By Gavin Guffey, Campus News Editor  

On Sunday, the Cincinnati Open concluded, continuing a recent streak of great success from American Tennis players on both the men’s and women’s side of the draws.  

The Cincinnati Open, a professional tennis tournament which takes place in Mason, Ohio, brings the best tennis players of both genders in the world to greater Cincinnati each year.  

Formerly known as the Western & Southern Open, the company stepped down as the title sponsor in late 2023, leading the name to soon change back to the original, Cincinnati Open. Western & Southern and tournament organizers did this as part of a deal to keep the tournament from moving to Charlotte, North Carolina. The organizers are now committed to staying at the Lindner Family Tennis Center through at least 2048.  

The Cincinnati Open is often adored by fans for its history, as it is one of the longest-tenured professional tennis tournaments in the world, and one of only four annual Masters 1000 tournaments in North America. Beginning in 1899, it has often been praised by players for the hospitality that the Midwest brings to the professional tennis scene.  

Qualifying matches began on Tuesday, Aug. 11, and both the men’s and women’s finals were played on Sunday.  

The men’s side of the tournament was far from what was expected by most at the beginning of 2026. With both former world No. 1 and No. 2, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz sidelined, the rankings would have seen No. 3 Alexander Zverev, No. 4 Felix Auger-Aliassime or the 39-year-old No. 5 Novak Djokovic take home the trophy.  

“This year I really liked Felix Auger-Aliassime. He’s been having a good year so far,” sophomore finance major Sean Curran said. “Without Sinner or Alcaraz I think there was a really good chance, especially after Zverev lost. The night that I went was the night he lost to Tiafoe, which was kind of a bummer.” Curran attended the fourth-round night session.  

Zverev, Auger-Aliassime and Djokovic were all defeated by the end of the fourth round, meaning that an unexpected champion took home the victory. This was the Frenchman and No. 21-seeded Arthur Fils in his second tournament victory this season, defeating American, Frances Tiafoe 6-3, 1-6, 6-0 in the final.  

On the women’s side of the tournament, No. 1 seed Aryna Sabalenka met a straight-set loss to unseeded Sara Bejlek in the fourth round, along with No. 2 seed Elena Rybakina retiring in the quarterfinals against No. 7 seed Iga Swiatek.  

This paved the way for No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula and No. 4 seed Coco Gauff to meet in the final, with Gauff taking the victory 6-2, 6-4.  

“I was rooting for Pegula, and she reached the finals. And for men, I was rooting for Tiafoe and Fritz. I wanted both the Americans to win,” sophomore accounting major Mason Doan said. Doan attended the Cincinnati open for the first round and the fourth round of matches.  

This year’s Cincinnati Open saw success from American players on both wings that has been unprecedented in recent years. In both the men’s and women’s draws combined, eight of the final 16 players remaining in the quarterfinals were American.  

Along with Tiafoe, the men’s side contained No. 6 seed Taylor Fritz, No. 27 seed Brandon Nakashima and No. 18 seed Tommy Paul all advance. The women’s side of the draw saw No. 9 seed Amanda Anisimova and No. 20 seed Madison Keys join Pegula and Gauff in the quarters. Though they each take turns making great strides, this is the first time in a while that both genders have seen such success simultaneously.  

“I’m always rooting for the Americans, and just to see them do well and compete against each other as well,” Doan said.  

Curran, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, highlighted how going to school at Xavier has made it much easier for him to see professional tennis.  

“I’ve always wanted to make the trip down, but it’s just never really panned out. But now that I’m in school here, it’s pretty accessible,” Curran said.  

Both the ATP and WTA tours now look to the US Open as their next major event, with qualifiers already underway and first round matches beginning on Sunday, Aug. 30. On the women’s side, betting odds are led by Sabalenka, Swiatek and Gauff, while on the men’s side Alcaraz will make his much awaited return in his first tournament since withdrawing from Barcelona, Spain, in April with a wrist injury.