Interview: [WC] Emma Navarro def. Madison Brengle 6-7 6-2 3-0 Ret. – 1st round

Round of 64: E. Navarro def. M. Brengle – 6-7(4), 6-2, 3-0 Ret.

Question: Emma, first question is from me. So congratulations on a very hard fought victory. Can you just kind of walk us through your emotions and your fight as you fought back after that first set?

EMMA NAVARRO: Yeah. It was a tough first set. I wasn’t able to close it out after being up 5-4. Had a few chances, missed shots. I would have liked to have made, but I was happy with it. I was happy to stick in there. Yeah, beginning of the second set was tough. It was a battle. But I ended up being able to get through it and play some good tennis in the second set. First set, too. And then, yeah, it’s tough that she had to retire. It’s never easy or fun ending a match that way, and I’m wishing her a speedy recovery. But, yeah, happy to
get through it today.

Question: Is a serve like that tough to deal with in some ways?

EMMA NAVARRO: For sure. You know, it’s looked at as a shot, a return that you’re supposed to jump on and be super aggressive and get ahead. But, yeah, I think she does really well on the second ball after the serve. She backs it up really nicely. So, yeah, you can kind of start to see it as an advantage to her if
you’re not careful. So, yeah, I wanted to be aggressive on the return, but not get sort of overwhelmed with getting ahead on the return. So stay calm and composed and rip, and I think I was able to find that for sure, I think in the second set especially.

Question: Your schedule seems so busy. Are you able to be a college student?

EMMA NAVARRO: Sort of. Sort of. Yeah, we actually had a match on Saturday. We played Virginia Tech, and then we got the win there. And then I came straight here. So, yeah, I’m kind of living the best of both worlds at the moment, just enjoying what I’m doing every day. And, yeah, for sure. Sometimes I’m a college kid.

Question: What kind of college-y things do you like to do?

EMMA NAVARRO: Ooh. I walk to class. That’s super collegy. I have two great roommates that I hang out with all the time, which is really cool to have that. And then on the tennis team, I love the girls on the team, but it’s nice to be able to get away from that every now and then. So, yeah, for sure.

Question: And one last one. Like Shelby, you get to have a hometown tournament here, in front of your fans. Is there also a little bit of pressure involved in that?

EMMA NAVARRO: Yeah, a little bit. But I’ve sort of come to embrace pressure, and pressure is a privilege, so… I think Tiger Woods is the guy who said that. And I think it’s a really great mindset and attitude to have. I know there’s so many people wishing they could be out there and feel pressure and nerves and all that kind of thing. So, yeah, I’m really lucky to be in this position.

Question: When you look ahead now, Jabeur is a player who certainly made her name here last year and has just taken off since then. First of all, what do you think about that match? And, second of all, does it ever shock you anymore who is across the net or have you played enough of these pro matches that you’re pretty used to it?

EMMA NAVARRO: Yeah. I feel like I’m pretty used to it at this point. I don’t really get too intimidated about whoever is across the net. You know, it’s another tennis match. It’s another court.

So, yeah, but I’m super excited to play her. Obviously she’s had a lot of success recently. So, yeah, I’m excited to give it a go.

Question: To get win number one here at a tournament like this, what does it mean to you to get this first win?

EMMA NAVARRO: Yeah, for sure. It’s really special playing in front of my friends and family and the hometown crowd. And I love playing at home. It’s great. So, yeah, it’s really special to get the win here.