Tunisia (dpa)
Tunisian tennis star Anas Jaber is getting a popular welcome in her country today, Thursday, after an honorable mention at Wimbledon, becoming the first player in Africa and the Arab region to reach the Grand Slam final.
Anas Jaber returned to Tunisia by flight from London to Tunis-Carthage International Airport this afternoon and was officially welcomed at the airport by the Ministers of Youth and Sports, Women, Transport and Tourism and the President of the Tunisian Tennis Federation.
The government operator of the mobile phone network and the player’s official sponsor sent text messages today to honor Tunisians at a popular reception on the main Habib Bourguiba street in the center of the capital.
Today, Thursday, in front of the Municipal Theater building on the same street, the star-studded celebration will begin at 11 a.m. Tunis time.
Had it not been for her opponent’s superb performance in the final by Kazakh Elina Rybagina, Jafar was one step away from achieving the unprecedented Arab and African dream of winning one of the four Grand Slam titles.
However, Jafar, nicknamed the “Minister of Happiness” in Tunisia, won widespread praise from Tunisians who follow his matches avidly in homes and hotels thanks to his performance on the championship tour and his previous achievements.
This year, Zafar won titles in Madrid and Berlin and lost in the finals of the Rome Games. In 2021, he won his first professional title in Birmingham.
Zafar achieved his highest ranking of the year by reaching second place, before falling to fifth place due to the ATP’s decision to remove ranking points for the British Wimbledon Championships in response to the decision to ban players from Russia and Belarus. Because of the war on Ukraine.