(New York) Without having to play to the best of her ability, Ons Jabeur qualified for a second consecutive Grand Slam final thanks to a 6-1, 6-3 victory over France’s Caroline Garcia on Thursday evening in the semi-finals of the United States Open tennis tournament.
Posted at 8:29 p.m.
Updated at 9:51 p.m.
Fifth seed, the 28-year-old Tunisian lost in the final of the Wimbledon Open in July. Now she will become the first African to play in the U.S. Open final since the start of the professional era, which began in 1968.
“After Wimbledon (there was) a lot of pressure on me,” Jabeur said after a match that lasted just 66 minutes. “And I’m really relieved to be able to back up my results. »
On Saturday, Jabeur will look for a first career major title against the winner of Thursday night’s other semi-final matchup between seeded Iga Swiatek of Poland and sixth-seeded Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka. series.
Jabeur improved to 6-0 in semi-finals this season and signed his 92e victory since the start of 2021, a high on the WTA Tour.
Two months ago, Jabeur became the first African and the first player of Arab descent to qualify for the Wimbledon final, where she lost to Elena Rybakina.
Jabeur, who dropped to his knees and gave a shout of joy at the end of his match against Garcia, will now have another opportunity to win a trophy.
In 24 degrees Celsius and under the reflectors at Arthur-Ashe Stadium, Jabeur didn’t need to be at her best, but she was still pretty good.
She finished the duel with 21 winners — one of which came after a lucky leap over the top of the net — and committed only 15 unforced errors. She also produced eight aces and scored four breaks in as many attempts without having to face a single one.
When Jabeur made one of his breaks to give himself a 3-1 lead in the second set, after just 40 minutes of play, victory was not yet in the bag, but it was just like.
A break from the start
After a moment of silence to commemorate the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, Garcia won the toss and opted to serve, a logical move considering she leads the WTA in aces in 2022 .
However, the 28-year-old Frenchwoman was immediately the victim of a service break following four equally varied errors: a forehand in the net, a forehand outside the line of side, a backhand too long and a volley which however seemed easy but which it sent in the bottom of the net.
It was a rather unfortunate and shaky start for Garcia (17e), who came to the court with a 13-game winning streak, the longest of her career. Moreover, she had not conceded a set at Flushing Meadows, en route to her first career semi-final at a Grand Slam tournament.
However, Garcia never displayed the confident and incisive attacking game that helped her beat American Coco Gauff on Tuesday night, and which she has displayed since the start of June, when she won 31 matches and three tournaments.
Of the first 18 points Jabeur scored, 12 were the result of unforced errors by Garcia. This trend would continue.
“Mentally, said Jabeur, I was so ready. »