Lexus Nottingham Open 2026: Marie Bouzkova wins first grass court title after edging Emma Navarro in three sets

“It’s been wonderful to be here," Bouzkova said. “It’s been really tough matches since the beginning, so I’m just very happy to have my first title on grass.

"Thank you all so much for coming out and supporting us all week. You made it very special for us."

For former Wimbledon quarter-finalist Navarro, today’s final also marked a first on the grass having produced some impressive performances on the surface over the years.

The American had won all three of her previous WTA Tour finals before today, including at the WTA 500 event in Strasbourg last month, but couldn't find a way past Bouzkova today.

“I just want to thank all of you guys first of all for coming out and cheering us on all week - it’s been a lot of fun all week.

“I want to congratulate Marie on a really great week - you played really tough today so congrats on another title. My dad and my sister are here today and its Fathers Day, so happy Father’s Day to my dad and all the dads here.”

It was a high-quality performance, in what was a career-first meeting between the two players.

Bouzkova started the stronger of the two but surrendered a break twice in the opener, with Navarro stepping up on the return to restore parity. 

At 5–5, Bouzkova began to show signs of discomfort in her ankle, struggling to push off during her service motion and called the trainer for a medical timeout at 0-30 down.

Play briefly resumed before being halted again due to a medical emergency in the crowd. The interruption ultimately worked in Bouzkova’s favour, giving her time to stretch out her ankle and regroup to hold serve and force a tie-break.

There, Bouzkova battled back from 3-1 to draw level before securing the decisive mini-break and taking the set in style - firing a winner that clipped the line to close out a gruelling 83-minute opener.

Navarro looked to mount another comeback from a set down for the second time this week and struck early in the second set, as she unleashed a powerful backhand to the tramlines, drawing an error from Bouzkova to claim the break.

The former world No.8 continued to impress on serve, dropping just eight points in the set. She levelled at one apiece with her sixth ace of the set.

In the decider, Navarro handled the early pressure well, but a costly double fault on her third break point handed Bouzkova the breakthrough, and the world No.27 capitalised to race into a 3-0 lead. 

Bouzkova continued to rattle through her service games with relative ease, while gradually ramping up the pressure on the American - including at 5-2 where Navarro conceded two double faults in a single game to set up match points for the Czech.

A long baseline rally led to Navarro sending a tense forehand long to secure the crown for Bouzkova, who will now rise to a new career-high of world No.22 when the rankings update tomorrow.