How Emilio Nava is playing for more than just wins: 'End drunk driving'

ATP Tour

How Nava is playing for more than just wins: 'End drunk driving'

Inside the American's support for Live Like Braun Foundation

Matthew Stockman/Getty Images Emilio Nava is closing in on the Top 100 in the PIF ATP Rankings for the first time. By Andrew Eichenholz

When Emilio Nava steps inside Louis Armstrong Stadium on Sunday to begin his US Open against American No. 1 Taylor Fritz, the 23-year-old will be playing for more than a match win. Nava will be representing a cause: the Live Like Braun Foundation.

This May, an 18-year-old tennis player from California, Braun Levi, was tragically killed in an accident by a suspected drunk driver. Nava first heard about the incident from a friend, Roy Horovitz. Another friend, Ignacio Arenas, brought it up again and it began to take on even more meaning for the American.

“It was super sad and to be part of it and try to help in some way, even if it’s just by representing, I was completely up for it and I think it’s great,” Nava told ATPTour.com. “If I can help one per cent and try to extend the story about his life and what he did, it would be amazing.

“But it is not only about that, but the reason why he sadly passed away, the drunk driving. It’s trying to end that. It’s as simple as letting that one person go home that one night. It’s ending drunk driving, letting a friend drive, take an Uber. You let people go home if you do that.”

Nava has been wearing a patch for the Live Like Braun Foundation to help raise awareness. It has helped that he is playing the best tennis of his career and is at a career-high No. 101 in the PIF ATP Rankings. He just played Fritz in the second round of the Cincinnati Open inside the ATP Masters 1000 event’s biggest stadium.

“I’ve gotten pretty fortunate this year with having some pretty good results and the better results, the higher platform you have,” Nava said. “I’m at my highest ranking now and I feel like I have a little bit of a voice. I played Cincinnati and I played on the centre courts a few times. That was an unreal experience.

“I got a little bit of exposure with the patch and just trying to get the word out and trying to help and hopefully make an impact on someone’s life and it changes someone’s life. That’s the ultimate goal.”

Fritz and Nava are both Californians who have brought their games to the biggest stages in the world. Nava will try to strike back in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Fritz, who leads 2-0.

“It’s amazing that we went from playing in SoCal to now one of the biggest stadiums in the world,” Nava said. “I’m just super excited for it… He’s a really good competitor.”

The five-time ATP Challenger Tour champion changed his team in December, beginning to work with Argentines Diego Cristin and Federico Diorio. That move has proven fruitful, with Nava claiming three of his titles this season.

“We’ve got a good thing going,” Nava said. “We understand that tennis is a big strokes game, but at the end of the day it’s extremely mental and we’re really locking that part down.”

This will be Nava’s fourth US Open appearance and he has learned a lot from his first experiences at the season’s final major, including a match against Andy Murray in 2022. The Scot triumphed in four sets.

“It’s just another court, the dimensions are the same. Just try to go out there, compete and have fun. I wish someone would have told me that when I was 18, 19 and getting those wild cards and having those opportunities to play,” Nava said. “But at the same time, without those wild cards I wouldn’t be where I am today because I wouldn’t have gotten the experience that I’ve gotten. I wouldn’t have gotten the help that I’ve gotten and I’m extremely grateful, especially to the USTA.”

Win or lose, Nava knows it is about more than tennis. What is his final message to the fans watching?

“Honestly, just try to end drunk driving,” Nava said. “It lets people go home at night and it saves lives.”

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