Monday, Jan. 26, to Sunday, Feb. 1, was a week to remember for Elvina Kalieva and Zachary Svajda. On Sunday, Kalieva and Svajda were crowned champions of the San Diego Open after each beating out a crowded field of 32 on the women’s and men’s side, respectively.
After being canceled in 2025, the weeklong tournament made its return on the professional women’s tour as an ITF W100 event. The likes of Billie Jean King, Steffi Graf, and Venus Williams have won the storied tournament.
Kalieva swept through the field, defeating top-seeded Louisa Chirico in the quarterfinals and former Australian Open finalist Jennifer Brady in the semifinals. On Sunday, she defeated Elizabeth Mandlik in a contentious final to claim her first W100 title. The three-set match was heated, as an ill-tempered Mandlik grew frustrated at a series of calls by the chair umpire.
On the men’s side, hometown favorite Svajda went up against Sebastian Korda in the final. The top-seeded Korda — who reached a career-high rank of 15th in August 2024 — was a late wild-card addition to the tournament. The San Diego Open was his first appearance on the ATP Challenger Tour since 2021. Svajda, on the other hand, came into the tournament after victories in the Hall of Fame Open and Lexington Open in July 2025. He pulled off the upset in a close final, clinching the title in a second-set tiebreaker. The win marked Svajda’s third straight Challenger title.
Men’s quarterfinal: Svajda beats Kreuger 6-3, 2-6, 6-2
Svajda squeezed past Mitchell Krueger in the quarterfinals on Jan. 30. After the two traded early leads, Svajda found separation behind his serve, ripping back-to-back aces in a key service game to sprint ahead with a 5-2 lead. Svajda drove hard, deep shots into the corners, following them with crisp approach shots and volleys to close the opening set at 6-3.
Krueger flipped the script in the second set, upping his first-serve pace and unloading his forehands at a higher speed while staying accurate. Krueger’s hard-hitting approach allowed him to overpower Svajda 6-2 in the second set.
In the deciding set, Svajda steadied himself after a brief racquet toss. He leaned on his deep and well-placed shots to draw unforced errors, sealing the game with a second-serve winner to advance to the semifinal.
Women’s semifinal: Kalieva beats Brady 5-7, 7-6(2), 6-2
The San Diego Open marked Brady’s first professional tour appearance since 2024, following a knee surgery and a long rehabilitation process. Her returning streak, however, was dashed by a cool-headed Kalieva.
Brady, a seasoned veteran, dictated the pace of the first set as the two exchanged breaks and service strength. After fighting off five strenuous break points to secure a clutch hold at 6-5, Brady seized the reins to bring home the first set.
Kalieva, a budding professional eight years Brady’s junior, matched the veteran’s natural aggressiveness shot for shot before finding her own confidence at the baseline. Kalieva’s steady game only magnified Brady’s increasingly stray, unfocused shots — even her signature explosive forehand. Come the second-set tiebreaker, Kalieva won the first 5 points with ease, overcoming Brady in multiple long rallies.
The third set was a walk in the park for Kalieva. Her assertive return game gained her a pivotal 4-2 lead before she closed out the match 6-2.
Men’s semifinal: Svajda beats Shimabukuro 6-4, 6-1
Svajda controlled this semifinal from start to finish, neutralizing Sho Shimabukuro’s net-heavy game and forcing errors from every corner of the court.
For nearly every serve-and-volley attempt by Shimabukuro — a style that carried him to this point in the tournament — Svajda was ready with a response from the baseline. He didn’t let up on Shimabukuro, whose shot placement faltered as the match progressed.
The numbers confirm the behavioral and strategic composure that Svajda sustained throughout the match. To close out the first set, Svajda won over 70% of his service points and converted all of his critical break points. Shimabukuro, ever the trooper at the net, fell apart on other fronts. Unable to hold the majority of his service games, Shimabukuro finished with more than double the unforced errors of his opponent.
After tying 1-1 in the second set, Svajda decided enough was enough and proceeded to sweep the next five games. He broke twice and held his service games at a tidy 4 points each to claim his spot in the final.
Women’s final: Kalieva beats Mandlik 3-6, 6-3, 6-1
The final pitted Kalieva against Mandlik. It was the pair’s first meeting since the Guanajuato Open in November 2025, when Kalieva won in two sets.
The first set was evenly matched, with the pair firing at each other from the baseline. Leading 4-3, Mandlik was able to rally down 40-love to win a pivotal game after Kalieva double-faulted on deuce. Mandlik won the next game to capture the crucial first set.
Kalieva came out of the gates strong in the second set, winning the first two games. Mandlik quickly grew frustrated with the chair umpire, using challenges early and often. Tensions escalated further when she ran out of challenges. Following a contentious point that went in Kalieva’s direction, Mandlik approached the chair umpire, calling the umpire “a joke.” After another point, she exclaimed at the VIP box — presumably at the tournament organizers — that the chair umpire was “horrible” and declared that she shouldn’t have been assigned to judge the final. As Mandlik argued with the chair umpire, Kalieva calmly clinched the set to force a winner-take-all third set.
Kalieva’s brilliant week culminated in a brilliant final set, as she dominated Mandlik 6-1 to capture the San Diego Open title. Kalieva won three straight games, frustrating Mandlik close to the net. Kalieva finished the set even stronger than she started, winning the final 9 points of the match.
Men’s final: Svajda beats Korda 6-4, 7-6 (5)
Svajda and Korda met in the finals after both players exited the first round at the Australian Open last week. For Korda, who beat the likes of Daniil Medvedev en route to a quarterfinal appearance in the 2023 Australian Open, the loss had come as a huge surprise.
But instead of victory on the lower-tier Challenger circuit, Korda faced disappointment once again. Svajda delivered a masterclass to win in two sets, clinching the match with an ace to win the second-set tiebreaker.
Sunday’s final was one of the closest matches all weekend — Svajda won 74 points to Korda’s 67. The pair traded games in the first set but tied 4-4. Svajda won crucial back-to-back games to win the first set 6-4. Korda, who had several missteps all weekend, racked up 12 unforced errors in the first set.
The pair’s serving ability was on full display in the second set, with both Svajda and Korda each winning all of their service games. Korda’s sloppiness continued to haunt him, however, as he misfired for 28 unforced errors in the second set — including four in the pivotal tiebreaker. Svajda pulled ahead and fireballed an ace at the right sideline to win 7-5.
