The curtain came down on Malek Jaziri’s 20-year career on Monday when he lost to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
The 39-year-old Tunisian enjoyed a historic career, becoming one of five Arab men to reach the Top 50 in the history of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings (since 1973), rising to a career-high No. 42 in 2019.
"I hope I have been a good inspiration for a lot of generations in Tunisia," said Jaziri of his homeland, which boasts current WTA World No. 4 Ons Jabeur, who has been as high as No. 2. "[Inspired] the next generation in Tunisia. Tennis has improved a lot in the past few years in Tunisia. A lot of clubs have opened and a lot of people follow tennis.”
Jaziri, who clinched his first tour-level win at the Davis Cup in 2005, reached his only tour-level final in Istanbul in 2018. He earned three Top 10 wins in his career, defeating Grigor Dimitrov, Marin Cilic and Alexander Zverev, while he captured eight ATP Challenger Tour titles.
“Emotions were very high,” Jaziri said. “When you play your last tournament, it could be your last match and it was my last match. I tried to enjoy all the moments on court. I am happy to be here in Dubai, it means a lot to me. Dubai has a piece of my heart. I have been here for many years, so I am happy I had my last tournament in Dubai.
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