Emma Navarro clarifies why she still sticks to her ‘I don’t respect her’ comment on Gold medalist Qinwen Zheng

Emma Navarro and Qinwen Zheng shared a few tense words during their Paris Olympics encounter less than a month ago.

Emma Navarro clarifies why she still sticks to her ‘I don’t respect her’ comment on Gold medalist Qinwen Zheng

Emma Navarro and Qinwen Zheng (via Imago)

Emma Navarro is usually calm on the tennis court, which made her tense exchange with Qinwen Zheng at the Summer Olympics stand out. This moment went viral, and at the US Open on Tuesday (September 3), the 13th seed talked about it. After losing a close match to Zheng in Paris, Navarro called her “cut-throat.” She emphasized that her comments were not made in the heat of the moment.

Navarro, now in the US Open semifinals, reflected on her history with Zheng. The two had faced each other during their junior years, playing at major events like the Eddie Herr International Junior Championships and the Orange Bowl in 2018 and at Roland Garros in 2019.

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I don't want to go super into the weeds with it, but I think during that match and, you know, on the practice court and the last few times l've played her, because we have been playing each other since we were juniors, I felt just a little bit disrespected by her. You know, I don't want to, like I said, go too into detail with it. But yeah, I think she didn't necessarily treat me or the sport with respect. That's why I said what I said after the match.
Emma Navarro said in her US Open post-match press conference

Navarro had just beaten former world No. 2 Paula Badosa in straight sets when she spoke about Zheng. She hinted that the past matches between them had an impact on their rivalry today. Zheng, who won the Olympic gold in Paris, might face the American again at the US Open. To make this happen, the No. 7 seed needs to win her quarterfinal match against the No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka on Tuesday evening.

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Emma Navarro reveals her mentality against Paula Badosa in the US Open quarterfinal

In front of her home crowd at the US Open, No.13 seed Emma Navarro reached her first Grand Slam semifinal. She made a remarkable comeback in the second set, overcoming a 5-1 deficit to defeat No.26 Paula Badosa 6-2, 7-5. This win ensures the 23-year-old will debut in the Top 10 rankings next week. Last September, she was ranked No.61 but has had a breakthrough season, including her first WTA Tour title in Hobart in January.

Emma Navarro
Emma Navarro (Via Imago)
Even though she was up 5-1, 5-2 after that game, I felt like she wasn't totally confident in her ability to close out that set. So I felt if I could push back a little bit and make her think a little bit on her service game, maybe I could sneak my way back in there. I think sometimes you're out in the court, and you can kind of picture yourself playing a third set. When I was out there, I didn't picture myself playing a third set. I felt like I could come back and do it in two.
Emma Navarro said in her US Open post-match interview

Both players had reached major quarterfinals before, but neither had gone further. Badosa last reached this stage over three years ago at Roland Garros 2021. Navarro, on the other hand, followed up her quarterfinal appearance at Wimbledon this year by achieving the same feat at the US Open.

In their only previous match, Badosa came from behind to beat Navarro in Rome this May. Navarro dominated the first set this time, taking advantage of the Spaniard’s 16 unforced errors. Badosa started the second set strong, taking a 5-1 lead, but the American held her serve and started her comeback.

Navarro regained her form and used a mix of slices, volleys, and angles to break Badosa’s rhythm. The Citi Open winner’s performance dropped again, and she struggled with double faults. Navarro took control and finished the match, securing her spot in the semifinal.

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