Lexus Nottingham Open 2026: Emma Navarro to face Marie Bouzkova in women’s singles final

Bouzakova’s clinical serving was pivotal to her victory today, with the 27-year-old winning 71% of her service points across the match (35/49) compared to her compatriot who claimed just 51%.

The pair exchanged a trio of breaks late in the opener, with Bouzkova having the final say to edge ahead. From there, she picked up where she left off in the second - ramping up the intensity against the two-time Nottingham champion.

She broke Pliskova once more in the fourth game to take a 4-1 grip on the match before reeling off the last two games to reach her 10th career WTA final and first on the grass.

“It’s super special,” Bouzkova beamed in her post-match interview. “I enjoyed the match a lot today, I was expecting such a tough match and it was. Karo is such a great player on all surfaces so I knew it wasn’t going to be easy but I’m super happy I can play my first final on grass.

“Obviously she’s such a great champion. She has so many experiences - it’s a huge win for me. We have known each other since we were really small, we’ve played some fitness sessions together and have worked out together. I have huge respect for her and I’m really happy I could pull through.

She’ll take on third seed Navarro in the final after the American navigated her way through a testing battle against Golubic - eventually booking a place in the final on her tournament debut.

The win sees Navarro reach her second WTA final of the year - following her run to the WTA 500 title in Strasbourg last month - and a career-first final on grass.

The former Wimbledon quarter-finalist looked to be well on her way to taking a turbulent opening set comfortably as she opened up a 5-2 lead. However, Navarro couldn’t maintain her lead, as the Swiss qualifier came back from a break down for the third time to draw level and force a tie-break.

At 5-5 in the tie-break, play was paused due to a medical emergency in the crowd. Upon resumption, Navarro regrouped quickly, drawing an error out of Golubic before sealing the set on her third set point.

The third seed carried that momentum into the second, securing an early break before extending her lead to 5-2 after edging a gruelling seventh game. This time however, she made no mistake, serving out the match after two hours and 10 minutes.

Reflecting on her win, Navarro said, “Really tough battle today, a lot of really tough points. Wasn't easy being up 5-2 in the first, losing three games in a row, and then getting to six all. I want to shout out the nice lady that couldn't stay for the second set, I just want to thank her. I think she won me that set, so I hope she's okay and recovering quickly.

“It's really tough,” she added, on how players deal with in-match stoppages. “You cool down and chill out mentally and physically while that's going on. Then in six or seven seconds you're back in the thick of it playing for set point, it kind of hits you mid-point that it's getting real now. It's not easy but it's part of the sport.”

Navarro will bid to win a second WTA title in a single season for the first time in her career when she returns to Centre Court at the Lexus Nottingham Tennis Centre on Sunday.

Sunday’s women’s singles final will mark a career-first meeting between Navarro and Bouzkova in what promises to be an exciting final clash.

Navarro has already spent over nine hours on court this week, having opened up her campaign with two tight three-set matches against Anna Bondar and Yuliia Starodubtseva. In comparison, Bouzkova has spent just shy of six hours on the match court and will hope to use that to her advantage when she takes on the world No.25.

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