Emma Navarro calls for rule change after Australian Open loss to Iga Swiatek
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Emma Navarro called for a change in the rules after a controversial moment during her Australian Open quarter-final loss to Iga Swiatek. The second seed continued her romp through the draw with a 6-1 6-2 victory to set up a meeting with Madison Keys. The only real moments of pressure came early in the second set and particularly at 2-2 on the Swiatek serve, when the Pole won the game after umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore failed to spot that the ball had bounced twice before Swiatek got to a short ball.
Navarro protested but was denied a video review because she carried on playing the point. Use of replays was first introduced at the US Open in 2023, and the American believes the rule should be changed to allow a review at the end of a point. Navarro said: “I think it should be allowed to see after the point even if you play. It happened so fast. You hit the shot, and she hits it back, and you’re just, like, ‘Oh, I guess I’m playing’.
“In the back of your head you’re, like, ‘OK, maybe I can still win the point even though it wasn’t called. It’s going to be a downer if I stop the point and it turns out it wasn’t a double bounce’. It’s tough.”. I wasn't sure if it was a double bounce or I hit it with my frame.
Navarro was not bitter towards Swiatek, saying: “It’s in the moment. I don’t know if she knew or not. Ultimately, it’s up to the ref to make the call. It’s tough to place blame on anybody.”. In the men’s match that followed, Lorenzo Sonego did successfully review a similar call against Ben Shelton.
