Hady Habib, a 26-year-old Lebanese-American Tennis player, made history by becoming the first Lebanese player to qualify for a Grand Slam singles tournament. Habib defeated French player Clement Chidekh 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (8) in the three qualifying rounds and secured his place at the Australian Open, which begins next Sunday.
Last year, he was also the first Lebanese player to win an ATP Challenger tournament in Chile. At Paris 2024, he played against eventual silver medal winner Carlos Alcaraz. Habib, ranked 219, will play his first match against Chinese player Yunchaokete Bu.
He was born in Houston, Texas, but moved to Lebanon as a child, where he learned to play tennis. He has dual citizenship and is playing his career in the United States, but he hopes to represent his country.
-“I know it’s just a sport, but I feel like representing Lebanon and sacrificing everything I had to do to get here, it’s kind of like how our nation is beaten,” Habib said on SBS News, as spotted by Tennis.com.
His country is currently in a ceasefire against Israel since November 27, after a year of attacks which cost the lives of more than 4,000 people in Lebanon. “Every morning I woke up during this difficult time, I contacted all my family members, my friends, to make sure they were okay,” the tennis player said.
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