Friends turned a Wimbledon semifinal into a shaed celebration of self belief.
Ons Jabeur beat buddy Tatjana Maria 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 to become the first Tunisian, first Arab and first African woman to reach a major final at Wimbledon. Then the pair shared an extended embrace of friendship and respect at net.
More: Kyrgios on Facing Nadal
World No. 2 Jabeur says long-time friends are "barbecue buddies" who often break bread together.
After her historic triumph today, Jabeur paid tribute to mom-of-two Maria dragging her friend back onto the court for a curtain call from appreciative Centre Court fans.
The 34-year-old Maria said she hopes this semifinal of veterans will inspire others to realize perseverance and a positive spirit can pay off.
"I hope that I can send this message out that I have two kids and I'm on this stage. I think everything is possible," Maria said. "I'm 34 years old with two kids and playing my first time semifinal in Wimbledon.
"So I think maybe people will see that everything is possible, even to keep going, to believe in themself, to keep going, to fight, to love what they are doing, to enjoy, at the end to enjoy life."
Embed from Getty Images
The crowd enjoyed the embrace between the pair wrapping a beautiful bow around a shared dream. Maria said the lesson she's learned from her journey is never give in and never give up on dreams.
"I think that's nice for the sport. I mean, she's happy also a little bit to send my message out: even with family, you can have a career and you can keep going," Maria said. "I mean, she is also such an inspiration, yeah, for a lot of woman on this planet.
"We both are role models. I think, yeah, it was nice for everybody to see that you have to fight, you have to believe, and you have to keep going."
Photo credit: Getty