In the third round of the women’s singles, Emma Navarro, one of numerous American women’s tennis players competing in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, was defeated in three sets by Qinwen Zheng of China.
However, the events that surrounded the game on Tuesday at Roland Garros generated the most attention. Zheng reportedly got into a fight with Navarro at the net after she earned her match point and won 6-7, 7-6, 6-1.
Navarro said after the match: “I just told her I didn’t respect her as a competitor. I think she goes about things in a pretty cut-throat way. It makes for a locker room that doesn’t have a lot of camaraderie, so it’s tough to face an opponent like that, who I really don’t respect.”
Navarro did not go into detail on what Zheng considers to be a cutthroat, but the Chinese celebrity took the high road and disclosed what the American player said online.
Zheng talked about it and said: “She told me she doesn’t know how I have a lot of fans. It looks like she’s not happy with my behaviour towards her. If she’s not happy about my behaviour, she can come and tell me. I would like to correct it to become a better player and a better person. I will not consider it an attack because she lost the match.”
Emma Navarro in 2024
At the moment ranked no.15 (career-high), Navarro played her last match on the 30th of July when she surrendered to world no.7 Qinwen Zheng 6-7(7) 7-6(4) 6-1
in the 3rd round in Paris (draw).Currently, during this year Navarro has a composed 42-17 win-loss record. The American has won 1 title in Hobart. Navarro was the runner-up in the Paris.
The American conquered 1 title in 2024 in Hobart. Navarro got to the final in the Paris.
Zheng in Paris, ranking, and results in 2024
At the moment ranked no.7 (career-high), the Chinese owns a compiled 30-12 match record in 2024. Zheng is competing in Paris where she toppled the world no.91 Sara Errani 6-0 6-0, the world no.103 Arantxa Rus 6-2 6-4, the world no.15 Emma Navarro 6-7(7) 7-6(4) 6-1 and the world no.212 Angelique Kerber 6-7(4) 6-4 7-6(6).
Qinwen Zheng will play the world no.275 Alice Tubello in the quarter. In the past, they have never competed against each other up to now in top competitions.
The Chinese has won 1 title in 2024 in Palermo. The Chinese was the finalist at the Australian Open.
Emma Navarro and Qinwen Zheng squared off only twice. Their head to head is 2-0 for Zheng. Before, the last time they played, Qinwen Zheng won 6-7(7) 7-6(4) 6-1 in the 3rd round in Paris (Olympics) on the 30th of July 2024.