Picture Credit: X

Picture Credit: X

Ons Jabeur, the Tunisian tennis star, has overcome breathing problems during her second round clash in the Australian Open, defeating Colombian Camila Osorio 7-5, 6-3 at Melbourne Park. After just three games in the first set, Jabeur, who was tearful at the bench, left court for medical attention, but following her return, she battled her way to a straight sets win, and booked her place in the third round of the Australian Open.

Notably, Ons Jabeur was seen coughing and tapping her chest prior to leaving court, which had put her fate in the balance in the tournament. But following her win in the second round against Camila Osorio upon returning to the court, she explained in the post-match interview about her ongoing bout with asthma, which had flared up due to a long stay away from professional tennis at the end of last season.

Very, very tough to breathe. When I was younger, I was diagnosed with asthma: Ons Jabeur

Ons Jabeur detailed her experience with the latest bout of asthma before informing the tennis world about undergoing some more tests to gauge the extent of her problem. She was quoted as saying, as per BBC Sport, “Very, very tough to breathe. When I was younger, I was diagnosed with asthma. I tried to use the inhaler, and it didn't really help. So I was with the doctor, and let's see. We're going to do some more tests and see what's going on.”

After Jabeur explained that might have found it hard to continue her second round match at the Australian Open if she had lost the first set to Camila Osorio, the Tunisian also detailed the future course of action for her. She said, “Having taken off a lot [of time] didn't help. I think it provoked it even more. I think I will have to find a way to feel better the next two days, which I am hoping to do because this started kind of two days or three days ago. I feel like it got worse for some reason.”

In the third round of the Australian Open, Ons Jabeur will take on Emma Navarro, the eighth seed from the USA, who had defeated Wang Xiyu of China 6-3, 3-6, 6-4.