Despite Naomi Osaka‘s credentials elsewhere, the decision to put her match with Emma Navarro on Centre Court does seem quite a surprising one. Navarro will be hoping to continue her rise up the rankings, where another good run would push her into the WTA top 15.
The excitement following Osaka’s French Open match with Iga Swiatek has subsided, with the former No.1 showing she is not quite ready to challenge the elite players on a regular basis. She should be back in the Top 100 after this tournament but may well have hoped for a faster rise, having played a good amount of tournaments in 2024 so far. She edged out Diane Parry in round one, eventually taking it 6-1 1-6 6-4.
Navarro’s consistency has allowed her to gradually move up the rankings, moving from outside the Top 140 to Top 20 in 18 months. She made her fifth semi final of the year in Bad Homburg last week, eventually seeing defeat at the hands of Diana Shnaider. She took advantage of a friendly opening round draw, taking just 50 minutes to crush Qiang Wang 6-0 6-2.
Osaka is the marginal favourite in this one and has the potential to take the match out of Navarro’s hands if she serves well. She is capable of overpowering Navarro but the American is developing a reputation as one of the more dangerous counterpunchers outside the elite group of players. She has enough in her game to frustrate Osaka and remains a much better mover, which she should be able to use to her advantage.
Prediction – Emma Navarro in three sets
