Navarro to face qualifier Arango in Merida Open final

Emma Navarro will face qualifier Emiliana Arango in her second WTA Tour-level final, after overcoming Elina Avanesyan at the Merida Open on Saturday.

Top seed Navarro claimed a 6-3 6-3 semi-final win over Armenian Avanesyan, getting the only break of the opener then edging a topsy-turvy second set in which neither player served with confidence.

Of six breaks in that second set, four went Navarro's way including in a four-deuce final game, the American finally converting her fourth match point with a sizzling forehand from the baseline.

Speaking in her courtside interview after the win, Navarro said: "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."

Her opponent in the showpiece match of the event will be Colombia's Arango, who beat fellow qualifier Daria Saville 6-3 4-6 6-2 in two hours and 52 minutes.

After coming through that gruelling contest, Arango said: "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. 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."

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Data Debrief: David versus Goliath

On paper at least, Navarro is the heavy favourite to win Sunday's final. Playing her first WTA tournament as the top seed, she is yet to drop a single set.

Arango, meanwhile, is a first-time Tour-level finalist and her reward will be a debut in the WTA's top 100 next week.

It will be just Arango's second meeting with a top-10 opponent, after she lost to Maria Sakkari in the quarter-finals of the 2023 Guadalajara Open.