Saturday Hall of Fame Open Recap
The semifinals of the Hall of Fame Open on Saturday presented sunny skies, mild temperatures and scintillating action on the courts, with 11 matches culminating in setting the stage for Sunday’s four final matches.
In a thriller, Caty McNally came back from a set down to defeat Elizabeth Mandlik 1-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the first women’s semifinal on Center Court. McNally, the only player to take a set from eventual champion Iga Swiatek during Wimbledon, continued her solid play with an impressive hold at four games all in the third set.
Top seed Tatjana Maria of Germany continued her dominant run in Newport with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Carol Zhao in the second semifinal match. Maria, who won the Queens championship over Wimbledon finalist Amanda Anisimova, is into her second grass court final in a month.
McNally, an eight-time WTA doubles champion alongside Coco Gauff, is in pursuit of her second WTA 125 singles title. Currently ranked No. 45 in the WTA singles rankings, Maria is on the hunt for her fifth career title at the WTA level.
“What a privilege, what an honor to play here at the Hall of Fame,” said McNally post-match. “I'm just so happy I'm able to put these matches together after being out for so long. It means a lot to just be in a final, put myself out there, give myself a chance to win a tournament.”
Two grass court experts advanced into Sunday’s men’s singles final in No. 4 seed Adrian Mannarino of France and American Zachary Svajda. Mannarino, the 2023 Newport champion, defeated countryman Antoine Ghibaudo 6-2, 7-5 on Center Court. He converted seven of eight break points to advance to his first final of 2025.
Svajda dispatched No. 5 seed Eliot Spizzirri in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, winning 83 percent of his first serve points and saving five of five break points. The win marked his 13th grass court victory of the season after he advanced out of the qualifying draw and into the semifinals at Ilkley.
“I like [the grass in Newport] a lot. It suits my game well,” said Svajda. “I don't play a lot on grass. Today I had to serve well, keep being aggressive. I tried to come in a little bit more. Eliot's a very good player, solid player, so I had to just try not to miss a whole lot.”
Mannarino seeks his 14th career ATP Challenger title in his impressive 21-year career, while Svajda, at just 22 years old, will look to capture his fifth and first at the 125 level.
Robert Cash and JJ Tracy, the top-seeded men’s doubles team, won back-to-back matches on Saturday to advance to the final, where they will meet Hans Hach Verdugo and Cristian Rodriguez.
Cash and Tracy needed a superset to defeat Spizzirri and Mac Kiger 6-7 (5), 6-1, 10-7 in their first match, followed shortly by a 6-4, 7-6 (7) win over Trey Hilderbrand and Blake Bayldon. Hach Verdugo and Rodriguez captured a tight 6-2, 7-6 (7), 13-11 match over Anirudh Chandrasekar and Reese Stalder.
The No. 3 and No. 4 seeds will meet in Sunday’s women’s doubles final. Both semifinal matches advanced to superset tiebreaks; third-seeded pairing of Arianne Hartono and Prarthana Thombare edged Kayla Cross and Maribella Zamarripa in a comeback score of 4-6, 6-3, 12-10. The fourth seeded Corley sisters, Ivana and Carmen, also completed a comeback in their match against No. 2 seeds Makenna Jones and Anna Rogers, 4-6, 6-1, 10-7. Both pairs are seeking their first WTA level titles together.
