Mayar Sherif Becomes First Egyptian Woman to Reach Roland Garros Main Draw

Egyptian tennis player Mayar Sherif has made history and became the first Egyptian to reach the Roland Garros main draw, after beating Giulia Gatto-Monticone on Friday.

To secure her spot, Sherif played three qualifying matches in the main draw, in which she also beat Colombian tennis player Maria Camila Osorio Serrano and became the first Egyptian female to win a Grand Slam match.

“Yes dreams come true! Honored to be the first Egyptian woman in history of tennis to win a Grand Slam match at #rolandgarros,” Sherif wrote in a Facebook post.

Speaking to DMC, Sherif said, “I hope that what I’m doing is motivating young girls. I want them believe in themselves and achieve all their goals. I hope that they can always keep their heads high and try to achieve all their goals,” she added.

Sherif graduated from Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, in 2018 with a bachelor of science in Sports Medicine and was part of the university’s women’s tennis team.

She later embarked on high achieving career, winning eight singles titles and six doubles titles on the ITF Women’s Circuit.

In 2019, she made history along with Mohamed Safwat as the first ever Egyptians to qualify for competing at the Olympic Games after earning gold medals and achieving a record-breaking number each.

Currently, her spot is 172nd in the world’s Top 300, and will be making her Olympic debut at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.