In pictures: The rise of Tunisia's tennis ace Ons Jabeur

At 27-year-old, Tunisian tennis star Ons Jabeur has been making headlines as she competes in the semi-finals of Wimbledon, one of the world’s most prestigious tennis tournaments. Jabeur has been ranked at number two in the world by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), and has received praise from fans in the Middle East and North Africa, who see her as a source of pride. The star has won numerous major titles and has made huge strides in tennis over the years, twice reaching Wimbledon's quarter finals. Middle East Eye looks at her spectacular rise. (AFP)

Jabeur took up tennis as a young child, after being introduced to the sport by her mother. As a child and a young teen, she would often train in hotels and tourist resorts, owing to the lack of courts in local tennis clubs in her hometown of Ksar Hellal, a small town in northeastern Tunisia. Although she toyed with the idea of pursuing a different sport at a young age, she decided to stick to tennis, and her determination eventually paid off. (AFP)
 

Jabeur began competing in national tournaments aged six, and internationally four years later. Aged 12, she moved 90 miles to the capital Tunis where she trained at Lycee Sportif El Menzah, a multi-sport national academy for emerging Tunisian talents. In media interviews, the tennis champion has spoken of how her mother would drive her around the country to ensure she could compete in different tournaments. (AFP)

Her mother's efforts and her own finally paid off in 2009, when she made her debut in a junior Grand Slam tournament at the US Open. The following years, in 2010 and 2011, at 16, she reached a major milestone by participating in the girls' finals at the French Open, winning it in 2011. The triumph got her international attention and was a sign of things to come. (Wikimedia Commons) 

After her early wins, Jabeur started to compete more often in the World Tennis Association Tour. By 2019, she won the award of Arab Woman of the Year for her sporting accomplishments. (Reuters)

 In 2020, during the Australian Open, Jabeur continued to make headlines as she became the first Arab woman to reach a major quarter-final. Just a year later, she won her first WTA title at the 2021 Birmingham Classic, making her the first Arab woman to win a WTA Tour title. (Reuters)

In a string of firsts, Jabeur achieved one of her biggest milestones when she won the 2022 Madrid Open in May, making her the first African and Arab player to win a title at that level. Jabeur has been coached by the former Tunisian Davis Cup player Issam Jellali, and her Tunisian-Russian husband Karim Kamoun, a former fencer, has been her fitness coach since 2017. (Reuters) 

Jabeur’s achievements have been recognised by other tennis stars, including five-time Wimbledon champion Venus Williams, who she defeated in the second round. “(Ons) is one of my favourite people on tour, honestly she's just breaking down barriers. The first woman from her country to do anything that she’s doing," the 41-year-old tennis legend said last year. In the picture above, Jabeur celebrates after beating Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon on 5 July 2022 (Reuters)

This article is available in French on Middle East Eye French edition.