em nao's true self comes out at 2024 us openen Emma Naro keeps it close to the best in her press conferences the rising 23-year-old who dethroned defending Champion cocoa to reach her first US Open quarterfinal speaks about her tennis with the calculated phrasing of a political science Professor but her locker room exchanges according to her compatriots tend to be a bit more revealing about nao's true nature she's a riot fellow US Open quarterfinalist Jessica pegula told repor on Monday in New York with a r smile don't let her fool you gof concurs as a person she's a super nice girl the 20-year-old American says I've gotten to know her over the Olympics and she's super funny she's kind of the opposite of how she is on court she has a lot of personality but she doesn't show it as much to you guys perhaps the world will one day be privy to the comical stylings of the rising American but from now tennis fans will have to be content with her eye-catching ground gang and 11 out of 10 Fitness tool she has used to chart a path to consecutive major quarterfinals in the last 3 months Navaro may not be willing to completely let her guard down in the public eye but she has no problem enchanting tennis fans with the alluring blend of sheer physicality and fine-tune tactics that have made her a force on the WTA tour in 2024 she's a great athlete pegula says she's mentally stable and she's only going to get better I feel like she's going to be a threat for the next 10 years or however long she plays to death definitely be a slam Contender there's so much to like about nao's game it's hard to pick just one thing she's extremely solid off of both Wings she protects her serve well and has cultivated a world class break game winning 20 of 42 return games through four rounds at this year's US Open there are no weaknesses and as Navaro has gained confidence in her second full season on tour it shows in her results but there was a time where Navaro and ncble a women's singles champion at the University of Virginia in 2021 wasn't sure that she could cut it on the main tour those days are gone she's a great athlete she's mentally stable and she's only going to get better when I first left College my coach and I kind of made a 2-year contract that I would fully commit myself to playing professional tennis for 2 years and then kind of just reassess after that she told reporters on Sunday I think I hit the 2-year mark this June and we didn't even acknowledge it or talk about it so I definitely have surpassed my expectations for sure I hope to just keep getting better naara finished 2022 ranked no 143 in the world it's a testament to her game and her maturity that she has risen so quickly to her current perch at no12 she kicked off her 2024 by winning her first WTA title in Hobart and two months later stunned two-time Grand Slam Champion Arena sabalenka at Indian Wells to reach her maiden WTA 1,000 quarterfinal she has earned eight top 20 wins on the season after entering the year with just two to her name and reached second week at Roland GIS before making back-to-back quarterfinals at Wimbledon and here at the US openen her game has grown by Leaps and Bounds in a short time and she's just started to become the player she wants to be I think I'm totally different definitely as a player she said on Monday after battling past golf in 31 sets I think I just play more aggressive like every part of my game has improved and also I just play with more confidence and more belief pegula who joins mavaro as one of the two American women in the quarterfinals in Flushing Meadows has seen nao's rise firsthand I felt like once I saw her play at the beginning of the year and I felt like she just improved so much she said I was like wow she's actually going to be like a serious threat I think mentally she's shown that she's super tough and she doesn't let a lot of things bother her 203 US Open men singles Champion an rotic says Navaro looks more and more like a finished product with every passing week she has been building and building he said on his served with Andy rodic podcast this week she feels built now now that she's knocked out the defending champion in her first match in Arthur Ash Stadium Navara will take on Spain's Paula Bosa for a shot at her first Grand Slam semi-final on Tuesday at the open it's a massive moment for the 23-year-old but one she believes she can handle I believe that I can play tennis with the best players in the world she said I deserve to be on this stage I I belong in these rounds of grand slams and I can make deep runs