NEW YORK (AP) — Emma Navarro is set to play in her first Grand Slam semifinal at the U.S. Open, where she’ll face Aryna Sabalenka. Sabalenka is aiming for her second major title this year and her third overall.
Navarro, the 13th seed from the United States, pulled off an incredible comeback in her quarterfinal match against Paula Badosa, winning the last six games to secure a 6-2, 7-5 victory at Flushing Meadows on Tuesday. This comes after her surprising win over defending champion Coco Gauff in the earlier rounds.
“Sometimes when you’re on the court, you can imagine playing a third set. But when I was out there, I didn’t think about going to a third set,” Navarro explained, even though she was down 5-1 in the second set. “I felt like I could come back and win in two sets,” and she did just that.
In contrast, Aryna Sabalenka, the No. 2 seed, had a much smoother path to the semifinals. She defeated No. 7 Zheng Qinwen with a score of 6-1, 6-2, in a rematch of their Australian Open final earlier this year.
With tennis legend Roger Federer watching from the stands—his first visit to the U.S. Open since retiring—Sabalenka showcased her powerful playing style to reach the semifinals in New York for the fourth consecutive year. In 2023, she was the runner-up to Gauff.
Sabalenka noticed Federer in the crowd and thought he was there to see the match that followed hers between Frances Tiafoe and Grigor Dimitrov. “But still, I was like, OK, I have to play my best tennis so he enjoys it. I want to show my skills, like my slice and coming to the net,” the 26-year-old Belarusian said with a laugh, acknowledging that she’s usually known for her power.
Sabalenka wants to be the first woman to win the Australian Open and U.S. Open in the same year since Angelique Kerber did so in 2016. She previously defeated Zheng in January to win her second consecutive title at Melbourne Park.
Zheng reflected on her performance, saying, “I think next time I play against her, I need to stay more relaxed and improve my rallies. I entered today’s match with a lot of nerves.”
The other women’s semifinalists will be determined on Wednesday, with No. 1 Iga Swiatek facing No. 6 Jessica Pegula, and No. 22 Beatriz Haddad Maia competing against unseeded Karolina Muchova.
In the men’s quarterfinals on Tuesday, No. 12 seed Taylor Fritz from the U.S. reached his first Grand Slam semifinal by defeating 2020 U.S. Open finalist Alexander Zverev with a score of 7-6 (2), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3).
Fritz had previously lost in the quarterfinals of Grand Slams four times but finally broke through against Zverev, the No. 4 seed, whom he also beat in the fourth round at Wimbledon.
“I’ve had a lot of chances in quarterfinals over the past few years, and today just felt different,” Fritz said. “I really felt like it was my time to take it a step further.”
Tiafoe offered the Americans a third semifinalist when Grigor Dimitrov had to retire due to injury in the fourth set. Tiafoe was ahead 6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3, 4-1, and will meet the 12th-seeded Fritz in Friday’s semifinals, ensuring that a U.S. player will reach the men’s singles final of a Grand Slam for the first time since 2006.
Navarro was just three points away from being forced into a third set against Badosa but won the next four to keep her hopes alive, ultimately winning 24 of the final 28 points in the match. “Things weren’t looking great in the second set, but I tried to stay tough, make her hit one more ball. If I could drag out a few longer points, maybe I could put her under some pressure,” Navarro said, feeling proud of how she was able to turn it around.
This year marks Navarro’s first time getting past the first round in her home Grand Slam tournament; she had never won a match in the main draw before.
Badosa described her performance as a “disaster” while grappling with the pressure of trying to make it to her first Grand Slam semifinal. “I never found my rhythm in this match. I played a few games okay. I was up 5-1, but I never felt comfortable on the court,” Badosa admitted. “I lost nearly 20 points in a row, which is unusual for me because I’m usually quite consistent.”
Navarro had previously defeated Gauff in the fourth round at Wimbledon but lost to eventual runner-up Jasmine Paolini in the next round in a quick match that ended in under an hour. However, the 2021 NCAA singles champion from Virginia was prepared for this encounter against Badosa, quickly taking the lead by winning the first three games and capitalizing on Badosa’s mistakes late in the match.
Navarro is now among six players in the past 40 years to reach the U.S. Open semifinals without having a previous main-draw victory in the tournament, joining the ranks of recent champions like Bianca Andreescu in 2019 and Emma Raducanu in 2021.
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