Emma Navarro’s Centre Court debut, against Naomi Osaka, was a perfect melody

WIMBLEDON—Every time I enter Centre Court at Wimbledon, music runs through my head. The primary reason for this is that one of my favorite rituals in SW19 is to enter the grounds by 8:30 a.m., head to a massively vacant Centre Court, sit by myself in a familiar corner, listen to a few songs, and let Wimbledon pour through me in all its meditative majesty. Go ahead, call me a New Age traditionalist.

As I watched 19^th-seeded Emma Navarro enter Centre Court to play a second-round match in that iconic venue for the first time, a Carly Simon song came to mind: “Anticipation.” It opens with the lyrics,

“We, can never know about the days to come, but we think about them anyway.”

But as Navarro’s match versus four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka got underway, the words from another Simon song rapidly surfaced: “You walked into the party, like you were walking onto a yacht.”

From start to finish, as if she’d competed on Centre Court 25 times, Navarro was supremely composed and effective, taking a brisk 58 minutes to earn a 6-4, 6-1 victory.

“Definitely a special experience playing out on Centre Court,” said Navarro. “I really tried to enjoy it and take it all in and really appreciate the opportunity, also while playing good tennis. I think I was able to do that. So yeah, really amazing and special experience today.”

The second Simon song I mentioned is, of course, “You’re So Vain.” But to watch Navarro play is to witness a game that is fantastically devoid of any vanity, artifice or anything other than a crystal-clear focus.

Versus Osaka, Navarro conducted a masterclass in match management.

• Land first serves versus a highly assertive returner? Navarro got in a whopping 73 percent, won 27 of 33 first-serve points, and never faced a break point.
• Capture break points? Navarro won seven of nine.
• Generate a high ratio of winners to unforced errors? Try 23 to eight (usually two to one is excellent).
• That longstanding adage about the all-important seventh game? Sure enough, at 3-all in the first set, there was Navarro, breaking Osaka at love.

Said Osaka afterward, “Honestly, I feel like even though in the beginning it was kind of like we were trading games, I don’t know why, I didn’t feel fully confident in myself. I didn’t feel like I was playing that well. I guess, like, those doubts started trickling in a lot into my game.”

Credit Navarro for quietly and forcefully creating those doubts.

“I tried to move my positioning around against first serves,” she said. “I don't know. Maybe that got in her head a little bit. I wanted to try to make her hit the serve that she doesn’t want to hit, and I didn’t want her to know where I’m going to be at in terms of positioning. Maybe that helped me as a returner some today.

“Then during the rally, just my coach says, ‘Hit through the ball as if you’re hitting through a volleyer, so just keeping the ball lower and through the court, staying grounded.”

Having navigated her way through the first set in just 30 minutes, Navarro didn’t so much accelerate as maintain solid footing. Serving in the first game of the second set at deuce, Osaka netted a forehand drop shot, the first of nine straight points won by Navarro. From that moment onward, lacking much more than the crisp power that will eventually earn her a spot in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, an erratic Osaka could scarcely gain traction in the rallies. Many times, when Osaka lined up her forehand, Navarro’s read its direction like a well-worn book, frequently scampering to the proper corner soon enough to crack a drive of her own.

Navarro next plays 30^th-ranked Diana Shnaider. These two know each other well, having partnered this year at the Australian Open and Roland Garros. Their only two WTA singles matches have come this year. Each went three sets, Shnaider winning both times.

“Yeah, she’s really funny, and she’s a great competitor,” said Navarro. “She plays very courageously, and she goes for her shots, which I think is a big part of her game. She’ll go for it. Obviously she’s a lefty, which makes it tough. But yeah, I feel just excited for the challenge.

“Sometimes it’s nice to play a player that you've lost to the last time. It maybe takes a little bit of pressure off. So, yeah, I’m excited for the challenge.”

But if the cucumber-cool way Navarro conducted herself on Centre Court is any indication, not too excited. A year ago, in her Wimbledon debut, Navarro lost in the first round and was still ranked outside the Top 50. Twelve months later, she’s in the Top 20 and among the last 32 left in the draw.

Carly Simon’s “Anticipation” finished with words Navarro might appreciate: “And stay right here ‘cause these are the good old days.”