HOBART: Emma Navarro gave herself a huge boost ahead of her Australian Open debut by claiming her first WTA tour title with a 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 victory over Elise Mertens in the final of the Hobart International on Saturday.

In their first career meeting, the 22-year-old outlasted the Belgian top seed over a gruelling 2 hours 48 minutes to write another chapter in her burgeoning career.

This time last year, Navarro was ranked 149 but has since soared to a career-high 31, having also reached the semi-finals in Auckland this month.

She is 8-1 this season heading into the Australian Open, where she will make her main draw debut against China’s Wang Xiyu as the 27th seed.

“I don’t know if I could put words to the emotions, but it’s been a lot of years in the making,” Navarro said. “My coach and I have been together for eight years, I think. From where we started to now, it’s really crazy to think about.

“Probably six, seven years ago, I was hoping to be a decent college player, and that was going to be good enough for me. So to be here now... I guess just a testament to the work we’ve both put in.”

Published in Dawn, January 14th, 2024