Skander Mansouri keeps Tunisian hopes alive at Wimbledon

Mansouri battles on in the absence of Ons Jabeur as he makes it to doubles second round alongside veteran Nicolas Mahut

Skander Mansouri, right, and Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon. Photo: Skander Mansouri

Ons Jabeur may have suffered an early exit at Wimbledon this year but the Tunisian flag will still be flying high at the All England Club as Skander Mansouri remains alive in the doubles draw.

After making his major debut at Roland Garros earlier this season, where he reached round two in doubles partnering Luke Johnson, Mansouri is enjoying another first this fortnight at Wimbledon, where he is through to the second round playing alongside five-time Grand Slam doubles champion Nicolas Mahut.

In a rain-interrupted affair that was played across two days, Mansouri and Mahut got through their opener on Saturday 6-4, 7-6(3) over Aussie-American duo Aleksandar Vukic and Reese Stalder.

“Roland Garros was my first Grand Slam and following it here at Wimbledon, it's awesome,” the 28-year-old Tunisian told The National.

“It's a great feeling getting to play at the biggest tournaments of our sport, and it's an honour. It's a dream come true getting to play here and getting my first win at 'Wimby'. It’s really a special feeling and hopefully I’ll get more chances to play on these courts and in this kind of tournaments down the road.”

Mahut famously lost to John Isner in the longest tennis match in Grand Slam history at Wimbledon in 2010. The Frenchman fell 6-4, 3-6, 6-7(7), 7-6(3), 70-68 to Isner in a clash that lasted 11 hours and five minutes, and spanned three days.

But Mahut’s memories at SW19 go beyond that historic match. In 2016, he won the Wimbledon doubles crown alongside compatriot and long-time partner Pierre-Hugues Herbert, defeating Julien Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in what was the first all-French men’s doubles final at the Championships.

The 42-year-old Mahut brings a wealth of experience to the doubles court and Mansouri is thrilled to be joining forces with the French veteran.

Mansouri broke the top 100 in doubles in February this year after putting together an impressive stretch of results alongside Johnson. They decided to part ways after the French Open last month and when Mahut learnt Mansouri was in search of a new partner, he reached out.

“It's a great opportunity for me, getting to play alongside Nico and getting to learn from him and everything. I mean, he's a legend of our sport especially in doubles, he won five majors already. So I thought it'd be great getting to learn from him and I thought it would be a very good pairing,” said Mansouri.

After enjoying a successful college career during which he helped guide Wake Forest to the NCAA team title, Mansouri peaked at 238 in the world in singles in 2022, and is currently ranked 60 in the world in doubles.

He scooped eight doubles titles on the Challenger circuit in the last year and a half, which has helped him shoot up the rankings and has given him the chance to compete at the biggest tournaments in the world.

Mansouri’s success in doubles has come at the expense of his singles though. Making it to finals weekend on most weeks has made it difficult for him to reach his next destination in time for his singles qualifying matches but for now, it is a sacrifice Mansouri is willing to make, given how well he’s been performing in doubles.

This is the first year he has committed to playing a full grass court schedule and he believes it’s a surface he can excel on.

“I wanted to try a full grass season this year. It didn't really go as planned because Nico (Mahut) got injured. I was supposed to play the whole stretch with Nico and he got injured after the French, so it wasn't always easy with the scheduling and everything,” he explained.

“But it was great. I think it's a great surface. I really enjoy it. I think it suits my game but obviously the margins are already small in doubles and they're even smaller on grass.”

Mansouri and Mahut next take on Wimbledon top seeds Horacio Zeballos and Marcel Granollers, who were runners-up at the All England Club in 2021 and 2023.

He’s been feeling the support from Tunisian fans, who have been flocking to the Championships for the past two years, closely following Jabeur’s journey to the 2022 and 2023 finals, and now have further reason to stick around thanks to Mansouri’s exploits.

“It's awesome. I've seen a lot of Tunisian flags around when I was playing my match and hearing a lot of Tunisians cheering me on during the match,” said Mansouri.

“I got a really warm feeling from that and hopefully, they'll keep coming and we'll keep the Tunisian flag out there a little longer.”