ABU DHABI – World No. 2 Ons Jabeur of Tunisia posted a comeback win over 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu of Great Britain to successfully defend her Mubadala World Tennis Championship (MWTC) crown on Friday in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

“Emma did not make it easy for me,” said the 28-year-old Jabeur after her 5-7, 6-3, 10-8 victory at the International Tennis Centre of Zayed Sports City.

“I like how Emma plays. A lot of respect for her, definitely. I hope she will come back stronger and win more grand slams, for sure,” added the back-to-back MWTC winner.

The 2022 Wimbledon and US Open finalist then declared that she is ready to come back to Abu Dhabi next year.

• READ: Raducanu, Jabeur prep for 2023 with Abu Dhabi exhibition clash

“I tried to remember to have a bit more fun on the court because that’s when I played my best and I did that. There were a lot of Arab people out there supporting me and that was great, it was so much fun,” said the Tunisian No. 1.

Raducanu, 20, was all praises for her “very experienced” opponent whom she played for the first time.

“She’s great to play and I think especially in matches like this, I think she brings a real good fun out there. And she can play all sorts of trick shots. She really plays the crowd and I think that the atmosphere was really enjoyable to be in and I think that she contributed to that.”

Despite her loss, the World No. 76 said she is “rather pleased” with her performance against Jabeur.

“Glad to be making some progressions and looking forward to 2023,” remarked the British No. 1.

The opening game, which went in favor of Jabeur after seven deuces, seemed to signal the thrilling clash that was to come.

Jabeur went on to lead at 4-1 and 5-3 until Raducanu broke back to trail at 4-5 by returning serve with a forehand down-the-line winner.

Raducanu broke again courtesy of a double fault, and she claimed the opening set, 7-5, with a love service hold via an ace.

Jabeur turned things around in the second set by overcoming deuce in the sixth game through a service break to gain a 4-2 lead.

She served out the second set with an ace, 6-3, to force a 10-point match tiebreak, much to the delight of the crowd.

Jabeur secured early leads in the tiebreak at 3-1 and 4-2, while Raducanu caught up then took over to be at 8-6.

At 8-8, Jabeur hit a sizzling forehand down the line to earn a match point, and she clinched the win with a solid ace.

• READ: 'No regrets' as Jabeur targets world top spot

On the men’s side, World No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece defeated World No. 14 Cameron Norrie of Great Britain, 6-1, 6-4, to set up a semifinal match against World No. 3 Casper Ruud of Norway.

“It’s great to be experiencing crowds like this again and have no restrictions on and off the court. I’m looking forward to getting back out on the court [on Saturday] and working on my game against great opposition,” said Tsitsipas.

World No. 8 and MWTC defending champion Andrey Rublev of Russia, meanwhile, will face World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain in the semifinals after posting a 7-6(4), 6-4 win over World No. 26 Borna Coric of Croatia.

"It was a good match for both of us,” said Rublev. “There were a lot of fans out there today, which is great for this championship and our sport.”

MWTC, which runs until Sunday, had various events on the opening of its 14th edition.

Former World No. 1 and 2003 Roland Garros champion Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain, who is the coach of Alcaraz, took part in a tennis demonstration with UAE Special Olympics team members.

“Playing with the athletes from the Special Olympics was wonderful. I believe it was inspiring for them. Earlier, they played with Carlos (Alcaraz) and it was great they were excited also to play along with his coach to get some tips,” said the 2022 ATP Coach of the Year awardee.

MWTC also conducted star player clinics with Jabeur, Raducanu, Ruud, and Coric, and held the awarding of the Mubadala Community Cup winners.

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