After days of speculation about what might happen, Ons Jabeur has officially withdrawn from the 2024 Dubai Championships due to an injury.
This one has to sting pretty badly for Jabeur, who did everything in her power to try and play at the WTA 1000 event in Dubai. It's quite well known that the Tunisian loves to play in the Middle East, as she's been a long-time supporter of the region getting more tennis tournaments.
She's been vocally supportive of Saudi Arabia's involvement in tennis and recently made the switch to a Saudi Arabian brand for her match kits as well. Unfortunately, this year's Middle East stretch hasn't been going very well.
She played well in Abu Dhabi but started to experience problems with her knee. It's been a recurring issue for a while for her, and it didn't really get better for the Qatar Open. She also lost early there but hoped to be ready to play in Dubai.
Unfortunately, she won't be playing at the event because she was forced to withdraw. Initially, Jabeur planned on playing in Dubai in spite of everybody telling her it was not a good idea, but seemingly, they convinced her otherwise. She posted an update on social media explaining why she withdrew from the tournament.
"Dear Friends and Family. I wanted to share with you all that my knee, is not holding, it's been unbearable to play with the pain and not being able to give my best on the court is frustrating."
"After consultation of my doctors and team we have decided that I will have to withdraw from The Dubai Duty Free Open this week and go for more medical treatments. Looking forward to reconnect with All on the courts for the US swing. Thank you for your continuous support."