Jabeur-Maria, the challenge at Wimbledon that talks about women’s rights

Jabeur-Maria, the challenge at Wimbledon that talks about women’s rights

There is not only Nadal, who also works the miracle of reaching the semifinals despite an abdominal problem. There is not only Djokovic who beats Sinner in a comeback. There is also the women’s draw with a semi-final, Jabeur-Maria, which is played today at 2.30pm, which is not just any game. It is a game that tells the woman rights and that shows how much you have to always try.

Tatjana Maria she became a mother for the second time last year. On 8 August she will turn 35 and at this age only Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert, Venus and Serena Williams have reached the semifinals on this grass. And yet she is the fourth player in history to reach a Grand Slam semifinal at Wimbledon without being among the top 100 players in the world: she is number 103 and before her Mirjana Lucic made it in 1999, Jie Zheng in 2008 and Serena Williams in 2018 (returning from motherhood).

In the weeks of Wimbledon the German never gave up. You overturned the game with compatriot Niemeier and first with Ostapenko. There maternity it has to do with the new equilibrium of a player who has never reached that high. Her routine includes a morning tennis lesson from her eldest daughter. “Nothing changes for me off the pitch. I absolutely love that she talks about me as a mother. I think this is the most important thing in my life. I’m in the Wimbledon semifinals and it’s incredible, but I’m still a mom. After this tournament I will see my daughters and I will do the same things that I see and do every single day ».

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On the other hand, there is a player with a story that is equally inspiring. Ons Jabeur she is the first African tennis player to qualify for the Wimbledon semifinal. The 27-year-old Tunisian is number 2 in the world. Since 1997, when South African Amanda Coetzer reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and Roland Garros, a player from the African continent, she had not made it to the semifinals of a Grand Slam tournament. Jabeur is something more, she is a representative of the Arab world. «I would like to inspire young women and young men who want to be here one day, from my country, the Arab world and the African continent. It is a pleasure for me and I hope to convey a good message ».

There Tunisian she was the first Arab player to win a title on the WTA circuit and play the quarter-finals in a Grand Slam tournament at the Australian Open 2020, before the semi-final at Wimbledon. Since June 2022 she is the first Muslim tennis player ever, among men and women, to be among the best three in the world and the African tennis player with the highest ranking ever.

Adding another positive element to this story is the fact that the two are great friends. For both, it is Jabeur who speaks: «Obviously it’s difficult to play against her and I was joking with Charlotte, I was saying to her, will you support me against your mother? I am trying to get all the children to my side, using the family. I’m really happy for her for what she got, what she deserves. I know you fought a lot. It is not easy to return after having two children. And it will be a great meeting between us, a lot of respect, for sure. Maybe we won’t be friends for two hours or, I don’t know how long the match will last, but in the end we will be friends again ».

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Source: Vanity Fair