Ons Jabeur saw her French Open campaign come to an end in the quarter-finals on Tuesday, but there are plenty of positives the Tunisian can take from Paris after a difficult start to the season.
Jabeur, 29, has endured another injury-hit year, with her chronic knee problem continuing to cause setbacks. When the world No 9 has been available to play, she's understandably been below her best; for a player who relies so heavily on touch, feel and timing, match sharpness is vital.
Only once this season had Jabeur won two successive matches – at the Madrid Open last month where she won three – so a deep run at Roland Garros was more hoped than expected.
Yet, the Tunisian played some of her best tennis of the season over the past 10 days in Paris, suggesting that even while she hasn't fully recovered from her knee injury, and may never, she's at least managed it effectively.
Better still, for the first set-and-a-half of her quarter-final against third seed Coco Gauff on Tuesday, it was vintage Jabeur; the eighth seed toyed with the US Open champion, who simply had no answer to Jabeur's giant box of tricks.
She was seeing the ball like a beach ball, timing her shots to perfection and reading Gauff's serve like a book. There was power and purpose in her groundstrokes, the slice stayed low and deep, and of course the trademark Jabeur drop-shot was dialled in. That Jabeur won the opening set 6-4, sealed with line-painting ace, flattered Gauff.
Then it all got a bit ragged. Jabeur looked to be closing out another routine hold when serving at 1-2 in the second set, but from 40-15 she lost three straight points - two of them loose errors - to hand her American opponent a 3-1 lead.
She fought back superbly in the next game to get the set back on serve, but was broken to love in the next game. The shots that had bamboozled Gauff were now flying long and wide, the frustration starting to take hold, as the world No 3 levelled the match 6-2.
There was, however, still a moment of magic amid the second-set collapse when Jabeur produced arguably the point of the tournament. Sent chasing by a couple of cross-court shots from Gauff, Jabeur made two lunging retrievals to stay in the point before racing on to a shot that clipped the baseline and hitting an outrageous half-volley top-spin winner on the run. A common occurrence in the first set, those moments of brilliance were becoming fewer and farther between.
Jabeur regrouped well for the start of the deciding set, but a break in the fourth game that gave Gauff a 3-1 advantage ultimately delivered the death knell to her French Open hopes. The pair traded service games for the remainder of the match until Gauff sealed a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 victory when Jabeur sent a routine smash wide.
“She was playing really well the whole match. She was hitting a lot of winners on me, which is something I’m not used to against anybody,” Gauff said of Jabeur, who hit 30 winners. “So today I was just trying to just be aggressive toward the end.”
“She’s a tough opponent and she’s well-loved on tour. I could tell by the crowd today — I know you guys wanted her to win. Honestly, whenever she’s not playing (me), I cheer for her, too,” Gauff said.
“Even though you guys were for Ons, I really had a lot of fun, even when I lost the first set and they were chanting when I was in the bathroom. I was like, ‘This is just really fun, win or lose.’ It is.”
While the match could be viewed from the perspective of Jabeur losing it, rather than Gauff winning it, the American deserves plenty of credit for hanging tough and waiting for her opportunities.
Gauff, a French Open finalist in 2022, will face an even more formidable opponent in the semi-finals after world No 1 and defending champion Iga Swiatek bulldozed past Wimbledon winner Marketa Vondrousova 6-0, 6-2.
Other than a tough, tight three-set triumph over four-time major champion Naomi Osaka in the second round last week, Swiatek has been at her dominant best at Roland Garros, showing why she has led the world rankings nearly every week since April 2022 and is the firm favourite to collect Grand Slam title.
As for Jabeur, she will now head into the grass court swing, and her most successful surface, safe in the knowledge that her game is operating better than it has all year. If she can keep her knee from misbehaving, the Tunisian star should be full of confidence and ambition heading into Wimbledon, where she's reached the past two finals.
The%20Letter%20Writer
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Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
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White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Cricket World Cup League Two
Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Fixtures
Wednesday January 8 –Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 – Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 – UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
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A new relationship with the old country
Treaty of Friendship between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates
The United kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates; Considering that the United Arab Emirates has assumed full responsibility as a sovereign and independent State; Determined that the long-standing and traditional relations of close friendship and cooperation between their peoples shall continue; Desiring to give expression to this intention in the form of a Treaty Friendship; Have agreed as follows:
ARTICLE 1 The relations between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United Arab Emirates shall be governed by a spirit of close friendship. In recognition of this, the Contracting Parties, conscious of their common interest in the peace and stability of the region, shall: (a) consult together on matters of mutual concern in time of need; (b) settle all their disputes by peaceful means in conformity with the provisions of the Charter of the United Nations.
ARTICLE 2 The Contracting Parties shall encourage education, scientific and cultural cooperation between the two States in accordance with arrangements to be agreed. Such arrangements shall cover among other things: (a) the promotion of mutual understanding of their respective cultures, civilisations and languages, the promotion of contacts among professional bodies, universities and cultural institutions; (c) the encouragement of technical, scientific and cultural exchanges.
ARTICLE 3 The Contracting Parties shall maintain the close relationship already existing between them in the field of trade and commerce. Representatives of the Contracting Parties shall meet from time to time to consider means by which such relations can be further developed and strengthened, including the possibility of concluding treaties or agreements on matters of mutual concern.
ARTICLE 4 This Treaty shall enter into force on today’s date and shall remain in force for a period of ten years. Unless twelve months before the expiry of the said period of ten years either Contracting Party shall have given notice to the other of its intention to terminate the Treaty, this Treaty shall remain in force thereafter until the expiry of twelve months from the date on which notice of such intention is given.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned have signed this Treaty.
DONE in duplicate at Dubai the second day of December 1971AD, corresponding to the fifteenth day of Shawwal 1391H, in the English and Arabic languages, both texts being equally authoritative.
Signed
Geoffrey Arthur Sheikh Zayed
Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
The Cairo Statement
1: Commit to countering all types of terrorism and extremism in all their manifestations
2: Denounce violence and the rhetoric of hatred
3: Adhere to the full compliance with the Riyadh accord of 2014 and the subsequent meeting and executive procedures approved in 2014 by the GCC
4: Comply with all recommendations of the Summit between the US and Muslim countries held in May 2017 in Saudi Arabia.
5: Refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of countries and of supporting rogue entities.
6: Carry out the responsibility of all the countries with the international community to counter all manifestations of extremism and terrorism that threaten international peace and security
The Specs:
The Specs:
Engine: 2.9-litre, V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 444bhp
Torque: 600Nm
Price: AED 356,580 incl VAT
On sale: now.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
MATCH INFO
Liverpool 2 (Van Dijk 18', 24')
Brighton 1 (Dunk 79')
Red card: Alisson (Liverpool)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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A Bad Moms Christmas
Dir: John Lucas and Scott Moore
Starring: Mila Kunis, Kathryn Hahn, Kristen Bell, Susan Sarandon, Christine Baranski, Cheryl Hines
Two stars
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Score
Third Test, Day 2
New Zealand 274
Pakistan 139-3 (61 ov)
Pakistan trail by 135 runs with 7 wickets remaining in the innings
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh359,000
On sale: now
'Laal Kaptaan'
Director: Navdeep Singh
Stars: Saif Ali Khan, Manav Vij, Deepak Dobriyal, Zoya Hussain
Rating: 2/5
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It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Play-off fixtures
Two-legged ties to be played November 9-11 and November 12-14
- Northern Ireland v Switzerland
- Croatia v Greece
- Denmark v Ireland
- Sweden v Italy
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE%20HOLDOVERS
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