Tunisian tennis star Ons Jabeur underlined the importance of mental toughness after saving a match point versus Daria Kasatkina as the Tunisian noted that being mentally tough will be the in order to stand any chance versus Iga Swatek in the Rome final.
For the second consecutive match, Jabeur was inches away from ending on the losing side.
On Friday, Jabeur was down by a set and two breaks in the second but somehow recovered and beat Maria Sakkari.
In the Rome semifinal on Saturday, Jabeur saved a match point on Kasatkina serve in the 10th game of the third set as she claimed a 6-4 1-6 7-5 win.
“Very happy to back that other final in Madrid,” Jabeur said, per the WTA Tour website. “It’s never easy to play [Kasatkina]. I know this surface kind of suits her very well because it’s slow and she likes it. She was playing really well this week. It was a tough one for me not being 100 percent there. Pretty glad that I got the win and finals again.”
Jabeur: Being mentally strong will be the key versus Swiatek
Swiatek hasn’t lost in three months and beating her is the hardest thing in the game right now.
However, Jabeur is also on a notable winning streak as she has won her last 11 matches.
“It means a lot to me, especially mentally, that I could come back from a match point and prove that I did that today,” Jabeur said. “Hopefully I can keep being stronger mentally, because I know [the final] tomorrow is all about mental.”
Jabeur and Swiatek will be meeting for the fourth time when they meet in the Rome final.
Swiatek beat Jabeur when they met in Washington in 2019 but the Tunisian beat the Pole twice last year (Wimbledon, Cincinnati).
It remains to be seen if Jabeur can pull off an upset and prevent Swiatek from winning her fifth consecutive title.