Wimbledon Open: Its Ons Jabeur, Marketa Vondrousova final

There was a time — a year ago; six months ago, even — that Ons Jabeur might not have recovered from the deficit she found herself in during the Wimbledon semifinals. Down a set. Down a break in the second set. So close to being just a game from defeat.

She credits a sports psychologist with helping her understand how to deal with those on-court situations, manage to keep her focus and keep her strokes on target. Thanks in part to that, and a steadiness down the stretch at Centre Court on Thursday, Jabeur is on her way to a second consecutive final at the All England Club and her third title match in the past five Grand Slam tournaments.

Now she wants to win a trophy. The sixth-seeded Jabeur earned the right to play for one again by beating big-hitting Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-3.

 “I’m very proud of myself because maybe old I would have lost the match today and gone back home already. But I’m glad that I kept digging very deep and finding the strength," said Jabeur, a 28-year-old from Tunisia who already was the only Arab woman and only North African woman to reach a major final.

“I’m learning to transform the bad energy into a good one,” Jabeur said, explaining that she was able to get over the anger she felt after the first set. “Some things I have no control over: She can ace any time. She can hit the big serve, even if I have a breakpoint. That’s frustrating a bit. But I’m glad that I’m accepting it and I’m digging deep to just go and win this match — and, hopefully, this tournament.”

To do that, Jabeur will need to get past Markéta Vondroušová, a left-hander from the Czech Republic, on Saturday. Vondroušová became the first unseeded women’s finalist at Wimbledon since Billie Jean King in 1963 by eliminating Elina Svitolina 6-3, 6-3.

 Like Jabeur, Vondroušová has been to a major final before. Like Jabeur, she's never won one, having been the runner-up at the 2019 French Open as a teen.

“We’re both hungry,” Jabeur said.

So far, Jabeur is 0-2 in Slam finals. She lost to Elena Rybakina at the All England Club last July and to Iga Swiatek at the U.S. Open last September.

Jabeur's win over No. 2 Sabalenka, the Australian Open champion in January, followed victories against three other major title winners: No. 3 Rybakina, No. 9 Petra Kvitova and Bianca Andreescu.

“I want to make my path worth it,” Jabeur said.

Thursday's triumph, which came by collecting 10 of the last 13 games, prevented Sabalenka from replacing Swiatek at No. 1 in the rankings.

“I had so many opportunities,” said Sabalenka, a 25-year-old from Belarus who was not allowed to compete at Wimbledon last year because all players from her country and from Russia were banned over the war in Ukraine. “Overall, I didn’t play my best tennis today. It was just, like, a combo of everything. A little bit of nerves, a little bit of luck for her at some points.”

Jabeur trailed 4-2 in the second set when she began to turn things around. But not before Sabalenka came within a point from leading 5-3 after Jabeur put a forehand into the net and fell onto her back on the grass of Centre Court.

She dusted herself off and broke to take that game and begin the comeback. When she delivered a backhand return winner to force the match to a third set, Jabeur held her right index finger to her ear, then raised it and wagged it as she strutted to the changeover.

Sabalenka’s shots missed the mark repeatedly. She finished with far more unforced errors than Jabeur: The margins were 14-5 in the last set and 45-15 for the match.

“I was a little bit emotionally down, then she was up,” said Sabalenka, who hit 10 aces but also double-faulted five times.