Ons Jabeur storms into Wimbledon semi-finals after emotional win over Elena Rybakina

Tunisian rallies from a set down to avenge defeat in last year's final

Tunisia's Ons Jabeur celebrates after beating Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina in their Wimbledon quarter-finals on Wednesday, July 12, 2023. AP

Tunisian star Ons Jabeur defeated champion Elena Rybakina to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals in dramatic fashion on Wednesday.

Jabeur rallied from a set down to storm into the last four and gain revenge over Rybakina in a rematch of last year's Wimbledon final.

The sixth seed, who also lost to Iga Swiatek in the US Open final last year, will take on second seed Aryna Sabalenka in the last four after battling to a 6-7, 6-4, 6-1 win.

Last year Rybakina claimed her first Grand Slam title in a three-set win that left Jabeur heart-broken. But this year, the roles were reversed as Jabeur ended on the winning side.

Then, Jabeur looked on course to become the first Arab female champion before fading to lose in three sets. But the dream is still on in 2023 after the sixth seed mounted a spirited comeback having looked distraught after the first set tiebreak went against her.

Jabeur upped her game after that, going for the big shots and gradually becoming the dominant force with a surge of five games in a row that secured the second set and gave her an advantage in the third, which she pressed with authority.

After the win, Jabeur struggled to contain her emotions.

"I'm very happy with the performance. A lot of emotion out there, especially playing someone who serves very well," Jabeur said.

"It can be very frustrating. I'm glad I did everything, shouted, then got calm and hopefully I can keep managing my emotions in the next matches. I kept going. I said I'm going for my shots. It's not easy playing her but I wish we could exchange this match for the final last year."

On the first set, Jabeur said: "It should have gone my way. I doubted a little bit. I kept yelling at my coaches 'You told me to play like this, look what's happened'. But then I really tried to get back in the zone and believe in the plan."

Rybakina was first to pounce, breaking to love in the fourth game when Jabeur went wide with a backhand but the Tunisian hit back immediately.

Jabeur took advantage of a loose volley at the net from Rybakina to break again and edge into a 6-5 lead in the opening set.

But this time she was the player who failed to consolidate, squandering a set point as Rybakina forced a tie-break, which she won.

The Kazakh survived break points in the second game of the second set while Jabeur was forced to dig deep on her serve to move into a 3-2 lead.

Both players held serve until the 10th game, when Rybakina cracked and Jabeur levelled the match.

The force was with Jabeur in the decider as she opened up a 3-0 lead and saved two break points to move 4-1 ahead.

Jabeur powered a backhand down the line to break once again and held her serve to seal the win, letting out a roar of delight.

Meanwhile, Aryna Sabalenka reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon for the second straight time, with a one-year break in between because she was banned from the tournament in 2022.

Sabalenka, a Belarusian who is seeded second at the All England Club, had to sit out last year's competition along with other players from her country and from Russia because of the war in Ukraine. She advanced on Wednesday after defeating Madison Keys 6-2, 6-4.

“It really feels amazing to be back in the semi-finals. I can’t wait to play in my second semi-final at Wimbledon,” said Sabalenka, who lost to runner-up Karolina Pliskova in 2021. “Hopefully I can do better than I did last time.”

The victory improved Sabalenka's record to 17-1 at major tournaments this year. She won the Australian Open and reached the semi-finals at the French Open before her five wins so far on the grass at Wimbledon.