“It’s pretty insane. This is the city I was born in and it feels so special to be playing her,” Emma Navarro said after dethroning Coco Gauff in the round of 16 in New York. For Navarro, who grew up in Charleston and completed graduation from there before heading to the University of Virginia for college, the US Open tournament is more than just a tennis event. The 23-year-old who made it to the World No. 12 rank this year and won her maiden title in Hobart has now come to where it all started! And her nostalgic connection to the city emerges, fueling her drive to succeed even more!

Born in 2001, Emma Navarro was a kid when her parents, Ben and Kelly Navarro, shifted from New York (after spending 20 years there) to South Carolina. Navarro quickly built a liking for the new city and even said, “Charleston is my favorite city in the world,” as she recalled her walk around downtown and her interaction with people there. Navarro, who played collegiate tennis in Virginia and won the 2021 NCAA Singles Championships, made strides in the tennis world after she made a WTA Tour debut in the 2019 Charleston Open. 

Leaving Virginia after the second season, Navarro finished her 2023 season at No. 38. But life comes a full circle after all! The first women’s singles NCAA champion to qualify for the quarterfinals in the US is now making history in the same place where she was born. During a post-match interview with US Open Tennis Championships, a reporter asked her, “How did you enjoy feeding on that energy, and now that you’re in the quarters, are you starting to feel at all more like and native New Yorker?”

Mentioning how her parents lived there for decades, the American player revealed, “A little bit. I’ll probably always call Charleston home but I definitely feel tied to this city.” Furthermore, she added,“And it feels a little bit like homecoming back here. I spent a good amount of time here growing up so coming back and being able to play in a court like Ashe and feel the roar of the crowd was pretty incredible.”

Navarro, whose 2023 US Open campaign ended in the first round, is all set to face Paula Badosa in the QFs this season and is now the No. 13 seed at her home ground. 

The American player’s experience in big courts, like the one in Centre Court at Wimbledon, has been overwhelming. However, as she came to the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York, she admitted how her nervousness disappeared: “It’s a pretty crazy court. The energy in New York is unmatched.” Moreover, the energizing atmosphere and her victory opened up a new sense of optimism in Emma Navarro!

Emma Navarro’s surge in self-belief after reaching the US Open quarterfinals

When Emma Navarro’s Olympic dreams ended in the third round in Paris, she went ahead with new enthusiasm in the Canadian Open and reached her first WTA 1000 semifinals. She followed the same momentum in the Monterrey Open as well, reaching the semifinals before stepping into New York. Now, the 23-year-old player has cruised past Anna Blinkova, Arantxa Rus, Marta Kostyuk, and Gauff in the US Open. 

Having earned her career-high ranking in August, Navarro said, “I think I believe that I can play tennis with the best players in the world. I deserve to be on this stage, I belong in these rounds of Grand Slams and I can make deep runs.” Navarro believes her tennis has evolved now and she makes better decisions on-court.

Tennis fans are familiar with Emma Navarro’s powerful serves and razor-sharp volleys. And as the crowd roars on, she’s ready to make her mark on the court, feeling right at home in the city that’s got her heart.