Emma Navarro seeks first WTA 500 title in Merida

At 23 years old, American Emma Navarro has positioned herself as the tenth best tennis player in the world, having only made her leap in quality in 2024, but accumulating a significant journey from a very young age. Now, at the Mérida Open AKRON 2025, she is seeking her first WTA 500 title, arriving as the best seed in the tournament and the undisputed favorite to win in the Yucatecan city.

Given the importance that the Mérida Open could represent in her career, Navarro spoke about whether there is extra pressure due to the expectations placed on her and, in addition, the importance that this tournament has before competing in higher-ranking competitions in Indian Wells and Miami.

"I don't feel any extra pressure from being the top seed. "Every week I want to do well and I prepare for it, it doesn't matter if I'm the last one to enter the tournament. Maybe there is a bit more external expectation, but for me the goals are always the same. I'm always looking to win the tournament, no matter what it is."

"Two years ago I couldn't compete here in Merida because I was injured and I didn't feel well enough to play, so now I'm excited to come back and this year I'm looking for my first 500 title, if I can get it here, that would be incredible. Merida is a great tournament to come and play, the weather is similar to Indian Wells. It will be a good week to try to win the title and prepare for the next two tournaments," said Navarro.

Along with Coco Gauff (3rd), Jessica Pegula (4th) and Madison Keys (5th), Navarro She is one of the 4 Americans who are in the Top-10 of the world ranking, And although it may seem that her rise has been rapid, especially in 2024 when she reached the Quarterfinals at Wimbledon and the Semifinals at the US Open, she confessed that it has been a long road.

"I'm 23 years old and for a lot of fans it seems like my rise happened really quickly, but for me, it's all been slow and steady. I went to university, spent a lot of time playing on the ITF tour and then started playing in the WTA tournaments, so it seems like it happened really quickly, but for me it's been a long time. Now I feel like I'm where I should be and there's still a lot of work to do," Emma said.

Emma Navarro's achievements