MUTUA MADRID OPEN

April 27, 2024

Ons Jabeur

Press Conference

O. JABEUR/L. Fernandez

7-5, 2-6, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Another tough match for you. Talk us through the whole match.

ONS JABEUR: Yeah, it was a great match. Obviously not easy to play against her very much, you know, a lefty on clay. I'm glad that I kept fighting until the end and got the win. I'm really super proud of the level I played in today.

THE MODERATOR: Questions.

Q. How reassuring have these last two matches been for you?

ONS JABEUR: Well, it's nice to win two matches in a row, for sure (smiling). I think the most important thing is the way I won these matches. I feel like the level is getting better every day. I'm just enjoying playing and enjoying, like, some moments even, like, very, very tough on the court.

Obviously when you're missing some matches, it's always tougher to close or get the breakpoint, but hopefully will get much better in the next ones. It needs to be much better for the next ones. I have no choice, I think.

Q. In terms of your level today, which you said you were pleased with, do you feel like you're getting closer to playing the more instinctual type of tennis you want to play, or is it more that you're being more disciplined in playing to your tactics and to the "right shot"? Where do you feel like you are on that scale?

ONS JABEUR: To be honest with you, going into this match, I didn't have, like, a certain tactic. I just was going, like, with the flow and seeing how the game was focusing a lot on myself lately.

I feel like I want to get back the creativity and the intuition part that I play really well with. I know I'm intuitive person, so the more I let myself play more freely, the better I play, you know.

Obviously it's very important to have tactics, but I feel like sometimes that puts a lot of pressure on me. If I want to go do a dropshot on a return, I will do it, you know. I don't want to regret it after or having someone, like, Why did you do that? Wrong choice.

Yes, it's my choice. I did it. But I know it's going to serve me really well. Once I do that, I feel like my mind is working in the right way. I felt a lot, last game, I felt like I'm honestly managing, you know, on the court. Okay, I want to be aggressive now, I'm going to be aggressive. I want to make a dropshot, I'm going to make a dropshot.

That really helped. Puts the opponent on they don't know what's going to happen in that shot.

Q. Would you say then you're trying to think less at the moment, given how things are going, going with the flow?

ONS JABEUR: I'd say think more complicated, I was thinking lots of complicated things, so maybe now I'm thinking more with the intuition part of my mind probably. That's I think the best part of it, to let my, just let it flow, have a lot of pleasure on the court. For me, when I think too much and intense, the decisions are not very nice.

Q. In this tournament, and when there was still quallies happening, there were, like, three Arab players in men's quallies. I saw Abdullah was in your box, and there was Reda, there's Benjamin, German Lebanese, and you and Mayar. I have never been at a tournament where there is, like, five Arabs there. What does it mean for you to see someone like Reda who is 17 coming up, Abdullah, all that? Mayar is back winning again. So are you. How does it feel?

ONS JABEUR: Honestly feels amazing. I speak to Mayar obviously a little bit, but the first time I saw Reda and honestly pleased with his level. I spoke to him a little bit and told him to continue, because it's nice to see someone, you know, a younger player from the Arab world is coming up.

And for me, it is really important. So I always want to do the first step and tell them, like, if they want to talk or need anything, I'm always here for them.

Obviously I've known Abdullah from a long time and he's such a funny boy. I like the way he is. We're actually sharing the coach right now. We are sharing Fernando a bit. It's nice to have him and always tease him sometimes about who has the better dropshot, I always say.

Q. Just wondering about your reaction on the WTA Finals going to Saudi and what you would say to people who have been kind of critical about it?

ONS JABEUR: I am always honestly biased in this position here and the decision they took. I'm very happy to be there. As an Arab woman, I'm very proud some things are moving there in Saudi.

Obviously people could have different opinion. Where it bothers me is that when some people, they don't know what's really happening there, and super ignorant about what's really happening in Saudi.

So like Princess Reema said, You should come to Saudi, be there, and judge yourself.

I think if you're being in another country and not coming there and see how Saudi is being played, for me, even though I'm not from Saudi, but I would extend the invitation for everyone to come and see for themself. If they really don't like it, they would share their honest opinion.

We are not telling them to say you really like it or anything. Obviously I wish to see better comments. For me, it always has been about chances, and going there not just to play tennis matches but to give the opportunity especially for younger women to see their role models from before and to believe that they can achieve anything.

Q. You said you have enjoyed the match. We enjoy watching you and you enjoy the tricky shots and figuring things out. Leylah is a tough opponent. Are there any moments where you just think, I want this to be over, one, and secondly, looking forward to the next match with Jelena, how is that in your mind?

ONS JABEUR: You know, I think lately this is one of the few matches I'm actually enjoy playing and wanted to get more and more points maybe because I didn't play for a long time and had a lot of matches.

I miss the feeling of grinding and winning a lot of matches. I'm enjoying every second, for sure. I'm really pumped and I feel better health-wise, so I'm very happy with that.

Secondly, yeah, the next match is going to definitely be very, very tough match. Jelena, never easy playing her. Especially she hits a lot of winners, so for me the key here is to really accept that she plays that way and plays really good, and hopefully now I can insert my magic a little bit.

Q. Talking about your magic and intuition before, as you're trying to play that way, just on instinct and with the flow, when you were kind of moving up in the rankings, when you got yourself in the top 5 and won Madrid and Grand Slam finals, was that a result of intuition or was that a result of, like, I don't know, game plan discipline, game discipline, shot discipline?

ONS JABEUR: I think a lot of people will agree I'm not that disciplined on the court (smiling) tactically-wise for sure. I think it's both a lot of hard work, a lot of tactical, you know, plan before going into the match, but obviously I'm a stubborn player.

I like to listen to myself and I like to do whatever I want. Obviously if I do, like, a dropshot there and it wasn't written in the book where my coach told me you have to go a certain way, but I feel like it's very important to be tactically disciplined, because some points, you have to be smart about it, if her forehand, she's ripping it off I'm not going to go give her an easy ball there.

I think it's a balance of both, for sure, the intuition and following the tactical plan. But I feel like I lost that part of the intuition and creativity, so that's why I'm focusing more on that part and little bit not trying to focus a lot on the plan, because I feel like it's going to come my way. With better-ranked player, you definitely need both, for sure.