PICTURES: Paula Badosa and Simona Halep proudly show up to support pregnant Ons Jabeur as she begins new chapter with Dubai tennis academy

(L-R) Paula Badosa, Ons Jabeur, and Simona Halep | Getty
(L-R) Paula Badosa, Ons Jabeur, and Simona Halep | Getty

Paula Badosa and Simona Halep showed up to support Ons Jabeur as the Tunisian begins a new chapter by inaugurating her tennis academy in Dubai. Jabeur is currently taking a break from playing due to her pregnancy.

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Ons Jabeur Academy has been a work in progress for the past few months, and they officially began accepting entries in the past few days. Recently, in Dubai, the World No. 76 held a ceremony to inaugurate the academy.

Her close friend Badosa was in attendance along with former World No. 1 Halep. The pair shared several images of the event on their Instagram Story, where Jabeur is seen addressing a crowd.

Paula Badosa, Ons Jabeur, and Simona Halep's Instagram Story
Paula Badosa, Ons Jabeur, and Simona Halep's Instagram Story

This comes amid Jabeur's recent announcement about taking a break from the WTA Tour. She and her husband, Karim Kamoun, shared the update adorably on Instagram. They wrote:

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"The court will have to wait a little longer, because soon… we’ll be welcoming our tiniest teammate 👶💙"
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Jabeur and Kamoun are expecting a baby boy in April 2026. Amusingly, Badosa and Kamoun recently bantered about the couple's baby. The Spanish WTA star posed for an Instagram picture where she held Jabeur's stomach from the back. Kamoun shared it on his Story and wrote:

"It's my baby"

Captioning her repost, Badosa added:

"It's mine."

Jabeur last played an official match in June, where she retired in the second set.

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"I haven’t truly felt happy on the court for some time now" - Ons Jabeur announced a break from tennis after Wimbledon

Ons Jabeur at Wimbledon 2025 - Source: Getty
Ons Jabeur at Wimbledon 2025 - Source: Getty

In 2025, Ons Jabeur started strong with quarterfinal runs in multiple events before a streak of early losses that resulted in a drop in her ranking. At Wimbledon, she faced Viktoriya Tomova in the first round and retired mid-match after going down 6(5)-7, 0-2.

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Soon after, she announced an indefinite break from the sport. Taking to social media, she wrote:

"For the past two years, I’ve been pushing myself so hard, fighting through injuries and facing many other challenges. But deep down, I haven’t truly felt happy on the court for some time now... Tennis is such a beautiful sport. But right now, I feel it’s time to take a step back and finally put myself first: To breathe, to heal, and to rediscover the joy of simply living."

However, months later, she announced that her break will be extended as she is now pregnant with her first child.

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Edited by Aliasgar Ayaz
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