Ons Jabeur gives ‘update on her situation’ as she is dealt major French Open setback

WTA Tour

Shahida Jacobs
April 25, 2023

Ons Jabeur’s preparations for the French Open have suffered a big blow as she has been forced to pull out of the Madrid Open due to injury.

The two-time Grand Slam runner-up retired injured from her semi-final match against Iga Swiatek at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart on Saturday with the match lasting only three games before the Tunisian threw in the towel.

After the match she revealed that the injury happened as early as the third point, adding “I’m sorry guys, I really tried”.

Jabeur went for scans on Monday and the news was not good as a tear in her calf means she won’t be able to defend her Madrid Open title.

“Hello from Madrid, an update on my situation. Further to many medical exams done, it shows that I have a small tear in my calf, and I will need more time to recover,” she wrote on social media.

“I am sad to announce that I won’t be able to compete and defend my title this year at the Mutua Madrid Open. I would like to wish to everyone and the tournament a great event and looking forward to coming back next year.”

Hello everyone, an update on my situation @MutuaMadridOpen pic.twitter.com/Du04vH2uLU

— Ons Jabeur (@Ons_Jabeur) April 24, 2023

Roland Garros build-up disruption

With the French Open just over a month away, it is a setback that Jabeur could have done without as she only recently returned to form following a period on the sidelines.

Following a poor start to the year that saw her lose in the second round at the Australian Open, Jabeur missed the Middle East swing due to injury and only returned for the Sunshine Double. After early losses in both Indian Wells and Miami, things clicked at the Charleston Open as she won her first trophy of the year, defeating Belinda Bencic in the final.

She followed that up with a run to the semi-final in Stuttgart, beating the red-hot Jelena Ostapenko and Beatriz Haddad Maia before injury brought an early end to her match against Swiatek.

It remains to be seen if the 28-year-old will be fit for the Italian Open, which starts on May 8, with the Rome event final warm-up tournament before the second Grand Slam of the year, the French Open, gets underway on May 28.

Last year Jabeur suffered a shock first-round exit at the hands of Magda Linette at Roland Garros, but she then went on to finish runner-up at the final two majors of the year at Wimbledon and the US Open.

Ons Jabeur