Emma Navarro had the upper hand.
Paula Badosa was miserable.
And in a battle between New York-born players on Tuesday, Navarro emerged victorious after a tense U.S. Open quarterfinal win, 6-2, 7-5.
Navarro held on to his victory, and Badosa lost hers.
“I felt like if I could just get some longer points under my belt and put some pressure on her, I could come back and take it in two sets and I'm happy that I was able to do that,” said the Manhattan-born Navarro. “After that game, she was up 5-1, 5-2, but I felt like she just didn't have the confidence to win that set.”
“I felt like if I could just push back a little bit and make her think a little bit on her serve game, I could sneak back in. … Sometimes you can picture yourself out on the court and playing the third set. But I couldn't picture myself out on the court playing the third set. I felt like, oh, I can come back and do it in two sets.”
Navarro achieved it in two games, thanks in part to a stunning collapse in Badosa's serve and baseline play.
This is the collapse that Mr. Navarro predicted and helped bring about.
“I'm very disappointed with my level. … She played really well and was in control of the situation, and I was completely out of it,” Badosa said. “I didn't handle the situation and the emotions very well. It was a bit hard for me. Sometimes I want to win too much and it doesn't help at all. … Everything was just so bad. [was poor]”That's the first time in my career that I've been up 5-1 and then lost a set.”
Badosa, who was born in Manhattan to Spanish parents and moved to Barcelona at age 7, lost the first set but led 5-1 in the second and was up 15-0 with Navarro serving, and the third set seemed secure before the Spaniard caved in.
Navarro held the next four points and, growing more confident at 5-2 up, sensed his opponent's nervousness, broke with a forehand winner, winning 24 of the final 28 points and, thanks to Badosa's mental breakdown, reaching his first Grand Slam semifinal.
“She's a very complete player. When you play in a Grand Slam it's very important to put your emotions aside. That's something I don't handle very well sometimes,” Badosa admitted, upset not by the size of the stadium but the importance of the moment that made her weak.
“It's not about the court. For me it's about the round. I find myself so close at times, so far away and so close at the same time. It's very hard to stay in the present. My mind has been everywhere but the present.”
Navarro was clearly mentally stronger.
The 23-year-old's father, Ben, is a billionaire banker and her late grandfather, Frank, was a football coach at Ivy League universities, Princeton and Columbia, but she resents any suggestion that her upbringing got in the way of her success.
“I had access to resources as a kid, but I don't want that to take away from the fact that I've worked really hard to get to where I am today. I started training twice a day and going to the gym when I was about eight or nine years old, and put in a ton of hours. It's been a lot of hard work and dedication.”
And those efforts bore fruit, ushering in a breakthrough year.
Reached the third round of a major tournament for the first time in Australia. Reached the fourth round on debut at the French Open. Reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon for the first time.
After defeating defending champion Coco Gauff, Aryna Sabalenka now advances to her first semifinal after beating Cheng Keum Wen 6-1, 6-2.
Meanwhile, Badosa was troubled by the way he had given in.
“I know that I can perform well even if it's not a Grand Slam. So, [upset]”I didn't know the best way to do it,” Badosa admitted. “Now I have to wait four months for the next Grand Slam, which is really disappointing.”
Not so for Navarro.
