Thursday, June 12

Sports Mole previews Friday’s Queen’s Club Championships quarter-final between Emma Navarro and Amanda Anisimova, including predictions, head-to-head and their tournament so far.

Emma Navarro and Amanda Anisimova clash in an all-American quarter-final tussle on Friday, seeking to advance to the semi-finals at the Queen’s Club Championships.

The two-time titlist has never beaten the world No. 15 on the WTA Tour, and the top-10 player enters Friday’s contest fresh off a stunning comeback victory over Beatriz Haddad Maia, looking to build on that second-round success.

---

Match preview

When Navarro lost the opening set rather meekly and was trailing 4-2 in the second-set tie-break against Haddad Maia, the American would have been forgiven for mentally checking out of her first grass-court event at Queen’s.

However, the third seed rallied to claim the tight shootout and ultimately secured a 1-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 win over the unseeded Brazilian player, reaching the last eight in West Kensington.

After a disappointing early exit in the French Open, where she won just one game in a dismal 6-0, 6-1 loss to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, the 24-year-old needed a strong response at the start of the grass season.

The outcome of Wednesday's tight two-hour, 47-minute contest means that the world No. 10 has improved to 18-13 for the season and 8-3 on grass in the last 52 weeks.

Having reached the quarter-finals at Wimbledon 12 months ago, following a semi-final run in Bad Homburg, the two-time WTA champion aims for another encouraging performance in the lead-up to this year's Championships.

Now, the third seed must overcome an opponent she has never defeated on tour to advance to the semi-finals in the top half, which includes Qinwen Zheng, McCartney Kessler, Emma Raducanu and Rebecca Sramkova.

Anisimova may not be the fans' darling at the Queen's Club at present, following wins over British qualifiers Jodie Burrage and Sonay Kartal in the first two rounds.

The three-time WTA titlist needed a comeback victory to outlast Burrage in her tournament opener before dropping just four games en route to a 6-1, 6-3 triumph over Kartal, thus setting up Friday's all-American encounter in London.

Despite failing to make it past qualifying last year, when the 23-year-old was ranked No. 189 in the world, Anisimova's resurgence on tour means she enters the last-eight match against her compatriot as the favourite to advance to another semi-final in 2025 after positive outings in Doha, where the American claimed the WTA 1000 title, and Charleston, where she lost to Sofia Kenin in the semis.

Holding a 21-10 record for the season, the young player's powerful serves and aggressive ball-striking suggest she could be a contender for titles on grass, and the eighth seed in Queen's aims to showcase that on the lawns in London this week.

---

Tournament so far

Emma Navarro:

First round: Bye

Second round: vs. Beatriz Haddad Maia 1-6 7-6[4] 6-3

Amanda Anisimova:

First round: vs. Jodie Burrage 4-6 6-3 6-4

Second round: vs. Sonay Kartal 6-1 6-3

---

Head To Head

Charleston (2025) - Quarter-final: Anisimova 7-5 7-6(1)

Toronto (2024) - Semi-final: Anisimova 6-3 2-6 6-2

Indian Wells (2022) - First round: Anisimova 6-2 6-2

Although Anisimova and Navarro will be facing off for the fourth time on the women's tour, the young American women will compete for the second time this year.

Anisimova has won every meeting — two on hard courts and one on clay — and seeks to extend her 3-0 lead in their first encounter outside North America.

While the world No. 15 holds a 3-4 record against top-10 players in the last 52 weeks, the 23-year-old has been victorious in two of three meetings against the elite in 2025, defeating Paula Badosa in Doha and Mirra Andreeva in Miami, but recently losing to Aryna Sabalenka at the French Open.

As for the world No. 10, her mixed 6-5 record against top 20 opponents stands at 3-1 when considering only results against players ranked between 11th and 20th, with her only loss coming against Anisimova in Charleston.

---

We say: Anisimova to win in three sets

The previous two matchups between Anisimova and Navarro have gone the distance, and their first meeting on grass could follow a similar pattern.

While the all-American quarter-final at Queen's could go either way, we are backing Anisimova's serve and fierce ball-striking to outlast the higher-ranked player's variety on Friday. ID:575339:1false2false3false: from db desktop :LenBod:collect6699:

Previews by email

---

Collect / Create New Data