Back to square one for Jabeur as she looks to past champions for inspiration

LONDON : The tears flowing down Ons Jabeur's face as she trudged up to accept a Wimbledon runner's-up plate for the second year running from Britain's Princess of Wales told their own story - the Tunisian did not want another silver salver in her collection.

While it is a prize given only to those who finish second at the grasscourt major, for Jabeur it will be a painful reminder of how close she was to achieving something she desperately wanted.

After all the hard work she put in to beat six rivals, including four Grand Slam champions, Jabeur had stood on the cusp of becoming the first Arab and first African woman to win a Grand Slam title.

However, the weight of expectation simply crushed her on Saturday as she was subjected to a 6-4 6-4 beating by Marketa Vondrousova after failing to hold on to a 4-2 lead in the first set and a 3-1 advantage in the second.

Add in the fact that she also finished second best to Iga Swiatek at last year's U.S. Open final, the popular Jabeur was left wondering what more she needs to do to finally hold aloft a Grand Slam trophy.

Luckily four-time major winner Kim Clijsters, who had lost her first four Grand Slam finals, was waiting in the wings to hug the distraught 28-year-old and offer her hope that her time will come.

"We were crying together at the locker room," Jabeur told reporters.

"I love Kim so much. She's a great inspiration for me. I grew up watching her a bit. The fact that she takes the time to give me advice and to really hug me, always be there for me, I think it's priceless. She was telling me all the time she lost four (finals).

"(You need to take) the positive out of it. You cannot force things. It wasn't meant to be. It wasn't meant to be."

Jabeur finds herself in good company