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Ons Jabeur's resounding defeat to Mirra Andreeva in the second round of the 2024 Australian Open has left tennis fans in disbelief.
Jabeur made a strong start to her campaign in Melbourne, defeating Yulia Starodubtsewa 6-3, 6-1 in her tournament opener. However, the Tunisian was unable to replicate her clinical performance in her second-round clash against Mirra Andreeva.
Andreeva dominated the encounter from the jump, securing the first set 6-0. The 16-year-old continued her commanding performance in the second set as well, winning 6-2 to pull off a stunning upset over the sixth seed in just 54 minutes. In doing so, the Russian also claimed her first-ever win over a top 10 opponent.
Tennis fans were astonished by Ons Jabeur's below-par performance. One fan severely criticized the Tunisian, attributing her struggles to a perceived mental setback since her defeat to Marketa Vondrousova in the 2023 Wimbledon Championships final.
"Just utterly pathetic from Jabeur. She’s been broken mentally since Wimbledon but this is a new low. Looked like she didn’t even belong on the same court out there, so many UEs," the fan posted.
Another fan expressed doubt about the World No. 6's ability to bounce back from last year's Wimbledon loss.
"I'm really not convinced she will recover from that match. I think it was a truly mentally scarring match and lost opportunity," the fan wrote.
One fan succinctly pointed out that Andreeva had completely "obliterated" the 29-year-old.
"Obliterated," another fan commented.
Here are a few more reactions from fans:
Ons Jabeur: "The idea of having a baby just vanished with the trophy of Wimbledon"
Ahead of her campaign at the 2024 Australian Open, Ons Jabeur disclosed that winning her maiden Grand Slam title at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships would have enabled her to have a baby with her husband, Karim Kamoun, without any delay.
"People think I have this pressure because I want to do it for other people, which is not true. There was a personal thing going on there. I win that [final] I could have a baby right away. And that dream faded. I was haunted by fear. After all I’m just a human being, what can I do more?" Ons Jabeur said.
The Tunisian described it as the toughest loss of her career due to the significant impact it had on her and Kamoun's plans to start a family, revealing that the defeat had reduced them to tears.
"It was the toughest loss of my career because emotionally it destroyed me, not only winning Wimbledon, but the idea of having a baby just vanished with the trophy of Wimbledon. So I think that’s what killed me and Karim, we were crying like babies," she added.
Ons Jabeur's defeat in the 2023 Wimbledon final marked her third Grand Slam final defeat, having lost the 2022 Wimbledon final to Elena Rybakina and the 2022 US Open final to Iga Swiatek.
