Emma Raducanu congratulates Ons Jabeur on Ningbo Open title win

British tennis player Emma Raducanu extended her congratulations to Ons Jabeur, who secured her first-ever hardcourt title at the 2023 Ningbo Open on Saturday.

Emma Raducanu, the 2021 US Open champion, has had a significant portion of her season impacted by injuries, keeping her away from the tennis court. The 20-year-old is currently on the sidelines and is expected to be back in action starting next year.

Meanwhile, she extended her congratulations to Jabeur on Twitter after the World No. 8 reigned supreme in China.

"Congratulations Ons," Raducanu tweeted with folded hands and red heart emojis.

Ons Jabeur then replied to her tweet with a similar energy.

"Thank you Emma," Jabeur said, along with a couple of heart emojis.

The Tunisian player clinched the WTA 250 title by defeating 19-year-old Russian, Diana Shnaider, in the final at Yinzhou Tennis Center in Ningbo, China. The final lasted just an hour and 18 minutes, with the two-time Wimbledon finalist winning 6-2, 6-1.

This marks Jabeur's fifth career title and her second this year. She secured her previous victory by defeating Switzerland's Belinda Bencic with a score of 7–6(6), 6–4 in the final of the Charleston Open in April.

Additionally, Jabeur's win at the Ningbo Open means she has now won at least one title on all three different surfaces: grass, clay, and hardcourt.

Maria Sharapova has expressed her desire to see Ons Jabeur clinch her inaugural Grand Slam title soon

Ons Jabeur wins Ningbo Open 2023

During a recent interview on the Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, Maria Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam champion, expressed her desire to see the 29-year-old athlete secure a Grand Slam victory while chatting with Andrea Petkovic

"I'm rooting for Ons to win her first grandslam, she deserves that so much," Maria Sharapova said.

In the same interview, Andrea Petkovic discussed the fluctuating nature of women's tennis, noting periods of dominance and rivalry. She highlighted that Maria Sharapova's era was marked by intense rivalries, and today, with talents like Ons Jabeur, Sabalenka, Rybakina, and others emerging, the sport is regaining its excitement.

" The rivalries, you either have one dominant player or everyone has a shot and I think in your time what made it interesting were the rivalries because you picked teams and you hope somebody wins, somebody loses now we are getting there with the Ons Jabeur, the Sabalenka, Rybakina.." Andrea Petkovic said.

In 2022, Jabeur reached a career-high ranking of No. 2 in the WTA rankings, making her the highest-ranked African and Arab tennis player in WTA and ATP rankings history. Notably, she was the runner-up at Wimbledon in both 2022 and 2023, as well as at the US Open in 2022.