1978 US Open runner-up and Donna Vekic’s mentor Pam Shriver shut down criticism directed at Emma Navarro over the American tennis star signing up for a WTA 125 tournament in Hong Kong, suggesting that if anyone has problems with that then should blame the schedule.
On Friday, the sixth-seeded American suffered a shock exit at the WTA 1000 tournament in Beijing after world No. 595 Zhang Shuai upset her 6-4 6-2. After seeing her China Open campaign end way earlier than she probably anticipated. the 2024 US Open semifinalist accepted a very late wildcard into this week’s event in Hong Kong.
“Hey, guys. Emma Navarro here. Just wanted you to know I am gonna be playing at the 125 here in Hong Kong next week. Really excited to be here and hopefully gonna see this city a little bit and play some great tennis so looking forward to see you guys there,” Navarro announced via a video clip.
Since the WTA 125 level is basically the same as the Challenger level on the ATP Tour, some were left surprised to see a top-10 player accepting to play there but some also had strong reactions and criticized the 23-year-old as some felt she was “stealing” a spot from a lower-ranked player.
One of those who reacted was tennis podcaster Myles David – who didn’t…
