No. 1 seed Emma Navarro set to battle in-form rising star for title

 No. 1 seed Emma Navarro delivered another good performance at the WTA 500 tournament in Merida to routinely reach the final, in which she will battle against rising star Emiliana Arango.

After seeing off Petra Martic and defending champion Zeynep Sonmez in two sets, the American tennis star also ousted Elina Avanesyan 6-3 6-3 in the semifinal.

In the first set, the break earned in the sixth game was enough for the top seed to clinch the opener. 

The second set was a bit different story as Avanesyan managed to claim two breaks - but Navarro had a response ready - as the 2024 US Open semifinalist registered four breaks on her own to complete a two-set win. 

"I played the tennis that I love to play, where there’s a lot of variation, scrapping points out and running a bit, definitely being aggressive when there’s opportunities to. That’s what I love about playing," the world No. 10 said after her win.

Navarro set to battle in-form Arango for the Merida title

After the American got the job done, the 133rd-ranked Colombian edged out Daria Saville 6-3 4-6 6-2 in nearly three hours of play to reach her first WTA final. 

"I think we both tried to keep adjusting our games, to see which way we could get a bit of an edge. I think it was a very entertaining match, I had a lot of fun playing it," the 24-year-old said. 

"It has been quite a journey. I’ve had a few long matches, there’s been a lot of things that have happened -- it feels like it’s been longer than a week, to be honest. But it’s been a really fun week."

When Navarro and Arango meet in the Merida final, it will be their second meeting.

Previously, the American tennis star collected a dominant 6-3 6-1 win at the ITF event in Naples, Florida, in 2023.

Since Arango won the WTA 125 tournament in Cancun last week, she is currently on an 11-match winning streak.