(Reuters) – Ons Jabeur is still not at the level that saw her play some scintillating tennis last year, but the Tunisian seventh seed said she was learning to grind out wins as she continues her quest for a first Grand Slam title at the French Open.
Jabeur, who had runners-up finishes at last year’s Wimbledon and U.S. Open, has endured a stop-start season in which she had minor knee surgery before winning the title in Charleston and skipping the Madrid Open with a calf problem.
Asked how far she is from her best, the 28-year-old told reporters: “Not so far”.
“There are things that are going well. Others that are going less well. Mentally I’m present. The physical sensations will come back. Tennis sensations also. These things take a lot of time,” she added after beating Olga Danilovic on Saturday.
“I have to accept my current condition now, because I was injured quite a lot of times this year. I’m not going to be impatient. I will give time to my body to adapt. And right now I’m winning matches without being at 100%, so I’m learning.”
Jabeur next faces American Bernarda Pera, who beat her in straight sets when the two last met in Guangzhou in 2019.
“Another lefty, so it’s going to be a tricky one,” Jabeur said. “Pera has been playing very well. She’s a tough opponent.”
Jabeur is on course for a potential semi-final meeting with three-time major winner Iga Swiatek, who beat the Tunisian in last year’s U.S. Open final.
Swiatek kept her Roland Garros title defence on track by dismissing Wang Xinyu of China in a 6-0 6-0 third-round blowout.
The Pole takes on Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko on Monday, with top seed stressing the importance of keeping her guard up despite her dominant run, saying, “I always try to be careful, because you don’t want to get lazy after winning these matches.
“It’s never easy to win these matches. But on the other hand, sometimes all your head can remember is the score, and I always want to kind of be ready for every situation.”
In the men’s draw, Danish sixth-seed Holger Rune will aim to break Argentine hearts again as he faces Francisco Cerundolo, having eliminated Genaro Olivieri in the previous round.
In the night session on Philippe Chatrier, Germany’s Alexander Zverev, who exited Roland Garros in agony last year after rolling his ankle during his semi-final with Rafa Nadal, faces a stern test in seasoned veteran Grigor Dimitrov.
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Nashik, India; Editing by Ken Ferris)
