The opening day of the 2025 Australian Open delivered what is already one of the most inspirational success stories in the men’s draw as Hady Habib wrote his name in the history books. Habib is the first Lebanese tennis player to appear in the main draw of a Grand Slam. And by the time he had completed a nerveless 7-6 6-4 7-6 victory against Bu Yunchaokete, he was also the first player from Lebanon to win a match in a Major tournament.
A career of firsts for Habib
There haven’t been many prominent tennis players to hail from Lebanon who competed at the highest level. Habib has been a trailblazer as a result. Born in Houston, Texas, USA, Habib has played in Lebanese colors since 2015 because of his family heritage. In his early years, he played college tennis at Texas A&M University and lived in Lebanon very briefly during his childhood.
Tennis in Lebanon doesn’t quite command the same level of widespread popularity as football, basketball, or weightlifting which is why Habib, who is only 26 with his best tennis years patently ahead of him, is the country’s first household name on tour. Habib won a maiden ATP Challenger title in Temuco at the back of last season. It was the first time that Lebanon was properly featured on the tennis map. That finish was the culmination of a breakthrough 2024 season in which he attained a personal best year-end ranking of world #216.
Slow but steady progress is Habib’s mantra
Habib’s ATP ranking has been on an upward trajectory in each of the last four years. In 2020, he was ranked world #753. He was one of many players who suffered when the tour shut down temporarily because of the coronavirus pandemic. He played just 14 matches on the ITF circuit and hardly improved on his ranking due to travel restrictions.
But sporadic improvements in 2022 saw his ranking soar by over 200 spots having at one point fallen down to 852nd in the world rankings. He broke into the top 500 the following season after sweeping five ITF titles and winning 58 matches.
They always say, to run the race of life at your own pace, and Habib has demonstrated that age is not a barrier to making that late leap in professional tennis. At 26, he is now entering his peak phase and the results are a clear reflection of this. A 53.2% win rate on the Challenger Tour in the last 12 months has taken his ranking on the cusp of the world’s top 200.
What is next in store for Habib at the Australian Open?
Habib has left a mark in the qualifying week in Melbourne with a dramatic deciding set tie-break win over Chidekh Clement. Yet, he added another page after his headline-grabbing first-round win to continue charting even more Lebanese history. Up next, is a meeting with 14th seed Ugo Humbert and the gaze of Lebanon will be tuning in to see.
For a country that is still reeling from political, social, and economic turmoil, Habib’s massive achievement at this year’s Australian Open brings with it a much-needed sense of pride and hope, but perhaps most importantly unity.
Main photo credit: Clayton Freeman/Florida Times-Union
