Share

Jabeur becomes first Tunisian woman to make WTA final

Moscow - Ons Jabeur made history on Friday when she became the first Tunisian woman to reach a WTA final by seeing off Latvian fifth seed Anastasija Sevastova 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 at the Kremlin Cup in Moscow.

Jabeur, ranked 101st in the world and who came through qualifying, prevailed in one hour 37 minutes.

"This is really amazing and I'm really happy. I gave it all today, and it wasn't easy because she plays really good," said 24-year-old Jabeur, who unleashed 45 winners on her way to victory.

"Maybe I was too relaxed in the second set. At the end, I stayed calm. It was a little bit frustrating because I missed some easy balls, but I said I was just going to play my game, and if it goes, it goes."

In Saturday's final, Jabeur will face sixth-seeded Daria Kasatkina of Russia, last year's runner-up, who put out Britain's Johanna Konta 6-4, 6-3.

"They're both playing good, so I hope they fight for four hours," Jabeur said. "The best win is that there is a Tunisian in the final."

Jabeur lost her only career meeting against Kasatkina at the Rio Olympics in 2016.

"She (Jabeur) plays interesting tennis with plenty of drop shots, often advances to the net," Kasatkina said.

"Everything is possible in tomorrow's final and I will just come onto the court and try to play my best."

In the ATP event, France's Adrian Mannarino ended Egor Gerasimov's run beating the Belarus qualifier 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 to set up a semi-final with Italy's Andreas Seppi, who ousted fourth seeded Serb Filip Krajinovic 6-4, 7-6 (7/2).

Second seed Daniil Medvedev of Russia beat last year's runner-up Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania 6-2, 1-6, 6-4 will face third-seeded compatriot Karen Khachanov, who saw off Mirza Basic of Bosnia 6-2, 7-6 (7/5).

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
How much would you be prepared to pay for a ticket to watch the Springboks play against the All Blacks at Ellis Park or Cape Town Stadium this year?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
R0 - R200
33% - 1816 votes
R200 - R500
32% - 1775 votes
R500 - R800
19% - 1083 votes
R800 - R1500
8% - 460 votes
R1500 - R2500
3% - 187 votes
I'd pay anything! It's the Boks v All Blacks!
5% - 253 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE