Selima Sfar (Arabic: سليمة صفر Salima Safar; born 8 July 1977) is a Tunisian former tennis player.

Selima Sfar
Selima Sfar at the 2009 Open GDF Suez
Country (sports) Tunisia
ResidenceBiarritz, France
Born (1977-07-08) 8 July 1977 (age 47)
Sidi Bou Said, Tunisia
Height1.66 m (5 ft 5 in)
Turned pro1999
Retired2011
PlaysRight (two-handed backhand)
Prize money$876,041
Singles
Career record395–383
Career titles11 ITF
Highest rankingNo. 75 (16 July 2001)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open1R (2002, 2005)
French Open2R (2001, 2008)
Wimbledon2R (2001, 2002, 2005)
US Open2R (2001)
Other tournaments
Olympic Games1R (1996, 2008)
Doubles
Career record238–201
Career titles21 ITF
Highest rankingNo. 47 (28 July 2008)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open2R (2006, 2008)
French Open2R (2005, 2007)
WimbledonQF (2008)
US Open2R (2005, 2006, 2007)
Team competitions
Fed Cup41–24

She turned professional in 1999 and has been ranked as high as 75th in the world (16 July 2001). Sfar is the second highest ranked female Tunisian and Arab player. She has experienced most of her success in tournaments of the ITF Women's Circuit, winning 11 singles titles and 21 doubles titles.

Biography

edit

Sfar started playing tennis at age 8 at the Tennis Club of Carthage. She left Tunis at age 12 to live and train with Nathalie Tauziat under coach Régis de Camaret in Biarritz, France. The serve-and-volleyer preferred indoor hardcourts; favorite shots were serve, backhand. Father, Moncef, is a physician; mother, Zeineb, is a dermatologist; older sister is Sonia and younger brother is Hassan. She is a granddaughter of Habib Cheikhrouhou who founded the press group Dar Assabah in 1951.[1]

Tennis career

edit

As a junior, Sfar won the Arab Junior Singles in 1992 and reached the quarter-finals of the junior tournament at French Open. In 1994, she was African junior champion. She turned professional in 1999. In 2000, she qualified for the US Open, to become the first Tunisian to achieve this feat. In the meantime, she was able to receive wildcards for Middle Eastern tournaments in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. At the Dubai Tennis Championships in 2001, she reached the quarterfinals, beating Silvija Talaja and Barbara Schett before being defeated by Nathalie Tauziat, in three sets. In that year, she became the first Arab woman to break into the top 100 of the WTA rankings.[1][2]

Sfar played for the Tunisia Fed Cup team, going 41–24. She also competed in the 1996 Summer Olympics, losing in the first round to Brenda Schultz-McCarthy, and the 2008 Summer Olympics, losing in the first round to Caroline Wozniacki. Sfar holds the records for the Tunesian in the Fed Cup with the most wins, the most singles wins, the most doubles wins, the most ties played, and the most years played.[3]

At the 2005 African Cup of Nations in Tunis, Sfar won the gold medal at both the singles and mixed teams' competitions.[4]

At the 2008 Wimbledon Championships, Sfar and her partner Ekaterina Makarova reached the quarterfinals of the ladies' doubles, before they were defeated by Lisa Raymond and Samantha Stosur.

In 2011, Sfar announced her retirement from professional tennis. In the meantime, she became a commentator for Qatari sports channel, beIN Sports.

At the 2015 Wimbledon Championships, Sfar teamed with Martina Navratilova for the Invitational Ladies Doubles, and they won all three of their matches in their group.

Post-retirement

edit

On 28 August 2023, Sfar had an interview with L'Équipe in which she accused her coach, Régis de Camaret, of rape and sexual abuse, when she was 12 and a half years old.[1] The same coach was accused by Isabelle Demongeot of similar misconduct and later jailed for 8 years in 2012.[5]

ITF finals

edit
$100,000 tournaments
$75,000 tournaments
$50,000 tournaments
$25,000 tournaments
$10,000 tournaments

Singles: 19 (11–8)

edit
Result No. Date Tournament Surface Opponent Score
Win 1. 14 August 1994 ITF Carthage, Tunisia Clay   Anne-Gaëlle Sidot 5–7, 6–3, 6–4
Win 2. 26 March 1995 ITF Moulins, France Hard (i)   Linda Sentis 3–6, 6–3, 6–2
Win 3. 26 November 1995 ITF Le Havre, France Clay (i)   Émilie Loit 0–6, 6–3, 6–4
Win 4. 4 February 1996 ITF Dinan, France Clay (i)   Virginie Massart 6–4, 7–6(8)
Win 5. 11 August 1996 ITF Carthage, Tunisia Clay   Marielle Bruens 7–5, 6–4
Win 6. 14 December 1997 ITF Ismailia, Egypt Clay   Tzipora Obziler 5–7, 7–5, 6–4
Loss 1. 22 June 1998 ITF Sezze, Italy Clay   Alice Canepa 5–7, 2–6
Win 7. 30 April 2000 ITF Bournemouth, United Kingdom Clay   Dragana Zarić 7–5, 6–2
Loss 2. 17 July 2000 ITF Le Touquet, France Clay   Bianka Lamade 5–7, 4–6
Loss 3. 31 July 2000 Open Saint-Gaudens, France Clay   Elena Tatarkova 4–6, 4–6
Win 8. 22 September 2002 GB Pro-Series Glasgow, UK Hard (i)   Anne Keothavong 7–6(5), 2–6, 7–6(8)
Win 9. 3 November 2002 ITF Nottingham, United Kingdom Hard (i)   Lilia Osterloh 6–2, 6–2
Loss 4. 26 July 2004 ITF Modena, Italy Clay   Anna-Lena Grönefeld 2–6, 4–6
Loss 5. 1 November 2004 ITF Sint-Katelijne-Waver, Belgium Hard (i)   Yvonne Meusburger 4–6, 3–6
Win 10. 14 May 2006 ITF Jounieh, Lebanon Clay   Anastasiya Yakimova 6–4, 7–5
Loss 6. 10 April 2007 Open de Biarritz, France Clay   Pauline Parmentier 2–6, 4–6
Win 11. 13 May 2007 ITF Jounieh, Lebanon Clay   Mariya Koryttseva 6–2, 4–6, 7–6(3)
Loss 7. 7 April 2008 Open de Biarritz, France Clay   Kathrin Wörle 1–6, 3–6
Loss 8. 5 July 2009 ITF Mont-de-Marsan, France Clay   Anna Gerasimou 5–7, 3–6

Doubles: 33 (21–12)

edit
Result No. Date Tournament Surface Partner Opponents Score
Win 1. 25 July 1994 ITF La Coruña, Spain Clay   Olivia de Camaret   Sandra de Rafael
  Paula Hermida
4–6, 6–2, 6–3
Win 2. 1 August 1994 ITF Casablanca, Morocco Clay   Olivia de Camaret   Cora Hofmann
  Alexandra Seitarth
4–6, 6–1, 6–0
Loss 1. 5 August 1996 ITF Carthage, Tunisia Clay   Sandrine Bouilleau   Mariëlle Bruens
  Bahia Mouhtassine
w/o
Win 3. 21 April 1997 ITF Guimarães, Portugal Hard   Élodie Le Bescond   Kildine Chevalier
  Jindra Gabrisová
6–4, 6–2
Win 4. 8 December 1997 ITF Ismailia, Egypt Clay   Bérangère Karpenschif   Bianca Kamper
  Nicole Remis
6–3, 7–6(5)
Loss 2. 11 May 1998 ITF Le Touquet, France Clay   Élodie Le Bescond   Vanina Casanova
  Romina Ottoboni
6–7, 0–1 ret.
Win 5. 22 June 1998 ITF Sezze, Italy Clay   Vanina Casanova   Alice Canepa
  Alessia Lombardi
6–3, 6–1
Win 6. 20 July 1998 ITF Valladolid, Spain Hard   Gisela Riera   Eva Bes
  Rosa María Andrés Rodríguez
7–6(5), 7–6(3)
Loss 3. 27 July 1998 ITF Pamplona, Spain Hard   Meike Fröhlich   Eva Bes
  Amanda Hopmans
w/o
Win 7. 10 May 1999 ITF Edinburgh,
United Kingdom
Clay   Jo Ward   Surina De Beer
  Lorna Woodroffe
6–4, 6–2
Loss 4. 26 July 1999 ITF Pamplona, Spain Hard   Jo Ward   Hiroko Mochizuki
  Ludmila Richterová
6–2, 4–6, 3–6
Win 8. 2 August 1999 ITF Perigueux, France Clay   Jo Ward   Hanna-Katri Aalto
  Rika Fujiwara
6–4, 6–3
Loss 5. 6 February 2000 ITF Jersey,
United Kingdom
Hard (i)   Jo Ward   Elena Bovina
  Anna Zaporozhanova
3–6, 2–6
Win 9. 24 April 2000 ITF Bournemouth,
United Kingdom
Clay   Lorna Woodroffe   Hannah Collin
  Zsófia Gubacsi
6–1, 6–0
Win 10. 1 May 2000 ITF Hatfield, United Kingdom Clay   Jo Ward   Zsófia Gubacsi
  Jasmin Wöhr
7–6(6), 6–2
Loss 6. 15 May 2000 ITF Edinburgh,
United Kingdom
Clay   Lorna Woodroffe   Natalie Grandin
  Nicole Rencken
6–0, 3–6, 4–6
Loss 7. 3 November 2002 ITF Nottingham,
United Kingdom
Hard (i)   Lucie Ahl   Kim Grant
  Lilia Osterloh
1–6, 2–6
Win 11. 20 April 2003 Open de Biarritz, France Clay   Lucie Ahl   Yuliya Beygelzimer
  Anna Zaporozhanova
6–1, 6–1
Loss 8. 18 August 2003 Bronx Open, United States Hard   Mara Santangelo   Yuliya Beygelzimer
  Tatiana Poutchek
4–6, 5–7
Win 12. 13 September 2004 ITF Bordeaux, France Clay   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Erica Krauth
  Jasmin Wöhr
3–6, 6–3, 6–3
Loss 9. 10 October 2004 Open de Touraine, France Clay   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Květa Peschke
  Angelika Rösch
w/o
Win 13. 18 October 2004 ITF Saint-Raphaël, France Hard (i)   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Barbora Strýcová
  Galina Voskoboeva
7–6(3), 2–6, 6–4
Win 14. 1 November 2004 ITF Sint-Katelijne-Waver,
Belgium
Hard (i)   Virginie Pichet   Eva Fislová
  Stanislava Hrozenská
6–1, 7–6(2)
Win 15. 23 November 2004 ITF Poitiers, France Hard (i)   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Gabriela Chmelinová
  Michaela Paštiková
7–5, 6–4
Win 16. 12 April 2005 Open de Biarritz, France Clay   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Timea Bacsinszky
  Aurélie Védy
6–2, 6–1
Win 17. 15 November 2005 ITF Deauville, France Clay (i)   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Alona Bondarenko
  Kateryna Bondarenko
6–3, 6–1
Loss 10. 26 March 2007 ITF Latina, Italy Hard   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Sara Errani
  Giulia Gabba
3–6, 6–1, 6–7(2)
Loss 11. 6 April 2008 ITF Torhout, Belgium Hard   Stéphanie Cohen-Alor   Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
  Yanina Wickmayer
4–6, 6–4, [8–10]
Win 18. 20 July 2009 ITF Pétange, Luxembourg Clay   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Darija Jurak
  Kathrin Wörle
6–2, 3–6, [10–7]
Win 19. 12 October 2009 Open de Touraine, France Hard   Youlia Fedossova   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro
  Aurélie Védy
4–6, 6–0, [10–8]
Win 20. 22 February 2010 Biberach Open, Germany Hard (i)   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Mona Barthel
  Carmen Klaschka
5–7, 6–1, [10–5]
Loss 12. 17 October 2010 Open de Touraine, France Hard (i)   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Tatjana Malek
  Irena Pavlovic
4–6, 7–5, [8–10]
Win 21. 24 January 2011 Open de l'Isère, France Hard (i)   Stéphanie Cohen-Aloro   Iryna Brémond
  Aurélie Védy
6–1, 6–3

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c "Selima Sfar se dit victime de Régis de Camaret : « J'ai mis vingt-cinq ans à me l'avouer »" (in French). L'Équipe. 28 August 2023.
  2. ^ "Selima Sfar". WTA Tennis.
  3. ^ "Tunisia". Fed Cup teams. ITF. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
  4. ^ "The News Bulletin of the African Cup of Nations" (PDF). CAT Tennis. November 2005. p. 2.
  5. ^ "French tennis coach jailed for rapes". 23 November 2012.
edit