'Before, Nobody Would Listen': Jabeur Says Organizations Listen Only To Successful Players
WTA
Ons Jabeur is one of the players who are part of the Novak Djokovic-backed PTPA, and she's excited about what can be done in the sport in the future.
Ons Jabeur spent much of her career as a lower-ranked player without a real voice. It was a rather painful experience for a player who is a trailblazer in many ways, becoming the first Arab woman to be ranked in the Top 10 on the WTA Tour.
You'd think having such a voice would be important for the WTA, but you'd think wrong. Jabeur was largely ignored as a player who wasn't ranked inside the Top 100, but that changed. It changed when she became a prominent player and a fan favourite, which only showed how problematic the current approach is.
She joined the PTPA because their core principle is that every voice should be heard, number 1 or 300th in the world. It's been a positive experience for her and she talked to ESPN about her perspective as a player who spent much of her time away from the top but eventually worked her way there.
Before, if I talked, nobody would listen bc I wasn't in the top 10 & I wasn't a top player, but now they listen. Now they would care about my opinion. I feel like it's wrong to only listen to the top players, but for me, I feel like I need to make a difference right now. I need to speak up for every woman about what's wrong & what could be better.- Jabeur on making her voice heard on Tour
Jabeur's voice matters as much as anybody's, especially since she's from a region without many players. Her play is inspiring many, but her perspective is even more important, especially towards making both men and women equal in tennis.
