Ons Jabeur 'kicked off court' as Wimbledon outfit furore rocks women's final

Sometimes it's just not your day and the omens appeared to be against Ons Jabeur even before her Wimbledon final against Marketa Vondrousova. Jabeur was "kicked off" Centre Court during her warm-up for failing to adhere to the All England Club's strict 'all-white' dress code, before going on to lose to Vondrousova 6-4 6-4 as the Czech became the first unseeded woman in history to lift the Venus Rosewater Dish.

Nerves appeared to be the undoing of Jabeur - who was also the runner-up in last year's final - as she aimed to become the first woman from Africa to win a grand slam singles title. The Tunisian inexplicably came out for the warm-up dressed in black training gear, despite Wimbledon's very clear rules dictating that “competitors must be dressed in suitable tennis attire that is almost entirely white and this applies from the point at which the player enters the court surround”.

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Three-time Wimbledon singles champion Chris Evert was among those to comment on the dramatic turn of events, telling the BBC: “Ons was wearing all black on Centre Court and they kicked her off. They kicked her off and made her put on white clothes. At Wimbledon you have to wear white! Even in the final of Wimbledon. I thought that was interesting.”

Fans in disbelief over Ons Jabeur outfit drama

Fans were also scratching their heads trying to understand how Jabber's entourage allowed her to enter Centre Court wearing black. Even the 28-year-old - who knows the tournament so well - should have known better, with viewers suggesting the mishap in her preparation left her rattled during the final.

Jabeur had been on fire in the lead-up to the final, gaining her revenge after beating last year's champion Elena Rybakina and also taming Australian Open winner Aryna Sabalenka. However, Vondrousova offered a much trickier match-up and mixed up her array of powerful strokeplay, drop shots and looping forehands to perfection.

Marketa Vondrousova makes Wimbledon history

The Tunisian seemed particularly nervy as she could only serve up a mistake-ridden display, with 31 unforced errors to Vondrousova's 13 as the Czech claimed 16 of the last 18 points in the first set when the Tunisian really lost her way. Vondrousova had trailed in each set but took the last four games of the first, then the final three games of the second as Jabeur appeared for long periods hugely dispirited by her inability to get to grips with the Czech's tricky game which gave her no rhythm.

It looked as if Jabeur had regrouped when she recovered from another tame early break to lead 3-1 as the hugely supportive crowd got behind her, but it proved illusory as Vondrousova roared to the line, an acrobatic volley sealing her triumph before she collected the trophy from Kate, Princess of Wales.

The 42nd-ranked Vondrousova lifted her first grand slam title just a year since she visited Wimbledon as a tourist with her racquet wrist in plaster after a second bout of surgery which she feared might threaten her career. "When I was coming back, I didn't know what's going to happen, if I can play at that level again," said the 24-year-old.

"On grass, I didn't play well before the injury. I think it was the most impossible grand slam for me to win, so I didn't even think of it. When we came, I was just like, 'Try to win a couple of matches.' Now this happened. It's crazy!"

She's the lowest-ranked women's winner in history and her victory was watched from the Royal Box by Billie Jean King, the last unseeded women's singles finalist 60 years earlier.

with agencies

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