The US Open was quite harsh for WTA star Ons Jabeur. She was the defending runner-up this year, but a mysterious illness ruined her dreams. She had to battle through sickness to make it to the second week of the fourth and final Slam of the year. But despite bowing out in her Round of 16 clash, Jabeur has found a way to keep herself happy with the tournament outcome.

For a Top 5 player like Jabeur, her Slam result was surely underwhelming. Qinwen Zheng completely outclassed her with a 6-2 6-4 win at the Louis Armstrong Stadium. With this defeat, the Tunisian will also fall down two spots in the WTA ranking to number 7. But strangely enough, a certain ranking update keeps Jabeur happy about the tournament’s outcome.

How does Ons Jabeur keep herself happy with the US Open outcome?

A drastic ranking change took place at this year’s US Open. Iga Swiatek‘s 74-week reign of terror finally came to an end following her fourth-round exit after facing off with Jelena Ostapenko. Aryna Sabalenka will be crowned as the new World No.1, come Monday. It is quite a significant moment in the current WTA rivalry, as Swiatek looked insurmountable at one point. Jabeur sees the silver lining to the tournament right here.

Jabeur spoke about the change of guard in her post-match press conference. She said, “I’m so happy for Aryna. She deserves to be No.1. She deserved that for a long time ago. Definitely the match yesterday was very interesting. Not so many people surprised because Jelena can play amazing games. That’s the beauty of WTA, to find different heroes.”

Jabeur did not just appreciate Sabalenka and acknowledged her as the rightful number one. She also lauded Ostapenko and WTA’s variety, which comprises a strong set of players capable of upsetting the top seeds. The Tunisian further opened up on her admiration for Sabalenka’s passion and made a cheeky remark.

ALSO READ: Mystery Illness Effect? Dejected Ons Jabeur Suffers Horrible Time On-Court as She Gets Ousted Out of US Open After an Extremely Sloppy Display of Tennis

“I honestly love how Aryna plays with her passion on the court. You can feel it. Hopefully she will stay No. 1 until I get there and take her place.“, said Jabeur. She was quite pleased with Sabalenka’s achievement. Top players bonding despite the extremely competitive rivalry in WTA is a good sign for the sport.

Do you think Sabalenka can stay on as the World Number 1 for long? Let us know in the comments.