SAN DIEGO, February 2, 2026 (Media Release)
The Red, White and Blue waved proudly on Sunday at Barnes Tennis Center as four Americans played for singles titles at the 2026 Better Buzz Coffee San Diego Open men’s and women’s professional tennis tournament.
Fifth-seeded Elvina Kalieva and second-seeded Elizabeth Mandlik opened play in the women’s singles final under bright, sunny skies on Stadium Court before a capacity crowd of over 700 spectators.
After dropping the opening set, the 22-year-old Kalieva found her form and came back to win 12 of the last 16 games to defeat Mandlik 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 in two hours and three minutes to secure the women’s singles championship.
The victory marked the biggest win in Kalieva’s career. She won ITF World Tennis Tour W60 and W25 events in 2023.
“I was pretty nervous at the beginning of the match. I loosened up and started to play better. I found a way to win and I’m glad I got through it. There were some good wins (earlier in the tournament) that gave me confidence. Every match I was playing, I felt I was playing better and better,” Kalieva said after winning the title.
“This facility is so nice. They have so many courts. The people are so nice, they come to watch. The city is great. It’s one of my favorite cities in California,” Kalieva added. “I wish they had more tournaments here during the year.”
The final match of the tournament featured the men’s singles championship between San Diego’s Zachary Svajda and top-seeded wild card entrant Sebastian Korda.
The fourth-seeded Svajda, playing before a vocal home crowd, delighted fans with a memorable performance as he shocked the No. 1 seeded Korda 6-4, 7-6 (5) in one-hour and 28 minutes. The victory represented Svajda’s seventh career ATP Challenger singles title.
With electricity in the air at the start of the championship match, the 23-year-old Svajda capitalized on an early service break to take a 3-0 lead in the first set. Korda stormed back winning three straight games to tie the set at 3-3.
Later with Korda serving to stay in the set at 4-5, Svajda played perhaps his best game of the match as he broke Korda at love to take the opening set.
Korda and Svajda raised the level of their serves in the second set and there were no service breaks through 12 games. A tiebreaker would decide the set.
At 3-3 in the second-set tiebreak, Svajda won the next two points for a 5-3 lead as the crowd went wild. Korda then sent a backhand wide to give Svajda three match points at 6-3. The top-seed fought off two match points with a stunning backhand down-the-line winner, followed by a forehand winner.
As the afternoon shadows grew long on Stadium Court, Svajda confidently stepped up to the baseline to serve on his third match point at 6-5. He blasted an ace past Korda to clinch the title.
Title No. 7️⃣ ‼️
Zachary Svajda downs world No. 53 Korda 6-4, 7-6(5) to reign as champion in San Diego! #ATPChallenger | @SanDiegoOpen pic.twitter.com/chJ7C3vXpM
— ATP Challenger (@ATPChallenger) February 2, 2026
“I told myself on that match point to go after it and hit the serve as hard as I can and try to ace him, which I did. It feels really good, especially in my hometown. It’s really nice,” Svajda said after capturing the title. “I tried to throw in some drop shots and use my slice a bit against Sebastian. He’s a great player.”
Better Buzz Coffee San Diego Open
Results – Sunday 1 February 2026
Men’s Singles – Final
[4] Zachary Svajda (USA) d [1] [WC] Sebastian Korda (USA) 64 76(5)
