MCNALLY: CINCY RETURN ‘A PINCH-ME MOMENT’

LOCAL FAVORITE CHERISHING POST-SURGERY RESURGENCE

By Richard Osborn

Caty McNally has been coming to the Cincinnati Open since she was a little girl. The Madeira, Ohio native fondly recalls those early summers, arriving when the gates opened, and departing when they closed. She remembers hounding players for autographs, Madison Keys among them.

Now, for the sixth time in eight years — a stretch interrupted only by a severe elbow injury — she’s competing in the main draw.

“To see how far I’ve come, it’s kind of like a pinch-me moment,” said McNally, who for the second year in a row will face fellow American McCartney Kessler at the Lindner Family Tennis Center, this time in the opening round. “It’s amazing.”

McNally, 24, is among a seemingly ever-expanding group of players who have emerged from the Cincinnati metropolitan area. She’s joined by WTA/ATP tourmates Peyton Stearns, the surgically-repaired J.J. Wolf, and recent Yale grad Vignesh Gogineni, who earned a wildcard for the Cincinnati Open qualifying rounds.

“Peyton and I grew up with each other. We trick-or-treated with each other when we were really young. She went to Florida years ago, but we see each other at practically all the same tournaments,” said McNally. “Vignesh, I’ve hit with him a few times. It’s cool to see him trying to play out here on the tour. I know he won an [ITF] M25, so that’s awesome. J.J., it’s great to see him coming back from his [shoulder] surgery. Having been through something like that, you never really wish that on anyone. He’s strong.”

McNally was busy climbing the PIF WTA Rankings in 2024 when an elbow injury brought her season to a halt at Wimbledon. She would return to the tour six months later, only to put her career on hold once again for surgery. But the Ohioan is enjoying a healthy run in 2026. In June, she reached a career-high singles ranking of No. 50.

She says her annual return to home turf is as fulfilling as ever.

“I think it’s always been a super special place to come,” said McNally. “I know so many people here. As the years have gone by, I’ve learned how to channel and tunnel in on what I need to focus on. These two weeks, it’s accepting that there’s going to be a lot of outside noise. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned to figure out the routines and what works best for me to kind of stay locked in, to make it seem like almost like any other tournament. Ideally, it really is. It does mean more for me, but when you focus on things like that, it doesn’t help you play better. It just brings more tension or pressure to the situation. For me, it’s just trying to treat it like anything else.”

Said McNally, unabashedly sporting a Cincinnati Reds jersey, “I’m just a girl from the 513 and I love to support my home town.”

“I think the tennis that’s been produced out of Cincinnati is amazing,” she added. “We’ve all played the 1000s, the Grand Slams, at all the different levels. It just shows some of the depth that we have, that we can produce great players. Everyone has their different paths. Maybe they started here and veered off, going to Florida or somewhere else, but it’s pretty special to see other people from the same area doing well.”

The winner of nine career tour-level doubles titles, including the 2026 Credit One Charleston Open alongside Desirae Krawczyk, McNally hopes to make a charge on the singles court both in Cincinnati and at the US Open beginning later this month.

“This will be my third hard-court tournament this swing, so I’m just trying to build momentum to get in as many matches and reps under my belt going into New York,” she said. “That’s the goal: Get in as many matches here as I can. That would be amazing. Then it’s off to New York for the last Slam. It goes quick.”