Navarro wins a marathon against Stearns in the first round of the Australian Open
Emma Navarro arrives in Melbourne with a new status. Ranked 8th in the WTA, the 23-year-old American enters the tournament as an outsider.
To confirm this, she first had to overcome her compatriot Peyton Stearns, ranked 46th in the world.
In what promised to be a perilous match, Navarro had to work hard.
She played the longest match of her career on the main circuit, but came out on top (6-7, 7-6, 7-5 in 3 hours 20 minutes) in a match in which both players broke seven times each.
The main thing is assured for the semi-finalist of the last US Open, who will meet Wang Xiyu, who beat Julia Grabher in two sets, in the next round.
It was also Navarro's fifth victory in six matches against Stearns.
The latter won the first in Florence in 2019, but since then, Navarro has come out on top in each of their encounters.
"It was a bit of a crazy match today. I just told myself to give it my all.
I didn't play my best tennis, but Peyton played really well and fought right to the end. I'm very happy to have won and to be back on the courts in two days' time.
Playing on Rod Laver Arena is a special moment. I hope I can play better in the next match," commented Navarro on the court after her success.
Australian Open 
