New York (AFP) – Emma Navarro turned up the heat ahead of a potential US Open semi-final against Zheng Qinwen by repeating claims she feels “disrespected” by the Chinese star. The two players angrily clashed at the Olympics where the American described Zheng as a “cut-throat.” Zheng defeated Navarro at the Paris Games on her way to the gold medal, and the two will meet again in New York if the Chinese player defeats Aryna Sabalenka in her quarter-final later Tuesday.
“I don’t want to go super into the weeds with it, but I think during that match and on the practice court and the last few times I’ve played her, I felt just a little bit disrespected by her,” said Navarro. “I don’t want to go too into detail with it. But yeah, I think she didn’t necessarily treat me or the sport with respect.”
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In Paris, 21-year-old Zheng said Navarro was a “great opponent.” But she added: “She told me she doesn’t know how I have a lot of fans. It looks like she’s not happy with my behaviour towards her. If she’s not happy, she can come and tell me. I would like to correct it to become a better player and a better person.”
On Tuesday, Navarro reached her first Grand Slam semi-final at the US Open by knocking out Spain’s Paul Badosa. The 13th-ranked American, who defeated defending champion Coco Gauff in the fourth round, triumphed 6-2, 7-5 having trailed 5-1 in the second set.
“When I got to 5-2, I had an inkling that I’d win in two sets,” said Navarro, who had lost in the first round on her only other two appearances at the tournament. “Semi-finals, baby. I’m ready to rock.” Navarro, 23, swept through a 29-minute first set with breaks in the second and eighth games as a tense Badosa was undone by 16 unforced errors to the meagre five of her opponent.
The 26-year-old New York-born Spaniard hit back and raced into a 5-1 lead in the second before her game fell apart, with Navarro taking the last six games of the match. Badosa, who was on the brink of retirement due to a back injury just three months ago, finished the quarter-final plagued by 35 unforced errors. Navarro had just 15.
Zheng has defeated Navarro twice in two matches while she is level at 1-1 with Australian Open champion Sabalenka. “She’s a great player,” said Navarro of Zheng. “I think she has a really good serve. I think she has really big groundstrokes. She’s super powerful and covers the court well, puts a lot of pressure on you as a returner and on the serve, as well. I think it will be a great challenge.”
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