Ons Jabeur reveals plans to make 2027 comeback after birth of son, set to follow in footsteps of Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka
By Tom Masters
Updated 11/11/2026 at 20:04 GMT
Ons Jabeur has confirmed that she is planning to make a comeback to tennis after the birth of her son. Jabeur, 32, last took to the court in June 2025 at Wimbledon, retiring from her first round match against Viktoriya Tomova.
Magdalena Frech - Ons Jabeur - Roland Garros highlights
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After that, the Tunisian decided to have a break from tennis, citing injury and fatigue as her main reasons.
Jabeur has now revealed that she will be making a comeback on the tour and has set next year as her goal to do so.
She told The National: "I'm hoping to come back, hopefully next year. I still don’t know the exact time, but very soon.
"I'm still discovering, my body is a bit changed after the delivery, but I’m definitely coming back and hoping to stay a few more years on tour before actually retiring.
"I'm enjoying every moment, you know. Motherhood, it’s been amazing. Definitely will want more sleep, but it's part of the process.
"I'm enjoying everything with my son, he actually comes with me when I train. I'm trying to come back slowly."
Jabeur will be following in some famous footsteps when she returns to the court, most notably Serena Williams, who made a dramatic comeback to the tennis arena last summer after four years out of the sport.
Others who previously took a break from tennis to have a child include Naomi Osaka, Angelique Kerber, Caroline Wozniacki and Elina Svitolina.
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Jabeur reached world No. 2 during her playing career, which made her the highest-ever ranked African player in the history of either the men’s or women’s game.
She is a hugely popular figure on the WTA Tour and announcing her return will no doubt be welcome news for tennis fans worldwide.
Jabeur will hope that she can finish off what she started, having reached three Grand Slam finals without managing to win one.
She was beaten in the 2022 Wimbledon final 6-3 2-6 2-6 by Elena Rybakina, before a second defeat that year came in the US Open, when the Tunisian lost in straight sets to then world No.1 Iga Swiatek.
Jabeur then reached the 2023 Wimbledon final, when she lost to then unseeded Czech star Marketa Vondrousova 6-4 6-4.
She has won five WTA titles.
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