23-year-old billionaire heiress Emma Navarro has had a peculiar campaign. The 2024 US Open semifinalist reached her 3rd successive Grand Slam quarterfinal in Melbourne.
2025 WTA Tour
WTA 500
Charleston Open
LTP-Daniel Island, South Carolina, U.S. (Outdoor Hardcourts)
Selected Quarterfinals- 4th-5th April
5th April
Emma Navarro (4) 0.9 vs Amanda Anisimova (8) 0.88
But she performed poorly in the first four WTA 1000 events, going 2-4 while being eliminated by unseeded players in three of the four events. In the middle of the chaos, Navarro picked up the 2nd title of her career at the Merida Open (demolishing Arango 6-0, 6-0 in the final). So, Navarro has been a bit of a flat-track bully this season. The scrapper hasn’t looked at her industrious best this week, seeing off Baptiste in straight sets before a hard-fought comeback win over Ashlyn Kruger. Navarro is yet to reach a clay-court final in her career, bringing a 5-5 Charlston record in this event. Defensive by nature, Navarro looks to create inroads by redirecting power. She needs to generate her own pace on clay and that has proven somewhat tricky for her.
Amanda Anisimova is an advertisement to the importance of prioritizing your mental health. She took a break from the game in 2023, citing burnout and mental health concerns. She returned to action last year and is currently in the midst of a career renaissance. She started the year in decent fashion, withdrawing from the Hobart quarters prior to a 2nd round run in Melbourne. But she picked up the biggest title of her career in Qatar, claiming a maiden WTA 1000 title whilst accounting for the likes of Badosa and Ostapenko. She dipped a little after that but bounced back with a decent quarterfinal run in Miami. The 2022 Charleston semifinalist has looked excellent this week, not dropping a set against either Kudermetova or Putintseva. Anisimova has shown a love for clay in the past, breaking through with a Copa Colsinatas win and a French Open semifinal run back in 2019. She has amazing footwork and hits the ball solidly off both wings (especially that two-handed backhand).
The Verdict: Anisimova to win in straight sets at 1.8- Anisimova leads the head-to-head 2-0, winning their most recent meeting in three sets at last year’s Canadian Masters. This should be an interesting clash between two industrious baseliners. I just think that Anisimova has proven herself a more formidable threat on clay. She can up the aggression naturally and I think that could see through to a 2nd Charleston semifinal.
