“I come from a very small country, a continent that dreams of seeing someone win a Grand Slam,” Ons Jabeur told the WTA Tour last year. Despite coming close to winning a major title thrice in her career, Jabeur is yet to taste success on the sport’s highest level, having lost all her three Grand Slam finals. While she had set her biggest goal of the 2025 season of winning a major title, Jabeur still looked far away from it as her form dwindled significantly during her second-round match. As a result, American tennis legend, Lindsay Davenport, called out Jabeur over a dip in form.

Jabeur, trailing 2-1 in the first set against Camila Osorio, took a medical timeout due to breathing difficulties and physical struggles. “It was very, very tough to breathe,” Jabeur told reporters. “When I was younger, I was diagnosed with asthma. Having to cough a lot didn’t help, I think it did provoke it even more. But it is very tough to play, I had to kind of not play long rallies.” However, she overcame the setback to defeat Osorio in straight sets 7-5, 6-3 to set up a clash with Emma Navarro of the United States. Ahead of the big match, Davenport opened up about Jabeur..

In the latest episode of the Tennis Channel Live Podcast released today, Davenport mentioned, “Ons, my unseeded pick for the tournament, she would get through this match but feeling great about her long-term chances. She had an injury time-out, and she was faulted for some of her behavior after. She didn’t have that spark, again she won this match. She figured out a way to win….But Ons, she has talked about her dream to win a major. You gotta be have the spirit, and she slipped a little down in that match.”

Meanwhile, injuries haven’t been alien to Jabeur as she had to end her 2024 season early due to a shoulder injury, dropping her to No. 39 in the world rankings as a result. Thus, the latest setback comes as a huge blow to her at a time when she is aiming to win her maiden Grand Slam title.

Earlier this season, Jabeur made a comeback after being away from the action for more than four months. However, she was confident of putting in a good show at the ongoing Australian Open.

Ons Jabeur on her comeback: ‘That hunger is definitely back’

The Tunisian star returned to the court at the Brisbane International after spending months on the sidelines. She reached the quarterfinals there, losing against Mirra Andreeva in the last eight. Subsequently, she also played in the Adelaide International, where she lost in the round of 16 against Yulia Putintseva. While Jabeur feels that she is slowly getting back to her best, she has also found the hunger to succeed.

During an interview before the Australian Open, Jabeur said, “When I first came back to practice, it was a bit tough for me. It was the first time that I took a long break like that and if I take a break, I do take a break, I don’t do anything… I think the most important thing is to remember that I do have a level that I kind of maintained for a lot of years, and that didn’t happen by chance… That hunger is definitely back, and I want to search for it more to make myself kind of suffer more on the court and get that last ball whenever I can get it.”

Jabeur faces an uphill task in the third round as she will be up against the 8th seed, Emma Navarro. Although Jabeur has won the only match played between them in the past, the form is clearly on Navarro’s side and it promises to be a thrilling battle on Margaret Court Arena tomorrow.