Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur on to Wimbledon final, becomes first African woman to reach major final
Ons Jabeur advanced to her first Grand Slam final by beating Tatjana Maria 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 on Centre Court at Wimbledon in a victory that is also a first for Arab and African women.
The Tunisian is the first Arab woman to reach a major final and the first African woman to do so in the Open era.
The third-seeded Jabeur will face either 2019 Wimbledon champion Simona Halep or 17th-seeded Elena Rybakina in Saturday’s final.
In the deciding set, Jabeur twice broke her 34-year-old German opponent – who was a first-time Grand Slam semifinalist – en route to 5-0 lead.
This was Maria’s 35th appearance at a major tournament, and the 103rd-ranked player had never been beyond the third round previously.
Elena Rybakina defeated 2019 champion Simona Halep 6-3, 6-3 on Centre Court to set up a Wimbledon final against Ons Jabeur.
Both the 17th-seeded Rybakina and third-seeded Jabeur are first-time Grand Slam finalists.
Rybakina is the first Kazakhstan player to reach a major final. Jabeur is the first Arab woman to reach a major final and the first African woman to do so in the Open era.
The 23-year-old Rybakina is the youngest Wimbledon finalist since 2015 when Garbiñe Muguruza lost to Serena Williams.
Halep, the 2018 French Open champion, had reached the semifinals without dropping a set but was broken early in both sets.
The 30-year-old Romanian wasn’t able to defend her Wimbledon title last year – after the 2020 edition was canceled – because of a calf injury.
