‘We are all obsessed with him now’: Hady Habib thrills Lebanese diaspora with Australian Open success
Share:
First Lebanese tennis player to reach a grand slam unites community in wild celebration and renewed hope. James Habib could barely believe what he was seeing. At court 13 at Melbourne Park, he watched as his cousin, Hady Habib, became the first ever Lebanese player in the Open Era to reach the main draw of a grand slam tournament.
![[Mostafa Rachwani]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2020/11/24/Mostafa_Rachwani.png?width=75&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
In front of a raucous crowd on Sunday, Habib beat Bu Yunchaokete of China – a moment James says he had only ever dreamed of. “I was having an out-of-body experience, I completely forgot where I was, I could barely even hear myself,” the 25-year-old Lebanese Australian says. “The whole family was feeling the same way, we had been dreaming of this moment.
![[Hady Habib in action during the first round of the Australian Open in Melbourne]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/f71ebcf12216e99e36054af5f99288533fb8b93b/0_0_3377_2251/master/3377.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
“I can’t even begin to describe it, we were celebrating for hours afterwards. And the whole family, really the whole community, are all obsessed with him now.”. Hady’s achievement has ignited an unprecedented wave of support among Australia’s Lebanese diaspora and his win has generated enormous interest in the community. Hady told Guardian Australia’s Full Story podcast that he felt like he was playing for the “whole country”.
![[A fan holds a Lebanese flag during Hady Habib’s match]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/548e57a8921194a7b62851c1fa704703ed145210/0_0_2305_1607/master/2305.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email. “It feels amazing like to be able to unite the Lebanese community in a way … and for them to share my victory with me is very special. “I always had goals to play these big tournaments, but at times it seemed very far, I’m not going to lie. I had some challenging moments in my career playing for a small country with limited financial help from the government.”.
