"Maybe it was good to lose today" - Jabeur keen on self-reflection following shock loss
WTA
Ons Jabeur's strong run of form ended with a shock first-round loss to Magda Linette at the 2022 Roland Garros, but the Tunisian player wants to take the positives from the setback.
Jabeur made an impressive start against Linette, and she raced into a one-set lead, taking the first 6-3. However, the world number six started to struggle, losing a second set tiebreak before a 7-5 defeat in the third, which confirmed the 27-year-old's first defeat since mid-April at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart.
It was an uncharacteristic performance from the Tunisian, who has been dominant in recent clay competitions - with tournament victories coming at the Charleston Open and Madrid Open this season.
However, Jabeur underperformed against Linette, hitting 47 unforced errors and allowing her opponent back into the contest. Despite suffering just her fourth loss in the entire clay court season, Jabeur still felt she had many positives to take from previous clay events.
After the defeat to Linette, the 27-year-old said she still felt upbeat from her Madrid Open win and Italian Open final and that she would try to carry this into the grass season.
"Obviously, I was expecting better, but we say maybe something bad happens because there is something good happening in the future. Hopefully the grass season, hopefully Wimbledon, I don’t know, but it’s definitely a great time to reflect and to see what’s going to happen next."
"So maybe it was a good thing to lose today. I would rather say this and be really tough with myself than waste all the good energy that I got from Madrid and Rome."
Although Jabeur can see some pros to an early exit at Roland Garros, she is still likely to be disappointed with a first-round exit. Especially after the Tunisian player stated that after her final Italian Open run, she had set her sights on performing well at Roland Garros this season.
However, the testing clay court campaign seemingly drained Jabeur as she struggled against Linette as the contest edged on. One element that the 27-year-old felt could have provided a much-needed boost was the French Open crowd, which she unfortunately didn't get to experience due to her early match start time.
"Well, honestly, I wasn’t happy to play on a Sunday at 11am. I’ve got quite a peculiar relationship with this court, I like it and I don’t like it at the same time."
