Jabeur bids farewell to the tennis world: will she be the next Barty or the next Muguruza?

“I haven’t truly felt joy on the court for quite some time.” On July 17, 2025, when the 30-year-old Tunisian star Jabeur announced her indefinite withdrawal from professional tennis on social media, this confession struck a painful chord with tennis fans worldwide. The departure of the three-time Grand Slam finalist leaves an unanswered question: will this trailblazer of the Arab world return gloriously like Barty, or fade away like Muguruza?

Jabeur’s career is a story of breakthroughs. She was the first Arab woman to reach the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam (2020 Australian Open), the first Arab player to break into the top ten (October 2021), and a source of pride for the entire African continent. In the conservative Middle East and North Africa, her image of playing in a sports skirt represents a silent revolution. Between 2022 and 2023, she reached the Grand Slam finals three times—twice at Wimbledon and once at the US Open. Although she finished as a runner-up each time, every breakthrough rewrote history. Notably, at the 2023 Wimbledon, she defeated top players such as Kvitova, Rybakina, and Sabalenka before ultimately losing to Vondrousova, a match dubbed by the media as “the most regrettable battle.”

However, behind the glory, pain shadowed her journey. The 2024-2025 season became the last straw: a shoulder injury forced her to withdraw from the US Open; she suffered an injury at the Miami Open; and the heart-wrenching scene of her tearfully withdrawing from Wimbledon due to a foot injury was devastating. Her world ranking plummeted from a peak of No. 2 to No. 71. The physical toll of professional tennis is incredibly harsh—athletes hit the ball over a million times each year, with every shot causing minor trauma to their joints. Although Jabeur’s signature slicing technique is visually pleasing, it places a particularly heavy burden on her shoulder and knee joints. When these small traumas accumulate to a critical point, they become irreversible damage.

Deeper pain arises from psychological struggles. Having come close to winning a Grand Slam three times, she smiled through her defeats, but those suppressed disappointments transformed into an invisible psychological burden. Professional athletes are often expected to be “superhuman,” and when Jabeur admits to losing joy, she is essentially challenging one of the most deeply rooted myths in professional sports culture: that victory is everything. Behind this honesty is a soul that is exhausted both physically and mentally, crying out for relief.

Jabeur’s departure naturally evokes thoughts of two predecessors who took different paths: the first is Barty, who stepped away from tennis to play cricket in 2014, but returned in 2016, reborn, winning three Grand Slams and reaching the top of the world rankings. Her departure was an adjustment, and her return was a transcendence; the other is Muguruza, who won Wimbledon in 2017 but faced fluctuating performance. Although she returned to the top three after winning the 2021 WTA Finals, she ultimately could not regain her peak. After a streak of six consecutive losses from late 2022 to early 2023, she gradually faded from the scene, officially announcing her retirement last year.

Jabeur’s choice aligns more closely with Barty’s self-redemption; she clearly stated, “It’s time to take a step back and truly prioritize myself: to breathe freely, to soothe my heart, and to rediscover the joys of life.” This awakening is rare and precious in the realm of professional sports, and the unanimous support from peers like Sabalenka and Badosa indicates that a new generation of athletes is beginning to redefine success, no longer measuring it solely by the number of trophies won.

However, the harsh realities cannot be ignored. At 30, Jabeur faces the structural challenges of the entire professional tennis world. The average retirement age for female tennis players is 27, and those over 30 must exert exponentially greater effort to maintain top-level performance. The current WTA has entered an “era of power players,” with average serve speeds increasing by 15% compared to a decade ago and baseline shot power rising by 20%. The space for technical players to thrive is continuously shrinking. The success stories of older male players like Djokovic are difficult to replicate in women’s tennis, as physiological differences make it harder for older female players to bounce back. Complicating matters further is her identity as a symbol of the Arab world. In a war-torn Middle Eastern context, every swing of her racket carries significance beyond sports. Her departure is not just a personal choice; it reflects the shadows of regional turmoil projected onto the sports field.

Regardless of which path Jabeur ultimately chooses, her legacy has already transcended wins and losses. From becoming the first Arab to win the French Open junior title in 2011 to claiming her first WTA 1000 title in Madrid in 2022, she has shown the entire Arab world the possibility of female empowerment. Her slicing technique and varied shot-making have paved a path filled with wisdom and beauty in a WTA dominated by power players. The cruelty of professional sports lies in the fact that it demands athletes to burn their lives for peak moments while rarely providing a gentle landing when they are physically and mentally drained. Jabeur’s bravery lies in her refusal to be reduced to a mere competition machine, choosing to reclaim her humanity while applause still surrounds her.

“If you only look at her appearance, you might mistake her for a powerful player, but in fact, she possesses the delicate touch of Ashleigh Barty, effortlessly executing slices and drop shots.” This evaluation resonates deeply today. As Barty lifts her trophy after rebirth and Muguruza fades into retirement, the diversity of tennis is enriched by different choices. The ultimate question Jabeur leaves the tennis world is: what kind of sports stars do we truly need? Are they warriors who pursue victory at all costs, or authentic individuals who can find balance between competition and life? When the grass of Wimbledon no longer sees her magical drop shots, and the night sky of New York no longer witnesses the arcs created by her slices, the tennis world loses not just a technical master, but a mirror reflecting the essence of sports.

Should she choose to return, may we witness a truly joyful Jabeur; if she does not return, the legacy she leaves the world will be not only those moments that rewrote history but also the courage to prioritize oneself. At this moment, her iconic smile is no longer a facade to mask pain, but a symbol of hope for the rehumanization of professional sports. In the space between breathing and healing, a genuine Ons Jabeur is writing a life broader than tennis.(Source: Tennis Home, Author: Xiao Di)