Madeira's Caty McNally makes 2nd-straight U.S. Open women's doubles final

FLUSHING MEADOWS, N.Y. — Caty McNally is back in the U.S. Open women’s doubles final.

But she’s got a whole new partner and got there a whole new way.

The Madeira native whose Mom, Lynn, is a pro at Harper’s Point, was in major trouble with her partner Taylor Townsend in their semifinal at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center Friday afternoon, down 1-6, 0-2 to Caroline Dolehide and Storm Sanders.

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But McNally and Townsend roared back before a few thousand spectators in Armstrong Stadium, to win 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 and advance to Sunday’s final.

“We were fine (after the first set),” McNally said. “In doubles, you always know there’s a whole ‘nother set, and a lot of tennis left. We did a really good job staying together and pumping each other up.”

Townsend added, “I knew we weren’t out of it, we just had to find our footing, and once we did, we got things rolling and I knew we’d be fine.”

The 20-year-old McNally was in this exact spot last year, but with longtime partner Coco Gauff, as the two lost in the championship match to Samantha Stosur and Zhang Shuai in three sets.

Now, she’ll be back on Ashe Stadium with another chance for a first Slam title.

“It feels different, with the new partnership and everything,” McNally said. “I’m really, looking back at it now, I’m really grateful to be in this position and be in another final. I’m going to look back at what I did last year (in the final) and take that into this year’s final on Sunday.”

“McCoco” was super-popular with tennis fans, but since April this year Gauff has been playing with Jessica Pegula, another Top 20-ranked American, so McNally needed to find a new partner, as her singles ranking dropped a bit (she’s currently No. 22 in doubles and No. 160 in singles).

Gauff has previously talked about the “McCoco” breakup as being she and McNally just playing in different tournaments, with McNally trying to gain points at smaller events to boost her singles ranking back up.

But both have repeatedly said they remain good friends, with Gauff texting McNally all week during Townsend and McNally’s doubles run.

Townsend and McNally were “matched” together by USTA Head of Women’s Tennis Kathy Rinaldi, who knows both women very well.

With Townsend looking for a doubles partner this summer, Rinaldi suggested McNally.

“Both ladies have tremendous skills, and I thought their games would complement each other extremely well,” Rinaldi told the Enquirer Friday. “I also thought their personalities would create an incredible chemistry between them as well.”

Townsend and McNally’s success has come remarkably quickly; they only became a team last month at the Western & Southern Open, and in their opening set together they were beaten, 6-0.

“I’ve never been bageled in doubles in my life,” Townsend said, laughing. “That happened and I looked at Caty like ‘what just happened? But all credit to Kathy Rinaldi, she knew what she was doing.”

Townsend, making her return to pro tennis this year after giving birth to a baby boy in April 2021, and McNally have won five matches and dropped only two sets in their first Slam together.

But Friday, the Australian Sanders and American Dolehide, the No. 12 seeds, looked dominant for the first 30 minutes of play. McNally and Townsend were broken three of their first four service games, and things were looking bleak.

But in the fourth game of the second set, momentum swung. A Townsend forehand passing shot winner on break point leveled the set back at 2, and from there the American duo was off and running.

They broke serve again in the eighth game to go up 5-3, finishing the set with a love hold from Townsend.

Then in the deciding set, McNally’s consistent groundstrokes and soft hands at the net led to a forehand volley winner by the Ohioan that gave her team the edge.

With the crowd cheering wildly at 3-5, McNally and Townsend got up love-40 and finished off the win with a Townsend overhead smash followed by a long, triumphant hug by the partners.

McNally and Townsend now go for each’s first Grand Slam title Sunday at 1 p.m. on ESPN against the No. 3 seeded team of Czechs Barbara Krejcikova and Katarina Siniakova. That duo is a powerhouse, having won the Australian Open and Wimbledon doubles titles this year, and five Grand Slams together overall.

“They have all the pressure. They’ve played for years and years, and this is our second event together and we’re in the final,” McNally said.

“People try to say stuff like ‘oh, it’s just doubles’ but at the end of the day we’re the last team standing and Sunday we’re going to have a trophy in our hands,” Townsend said. “It’s a huge accomplishment for both of us.”

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Caty McNally reaches U.S. Open women's doubles final