Ons Jabeur stated that he was bothered by those who were very arrogant about Saudi Arabia with the WTA Finals at the end of the 2024 season.
The world number 9 tennis player has reiterated his support behind the prestigious WTA tournament heading to the Middle Eastern country despite concerns raised by several parties. Critics accuse Saudi Arabia of sportswashing, which is the process of using sports to enhance a reputation that has been tarnished by wrongdoing. Concerns have been raised regarding human rights in the country, especially for women and the LGBT community.
Despite all the criticism, the Tunisian national told reporters in Madrid that he was proud that the WTA Finals would be held in Saudi Arabia and believed that it would help inspire a new tennis generation.
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“To be honest, I have always been biased in this position and the decisions they make. I felt very happy to be there. “As an Arab woman, I feel very proud of the changes in Saudi Arabia,” said Jabeur.
“Of course people can have different opinions. The thing that bothers me is that some people, they don’t really know what’s going on there and are very arrogant about what’s really going on there. So, as Princess Reema said, you should come to Saudi Arabia, be there, and judge for yourself.”
One of the sponsors for the 2023 Wimbledon season runners-up is Kayanee, which is owned by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF). According to the company, their goal is to promote women’s quality of life.
“Obviously I hope to see better comments about Saudi Arabia,” Ons Jabeur continued. “For me, it’s all about the opportunity and going there is not just playing a tennis match, but giving an opportunity especially for younger women to see their role models and believe that they can achieve anything.”
Not long before this season’s Madrid Open kicked off, it was confirmed that PIF signed a sponsorship deal with the tournament. The deal follows similar deals with tournaments at Indian Wells, Miami and the ATP Finals, in addition to tournaments in Beijing and the Next Gen ATP Finals. PIF is also an ATP Platinum Partner and has naming rights to the official rankings in ATP tournaments.
