Ons Jabeur was in tears after experiencing breathing problems three games into her Australian Open match against Camila Osorio but the Tunisian braved it out to book her spot in the third round.
The 30-year-old three-time Grand Slam finalist is aiming to get back to the top after a shoulder injury last year threatened her career but she was left tearful as her asthma troubled her during the match on Thursday.
The former world number two has slipped to 39th amid fitness issues and was forced out of several tournaments last year including the US Open and the Paris Olympics.
Jabeur ended her season in September and only returned to action at the start of 2025. She said the long spell away had left her vulnerable to asthma-related problems.
“When I was younger, I was diagnosed with asthma, so having taken off a lot didn’t help. I think it provoked it even more,” she told reporters after her 7-5 6-3 win over the Colombian.
A routine win had seemed improbable when the three-times Grand Slam runner-up slumped to her chair, coughing as she tapped her chest, after going 2-1 up in the opening set.
Jabeur wiped away tears before leaving the court for medical attention, later returning to win despite not being at her best for the remainder of the contest.
“It was very tough to play,” Jabeur said.
“Very, very tough to breathe.
“I had to not play long rallies. I was playing Camila. Not the best opponent when you’re in this condition but I apologised at the end of the match because I really don’t want to behave like this on the court.
“I tried to manage. Luckily, I was playing really good. That really helped pump me up. If I had lost the first set, it would have been very difficult to continue.”
The twice Wimbledon runner-up, who is bidding to become the first African and Arab woman to win a major, said she was still not 100 percent at the level needed to get back into the top 10.
“But it’s getting there,” she said.
“I don’t want to be greedy just after coming back from an injury. Sometimes I get angry because I feel like I’m getting back there, but every time something happens.”
Jabeur, a quarterfinalist at the 2020 Australian Open, meets American eighth seed Emma Navarro in the next round.
Jabeur said she doesn’t usually talk about her asthma problem.
“We will have to manage, you know, like we always do,” she said.
“I think I will have to find a way to feel better the next two days, which I am hoping to do because this started kind of two days or three days ago. I feel like it got worse for some reason.
“I’m really just taking it one minute at a time and see how it’s going to go, but definitely I’m doing everything that I can to be ready.”
She faces a tough third-round clash against Navarro, who came back from the brink to beat China’s 108th-ranked Wang Xiyu in three sets.
Jabeur won their only previous meeting, 6-3, 6-2, on clay in Navarro’s hometown of Charleston in 2022.
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