Emma Navarro (USA) produced a surprise victory over the world’s number two Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) by 2-1 (6:3, 3:6, 6:2) to reach the quarter-finals of the WTA 1000 Indian Wells Open tennis tournament. Overcoming this round is the biggest success of the 22-year-old American tennis player, as the competition has a prize money of 9.25 million USD.
The American tennis player, who is world’s No 23, won with excellent play from the baseline. She neutralized one of Aryna Sabalenka‘s strongest attributes – her strong serve – and made four breaks out of six opportunities. The Belarusian, champion in Melbourne for the last two years, recorded only one break in the match.
The two exchanged a set at the start, after which Emma Navarro produced a near-perfect third set. She fended off a break point and hit a beautiful forehand winner for a 4:1 lead. The American made her fourth break on match point and ended the match after one hour and 57 minutes on court.
“I feel great”, said Emma Navarro in a courtside interview. “It’s never easy against opponents who have so much talent and so much experience. She really made it difficult for me, but today I played my best tennis and I did it in the most important moments. I want to thank everyone who supported me today from the stands”, added she.
Emma Navarro’s next opponent will be Maria Sakkari (Greece), who prevailed over Diane Parry (France) by 2-1 (6:2, 3:6, 6:3) in two hours and 12 minutes.
In the other quarter-final, the third-seeded Cori Coco Gauff (USA) defeated Yue Yuan (China) by 2-0 (6:4, 6:3).
