Ons Jabeur to 'disconnect from tennis' after first-round retirement at Wimbledon

Tunisian plans to take time out from sport after being forced to quit during match against Viktoriya Tomova while trailing 7-6, 2-0

Ons Jabeur receives medical treatment during her Wimbledon first-round match against Viktoriya Tomova. AP

Ons Jabeur's Wimbledon campaign is over in the first round after the two-time finalist was forced to retire from her match against Bulgaria's Viktoriya Tomova.

Jabeur struggled from very early on against the world No 111, putting an ice towel around her neck during the first changeover and generally looking uncomfortable throughout a match played in sweltering conditions.

The Tunisian then called on a trainer at 3-2 down, burying her head in a towel while appearing to be in tears before having her blood pressure taken and then taking an off-court medical timeout.

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Jabeur resumed the match after a 14-minute delay but ended up losing the first set on a tiebreak before calling it a day after going 2-0 down in the second.

"I wasn’t expecting not to feel good," said Jabeur. "I’ve been practising pretty well the last few days but I guess these things happen. I’m really sad.

"It doesn’t really help me with my confidence and what I keep pushing myself to do, even though it was a very tough season for me. So I hope I’m going to feel better and we’ll see what’s going to happen.

"[I will] definitely try to disconnect a little bit from tennis and try to just enjoy life outside tennis, recover and spend a little bit of time with the family and hopefully that could recharge me. Definitely ‘rest’ is the word for it."

It is the latest blow for the former world No 2 who has dropped down to 59 in the rankings after an injury-ravaged last 12 months.

At the Australian Open earlier this year, a tearful Jabeur suffered breathing difficulties due to asthma during her opening round win over Camila Osorio.

“It was very tough to play,” Jabeur said after the match at Melbourne. “I had to not play long rallies. I was playing Camila. Not the best opponent when you're in this condition but I apologised at the end of the match, because I really don't want to behave like this on the court.

“I don't want to be greedy just after coming back from an injury,” she added. “Sometimes I get angry because I feel like I'm getting back there, but every time something happens.”

A month later, Jabeur played down injury concerns after needing medical assistance during her surprise first-round defeat against Peyton Stearns at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Jabeur had arrived in Dubai on the back of quarter-final runs in both Abu Dhabi and Doha but was beaten 7-6, 6-4 by the American.

“It was pretty tough today,” admitted Jabeur after the match. “I wasn't 100 per cent, obviously. It’s nothing really serious … I just wasn't feeling 100 per cent physically.

“I feel I've been tired; I haven't been sleeping as well as I was hoping to be sleeping. It was difficult to really recover from Abu Dhabi, Doha, and now to come here.”

Speaking to The National ahead of the London Grand Slam, the 30-year-old admitted it had been a tough year so far.

“The ability of believing in myself that I can come back like before, it's been a bit low and that really affected me,” said Jabeur, who reached the Wimbledon final in 2022 and 2023.

“So yeah, it’s just about a lot of believing in myself more than ever because coming back at a certain level, it's never easy. So I hope I can overcome that.

“Right now, I need to trust more my body. I need to hopefully get better on the court and find my movements.”