Sunday 22 / December / 2024
Muscat: She is one of the most famous faces in the country, and perhaps one of the first few young women in Oman to acquire a massive reputation in sports, not just in the country, but also internationally—she is none other than Fatma al Nabhani, Oman’s tennis star.
She first picked up a tennis racquet as a child, and has never looked back ever since. Her first international victory in the court came at the tender age of nine, when Al Nabhani picked up two gold and two silver medals at the West Asia Tennis Championship. This victory turned all eyes on her and made Al Nabhani an instant star overnight.
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Although her interest in tennis is not surprising, as she comes from a family of tennis players, it was her passion for the game more than anything else that led her on this path. “My mother was my first coach, she taught me and my elder brothers Khalid and Mohammed as well, but no one forced me into it, I loved the game myself, it fascinated me as a child and it was in my blood.”
At 13, she was an Arab champion, a GCC champion, and West Asian champion for four years in a row, and was eventually able to make her place among the world’s top 30 juniors. By 19, Al Nabhani was ranked 362nd in the world.
Now at the young age of 25, Al Nabhani has won four singles and four doubles titles of the International Tennis Federation (ITF), and is the only female professional tennis player in the gulf region.
She started the year with tournaments in a few countries, and is quite happy with the way she is playing.
“I have played quite a few tournaments since the year started—in Glasgow, Dubai, Qatar, Egypt, China and Bahrain, and I am in good shape and happy with the way I am playing. In Dubai, I played a good match against one of the top 100 players in the world, so that was great.”
Last year, Al Nabhani was awarded by the Emir of Qatar in Doha for sporting excellence in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
Like most other sports players, Al Nabhani’s tennis journey was not a smooth one, there were some challenges she had to face, but she was able to overcome them well due to support from her family and friends.
Being a Muslim Arab woman playing tennis, Al Nabhani initially wanted to play with her hair covered, but ITF did not allow that. However when she was 16, she managed to win an approval to cover up more than the usual outfit and now plays in a long-sleeved top and wears leggings under her skirt.
Currently Al Nabhani is ranks 367th in the world and has a huge challenge of breaking into the top 300 if she wants to qualify for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, this year. “I need to break into the top 300 or 200 if I have to qualify for the Olympics and this task although difficult, is not impossible, so I am working hard on achieving that.”
Al Nabhani is happy to see the way sports is heading in Oman and the level of enthusiasm shown by young girls to join sports. “It’s great to see how women are excelling in sports in Oman and it’s even better to see that they are getting good facilities. Hope this continues in the right direction.”
