted by fear. After all I'm just a human being, what can I do more?
"It was the toughest loss of my career because emotionally it destroyed me, not only winning Wimbledon, but the idea of having a baby just vanished with the trophy of Wimbledon."
In a further revelation, last year Jabeur exited the Australian Open appearing to struggle on court. She took five weeks away from the tour. And the Tunisian star has admitted she was struggling with breathing after an enlarged nodule was stopping oxygen from reaching her lungs.
This saw the Tunisian undergo surgery where she missed five weeks. Incredibly, she still returned and was able to make the Wimbledon final a few months later.
Tennis world praises Ons Jabeur honesty
Jabeur's revelation on her 2023 season has since seen tennis fans praise her honesty. Her ability to address the issues considering the extra pressures of being a professional female athlete saw the tennis world rally around the Tunisian trailblazer.
The pressure that women in sports face are so messed up. To feel like you have to choose between career and person goals… so many unfair expectations set by others and yourself https://t.co/nsFvLgLgSE
— Owen (@kostekcanu) January 6, 2024
That’s crushing. I don’t know how you really deal with this and compartmentalize. Obviously it’s very real- as a woman have to balance reaching your athletic goals with the goal of having a baby, but that is an insane amount of pressure to add. https://t.co/IdMDLbpdId
— Earl in Accounting (@HumpA_55) January 6, 2024
ppl always criticizing these players for being so emotional over a game of tennis when most of the time it’s really about something in their own life that we’ll never understand https://t.co/feA13UfcCz
— lena (@shipvillaneve) January 6, 2024
Ons Jabeur will be part of the Australian Open as she will enter as the No.6 seed. However, she did not take part in the Auckland Classic in the build-up to Melbourne Park. However, she was seen in a photo with Barbora Krejcikova at practice ahead of the first grand slam of the year.
Ons Jabeur and Barbora Krejcikova at practice 🎾 pic.twitter.com/cZprloACVI
— Mario Boccardi (@marioboc17) January 2, 2024
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