Four-time singles Grand Slam winner Kim Clijsters has detailed the beautiful moment she says sums up Ons Jabeur as a person.
Before Jabeur’s decisive Wimbledon semi-final triumph over Australian Open winner Aryna Sabalenka, Clijsters interviewed the Tunisian tennis star.
However, she forgot to do one thing.
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“I get along really well with Ons,” said Clijsters on Stan Sport’s Grand Slam Daily.
“We’re in touch quite often and I did a studio interview before the match just to kind of talk about what was going on and all of a sudden as I’m walking towards the commentary booth for radio on centre court, I get a message saying ‘I need my hug before the match, come on!’
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“So I was like ‘Oh shoot!’ because I had the lady that was rushing me to centre court because the match was starting and she got a little annoyed with me because I went off-road a little bit to get to the locker room. So I just quickly gave her a hug and then went off to do my thing.
“That’s what she’s like. She’s so light and so open and the energy around her is incredible. It’s very contagious. She’s awesome. Ons-some.”
Jabeur secures magic comeback
This year marks just the third Grand Slam finals appearance for Jabeur, who will face Czech star Marketa Vondrousova after she beat Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina in the other semi-final.
Neither Jabuer nor Vondrousova has won a Grand Slam prior.
Jabeur lost to Elina Rybakina at Wimbledon last year and then got beaten by Iga Swiatek, the current world No.1, at the US Open.
For Vondrousova, it’s just her second Grand Slam final after she was beaten by the since-retired Ash Barty at Roland-Garros in 2019.
She hasn’t made it past the fourth round since then.
For Clijsters, she sees Jabeur as a better tennis player than when she lost her previous two Grand Slam finals.
“We’ve seen other players get to their first Grand Slam final and almost play the perfect match and then not do so much afterwards,” said Clijsters.
“I think, in my situation, it’s been the opposite. I lost my first four Grand Slam finals and it can become a bit discouraging and you sometimes start to doubt yourself.
“I’ve had some conversations with players. Simona Halep, also lost a couple of finals before she won her first one. Ons, as well. Now is not the time to talk about those kinds of situations, it’s really about developing and what she’s been doing.
“She’s a better player today than she was last year at this stage. It’s the win over Rybakina, against Sabalenka right now, those are big confidence boosters, especially in a tournament. She’s healthy, she’s excited to be a part of this, and we’ll see now.”
Jabeur and Vondrousova have faced each other on six occasions prior, each with three wins.
Vondrousova arguably has the upper hand having won the two most recent contests this year at Indian Wells and the Australian Open.
However, Clijsters sees some weaknesses in the player ranked 42nd in the world.
“Vondrousova is a tough opponent. (Jabeur has) lost to her a couple of times. That will play a part too,” Clijsters explained.
“Then again, we saw Vondrusova get a little bit tight in that second set and I think Svitolina made a couple of easy mistakes to give it to her.
“Very interesting. A final, there’s always so much more involved than just the tactical part of our sport. The emotions play a big factor in this tournament.”
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