By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Upset alert. The reigning queen of the US Open Grand Slam tournament has been dethroned.
Yes, you heard it right, as American tennis challenger Emma Navarro knocks out the US Open defending champion Coco Gauff in the Round of 16 phase- 6.3, 4.6, 6.3- on September 2, 2024, in Queens, New York.
In a match where the majority expected the higher-seeded Gauff to eliminate the world no. 13 ranked Navarro, tales of reversed fortunes once again filled the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York as another top 3 player exited the tournament before the quarterfinal round.
After Carlos Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, and Holger Rune, it was Gauff’s turn to suffer the same fate after dropping a Grand Slam tournament match at the hands of a player ranked above the Top 10 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA).
Unfazed by the tough challenge ahead, Navarro embraced the underdog role and immediately grabbed the momentum of the match when she scored an early service break in the opening set.
Navarro’s well-calculated counters on every down-the-line forehand shot by Gauff worked to perfection and steered her to several timely points during the last game set of the opener.
Despite trailing early in the game, Gauff displayed her championship DNA after equalizing the match, regaining her footing to establish her swag back against the courageous American.
Just when Gauff thought she already figured the game out, Navarro showed an unorthodox approach in the third and final set when she spent most of her time in the net area.
With the added pressure that Navarro put by attacking the net, Gauff ran out of options and started to commit unforced errors before the American scored another break to retake the momentum.
Just like the first set, Navarro had no problems dealing with Gauff’s baseline groundstrokes and unleashed another scoring run to cap off the Round of 16 victory.
With the win, Navarro just set up a highly-anticipated quarterfinal clash with world no. 26 ranked Paula Badosa who swept Wang Yafan in the Round of 16 to reach the playoffs.
