'Habibi! I love you': Tennis world unites in showing support to Ons Jabeur after announcement of indefinite break

Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur has received widespread support from the tennis world after announcing that she will be taking an indefinite break from the sport. The 30-year-old has had a difficult time on the court this year, suffering defeats in 15 out of 30 matches.

Her most recent outing was at Wimbledon, where she was forced to retire from the first contest against Viktoriya Tomova because of a fitness concern. Jabeur, in a post on her official Instagram account on Thursday, announced that she will be taking indefinite break from tennis to rediscover ‘joy of simply living’.

“For the past two years, I have been pushing myself so hard, fighting through injuries and facing many other challenges,” she wrote. “But deep down, I haven’t truly felt happy on the court for some time now. Tennis is such a beautiful sport. But right now, I feel it’s time to take a step back and finally put myself first: to breathe, to heal, and to rediscover the joy of simply living. Thank you to all my fans for understanding. Your support and love mean the world to me. I carry it with me always. Even while I am away from the court, I will continue to stay close and connected in different ways and share this journey with you all.”

Fellow women’s tennis players showcased a lot of support for Jabeur in response to that post. Spain’s Paula Badosa stated that she will miss Jabeur, whereas Wimbledon 2025 runner-up Anisimova said that she and the whole tennis family love her. Former world number one Billie Jean King wished Jabeur a ‘healing break’.

“Habibi! I love you and I’m going to miss you so much,” wrote Badosa. “Sending my love and the biggest hugs”, wrote America’s Sloane Stephes. “We love you,” wrote Anisimova. “Take care of yourself Ons,” wrote France’s Caroline Garcia. “Sending you out support and wishing you a healing break. You will return stronger than ever,” was the response of Billie Jean King.