WTA Tour pro Navarro comes home for LTP tournament

She arrived in Charleston in the fall of 2004, a time when Charleston’s reputation as a tennis city was growing exponentially.

 

The city, still glowing from the addition of the Family Circle Cup a few years earlier, was getting ready to host a round of the Davis Cup that fall. The growth of new players and new courts in the Lowcountry hit a crescendo in 2010 when Charleston was named the top tennis city in the United States.

 

Now, nearly two decades after she and her family arrived in Charleston, Emma Navarro is poised to be one of the major authors in Charleston’s next tennis chapter.

 

Navarro, who is wrapping up her first full season on the WTA Tour, has the potential to be one of the faces of tennis for the next decade.

 

She’s 22 years old, owns a 52-23 record in 2023 on the WTA Tour and checks in at World No. 42. She’s already played in three of the Major Grand Slam events and will make it 4-for-4 when she competes in the Australian Open in January.

 

Her next tournament isn’t close to home. It’s at home. She is the No 1 seed for the Charleston ITF W100 Tournament, which commences Nov. 6 at the LTP tennis facility in Mount Pleasant. That will give local fans a chance to see her up close and personal. Attendance is free and open to the public.

 

Preparing for the Charleston tourney gave her a chance to reminisce about her tennis memories.

 

Navarro was born in New York City, about four months before that fateful day in September 2001. When her family moved to Charleston, her father stressed two things: academics and exercise.

 

“He wanted us to get outside and to be active,” Navarro said. “Today, when I look back, I am fortunate to have the support he and my mom have given me.”

 

The Navarro family were regulars at the Family Circle Cup, which eventually morphed into the Credit One Charleston Open.

 

“I saw all of them,” Navarro said. “From Serena to Sharapova. Basically, I never watched tennis back then, and I didn’t even realize who they were. In my mind, (that kind of success) was so far away and unattainable. But it was definitely interesting to see the best players in the world.”

 

Navarro might have doubted her talent. But she had it.

 

She played at Ashley Hall, and had international recognition early in her budding career. In 2019, she was a Roland Garros junior doubles champion and singles finalist while also faring well in the junior divisions of the Australian and Wimbledon.

 

She matriculated to the University of Virginia and was the NCAA singles champ in 2021.

 

Now, she is just about to put the wraps on a season which should provide a solid foundation.

 

She says playing in Charleston is added pressure since she grew up here.

 

“But it’s a really cool experience,” she said. “I play in so many faraway places and don’t get home too often. Sometimes you forget how really special it is to have so many pulling for you.”