By Shrivathsa Sridhar
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Ons Jabeur suffered a stunning 6-0 6-2 loss to Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva in the Australian Open second round on Wednesday as the sixth seed’s bid to become the first Arab and African woman to win a Grand Slam title lay in tatters.
Jabeur began the match with a big ace down the middle but quickly found herself on the back foot as her 16-year-old opponent capitalised on some uncharacteristic errors to cruise through the opening set in 20 minutes conceding eight points.
In her fourth Grand Slam main draw appearance since making her debut at last year’s French Open, Andreeva showed maturity beyond her years as Jabeur desperately sought answers from her coaching team after the early jolt.
Jabeur – dubbed by fans as Tunisia’s ‘Minister of Happiness’ – swapped her trademark smile for a more determined look and the 29-year-old held early in the next set but there was no stopping Andreeva, who raised her level again and pulled away.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Melbourne; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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