Ons Jabeur wins Berlin Open after injury forces Belinda Bencic to retire

Tunisian world No 4 was leading 6-3, 2-1 when Swiss called a halt to final

Ons Jabeur celebrates with the trophy after winning her Berlin Open final against Belinda Bencic on Sunday. June 19, 2022. Reuters

Tunisia's Ons Jabeur with Belinda Bencic of Switzerland after the match. AP

Ons Jabeur at full stretch against Belinda Bencic. Getty

Belinda Bencic and Ons Jabeur after the Swiss player was forced to retire form the match injured. AFP

Ons Jabeur hugs Belinda Bencic after the match. AFP

Tunisia fans celebrate after Ons Jabeur's victory. Reuters

Belinda Bencic after picking up an injury during the final. EPA

Ons Jabeur checks on Belinda Bencic after the Swiss picked up an injury. AP

Belinda Bencic has her ankle strapped up. EPA

Belinda Bencic receives medical attention during the final against Ons Jabeur. Reuters

Switzerland's Belinda Bencic in action during the final. Reuters

Ons Jabeur serves to Belinda Bencic during the final in Berlin. AP

Top seed Ons Jabeur secured a third career title when opponent Belinda Bencic was forced to retire injured in the Berlin Open final on Sunday.

Bencic suffered an ankle injury in the final game of the opening set, and though the Swiss player continued for three more games, she called a halt to the match while trailing 6-3, 2-1.

“I told her, ‘Forget about it, forget about today’. The most important thing for me is that she's OK,” Jabeur, who beat American teenager Coco Gauff in the semi-final, said.

It was not the way Jabeur would have liked to have secured the victory in a season in which the Tunisian has reached a career-high fourth in the world. She also became the first African and first Arab player to win a WTA 1000 event at last month's Madrid Open.

She is projected to move up to third in the rankings on Monday.

Even as the crowd gave both finalists a round of applause, Jabeur was busy helping treat Bencic as she took her seat, bringing her an ice bucket for her ankle.

“You deserve this title and I really don't want to take this moment away from you,” Olympic champion Bencic told Jabeur after the match

Jabeur dropped only one set during the tournament, in a warning to her rivals ahead of Wimbledon, which gets under way on June 27.

She is only the second woman to win multiple titles this year after world No 1 Iga Swiatek, who skipped the Berlin Open due to a shoulder issue, saying she wanted to recover and rest before the UK Grand Slam.

Jabeur, 27, will next head to Eastbourne, where she is set to partner with 23-times major champion Serena Williams for the doubles event. Williams, 40, is making her return to the tour a year after her last match.