NEW YORK -- Americans Mackenzie McDonald and Maria Mateas are playing for more than just a trophy in the US Open mixed doubles draw. The dating partners are competing to stay together longer.
Mateas, who also played in women’s qualifying singles, was scheduled to fly to Europe on Saturday to continue her journey. But the wild cards defeated Fabrice Martin and Alexandra Panova 6-4, 2-6, 10-8 on Friday to remain in the draw and, more importantly, by one another’s side.
“This means we get to spend more days together, too, because there are tournaments right around the corner,” said McDonald, who lost to Jannik Sinner in the first round of singles. “Our days being on tour, both of us, it's a lot. So we cherish every moment we get together.”
The partners of two-and-a-half years simultaneously said “I hope so” when asked if Mateas might have to miss a tournament because of their efforts in New York.
Both players’ smiles lit up the US Open media center. Their excitement was unmistakable.
“Amazing,” Mateas said. “This is actually one of the best moments of my life. I'm so happy right now. It's actually crazy.”
McDonald added: “I was actually pretty nervous there. But yeah, I guess my excitement showed at the end. It was really fun. We had a great time out there, but to get a win was actually really, really cool, because we had a tough loss last year, but I'm happy we bounced back this year and got a ‘dub.’”
“We went out and there was only one person in the stands, so we were like, ‘Oh, this is good. We won't get nervous.’ And then in the breaker, it was full,” Mateas said.
“It was so fun. We wanted the opportunity again so bad, because last year was my first ever Grand Slam match, and I was so nervous.
“Obviously we know each other better than anyone, but I didn't want to let him down in a way. I don't know. And then this year, I just went out there, and I just wanted to have a lot of fun and really enjoy it no matter what. And we definitely did that.”
It has been the best season of Mateas’ career -- she is at a career-high No. 190 in the PIF WTA Rankings. At the end of last season, McDonald accompanied her to Santo Domingo, where the former Duke standout won her first title in five years.
“That kind of set off this year that I've had,” Mateas said.
“[I] might have had a little bit more time on my schedule [because of my shoulder] than I would have liked,” McDonald said. “But it really helped her.”
According to the couple, they will likely be apart for two months after the US Open. But they FaceTime “more than anyone we know” to try to feel together even when they are not.
<p“It's nice having someone else that understands what you do,” McDonald said. “And even beyond that, we help each other and push each other to make sure we're doing the right things and everything, too.”
The former No. 37 in the PIF ATP Rankings added: “I’ve got a lot of work to do to get my ranking back to where I want to be, and that's going to take playing a lot of tournaments and winning a lot of matches, maybe even at the Challenger level. It’s nice that I have someone … that is going to be supporting me to get back to my ranking.”
Some couples bicker on court, but it was abundantly clear how much the Americans enjoyed their time together on Court 6. Their smiles remained well after the match. But who is the boss on the court?
“There is really no boss. And I mean this genuinely, I'm not just saying this, on or off the court,” Mateas said. “I think my word kind of holds more weight in a way, off the court. But on the court, he ran it for sure. He's much better at his job than I am, so I have a lot of learning to do from him still.”
They will next face Italian third seeds Sara Errani and Andrea Vavassori. Could the home favorites enjoy a storybook run to the title?
“I don’t know if we can put the ‘T’ word out there yet,” McDonald said. “We’ll take it one match at a time. We'll see. Honestly, just having another night of dinner, knowing that we're not going to be leaving tomorrow, is big. Honestly having another day is huge. So yeah, we'll really enjoy it as much as we can.”
