Emma Navarro recently made history in the Merida final, delivering a resounding victory with a double bagel scoreline. She follows in the footsteps of Iga Swiatek, the last player to achieve such a feat. Navarro’s astounding 6-0, 6-0 triumph came at the expense of Emiliana Arango, whose impressive 11-match winning streak came to a grinding halt in the face of Navarro’s relentless onslaught.
This was Navarro’s first WTA 500 final, and her performance was nothing short of a masterclass. The American, currently ranked eighth globally, executed a flawless game, leaving no room for Arango to maneuver.
The double bagel victory is a rare gem in the sport of tennis, with only five players achieving this feat since the dawn of the 21st century. Before Navarro’s triumph, Iga Swiatek was the most recent player to do so, when she steamrolled over Karolina Pliskova with a 6-0, 6-0 win in her first WTA 1000 final, held in Rome in May 2021.
Swiatek, the Polish sensation, is no stranger to serving bagels (6-0) or breadsticks (6-1) to her opponents. Interestingly, after her crushing defeat of former world number one, Pliskova, in Rome, Swiatek confessed she was so engrossed in her game that she wasn’t even aware of the clean sweep until her coach informed her.
Recalling her reaction to the news, Swiatek stated, “When my coach told me it was 6-0, 6-0, I was, like, Really? Isn’t that a mistake?” She explained that she was so immersed in the game that she visualized each break as a fresh start, which led to her unawareness of the 6-0 first set score.
The key, Swiatek has repeatedly emphasized, is to focus on the game rather than the score. “When you’re gonna think about the score, you can actually ruin your mindset and ruin your attitude,” she shared.
Despite her reputation for handing out bagels and breadsticks, Swiatek has maintained that her intention is never to humiliate her opponents. She merely stays focused and plays with unwavering intensity from the beginning to the end.
This year alone, the five-time Grand Slam champion has racked up three victories where she conceded only a single game. As we delve into these remarkable feats, we are reminded of the exceptional skill, focus, and determination that define the champions of the tennis world.