Even in defeat the Tunisian tennis player has captured the imagination in a country labouring under authoritarian rule
The sense of disappointment was palpable among the crowd at Cafe Cristalium in Tunis as Ons Jabeur crashed out of the Wimbledon final for the second year running.
In the minutes building up to her defeat, only silence held, as the awareness took hold that the day would again end in disappointment.
Across the city, people had either stayed at home, or huddled in air-conditioned cafes to watch the 28-year-old woman from Ksar Hellal reclaim a sport long considered the preserve of the elite and bring it to the masses.