Valiant Jabeur on trying to win her first slam: “I’m sure I’ll be in the final again. I’ll try to win it”

A disappointed but valiant Ons Jabeur says she has “nothing to regret” after missing out in a Grand Slam final for the second time.

The Tunisian was beaten 6-2, 7-6 (5) by Iga Swiatek in the final of the US Open on Saturday night, having lost her first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon in July, when she was beaten in three sets by Elena Rybakina.

But for all the obvious disappointment, Jabeur said she could hold her head high, having fought back from 3-0 down in the second set to force a tiebreak.

“To be honest with you, I have nothing to regret because I did everything possible,” said Jabeur, the first African and Arab player to make the US Open final.

“I wish I served little bit better today. It would have helped me a lot (But) you know Iga, how she plays in finals. It’s very enough to beat her. I will keep positive and work on the things that was missing today.”

Learning lessons from each big defeat

Jabeur admitted it would be hard to take going so close to a coveted first slam.

“Definitely Wimbledon was tough,” she said. “This one is going to be tough. We’ll tell you in the next few days if I’m going to be able to sleep little bit. It’s part of tennis. Winning or losing is part of it. And fortunately it is me. I struggled to win my first WTA title. It took me time. So I believe this will take me time.”

“The most important thing is accepting it, learning from the finals that I lost. Definitely I’m not someone that going to give up. I am sure I’m going to be in the final again. I will try my best to win it. I’m not sure, but I know I will do my best.”

Jabeur targeting world No 1 ranking

And Jabeur, who goes to No 2 in the rankings on Monday, said she was looking forward to the next couple of months and believes she can become No 1 at some stage, even though she trails Swiatek by more than 5,000 points.

“The Masters (WTA Finals) is a big thing for me. It’s like a mini Grand Slam, I call it,” she said. “I always dreamed to play this one. I will maybe show myself there and build more confidence to really get ready for the next season because I feel like I have a lot to show next season.

“Points-wise, I don’t have defending points in Australia, in French Open, in Wimbledon, which is good. It’s a good thing. I’m definitely going for the No. 1 spot.”

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