Emma Navarro earns wildcard into WTA Volvo Car Open main singles draw

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Virginia women’s tennis freshman Emma Navarro (Charleston, S.C.) has been awarded a wildcard into the main draw of the Volvo Car Open WTA tournament being held April 3-11 in Charleston, S.C.

Navarro will face World No. 147 Renata Zarazua of Mexico in her first-round match (date and time TBA).

As the largest women’s-only tennis tournament in North America, the Volvo Car Open draw annually features the best players in the game. The WTA 500 event’s 56-player draw is made up of 43 direct entries into the tournament, five wild cards and eight qualifiers. The field includes World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty, two-time Grand Slam champion Garbiñe Muguruza, 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin and seven-time Grand Slam winner Venus Williams, among others. The tournament’s singles player field features seven Grand Slam champions, five past Charleston champions and three current/former World No. 1 ranked players.

Navarro, who began her collegiate career by winning her first 14 NCAA singles matches and has moved up to a No. 6 ITA ranking, holds a world WTA ranking of 479. The Charleston native finished 2019 ranked the No. 3 juniors player in the world, from a season that included a semifinals finish at the 2019 Junior Wimbledon Championships, a finals berth at the 2019 French Open Junior Championships and the singles title at the 2019 Adidas Easter Bowl. In 2018, Navarro won the 18 singles and doubles titles at the USTA National Clay Court Championships, which awarded her wild cards into the 2019 Volvo Car Open singles and doubles draws. The 2021 Volvo Car Open will be her second time competing in the event.

The 2021 Volvo Car Open will be held without fans due to the ongoing pandemic. The Tennis Channel will be providing full coverage of the event.