Zach Svajda, a 22-year-old from Pacific Beach, San Diego, is one win away from his first taste of a major main draw after splashing through three wins in U.S. Open qualifying on Friday. He is set to face Hungary’s Zsombor Piros on Saturday, a match that has tennis fans buzzing as Svajda pushes toward a breakthrough at Flushing Meadows.
Svajda has climbed to No. 102 in the world, a rapid rise that has drawn attention from the sport’s community as he continues to move up the rankings. He previously reached the second round of the U.S. Open in 2021 and has collected three Challenger titles and an ATP Tour title while breaking into the top 150.
The San Diego product has a strong junior pedigree as well, winning the Boys USTA National Championships in 2019 and 2021, and record shows three Challenger titles on his resume. He has long played with his father, Tom Svajda, guiding him at Pacific Beach Tennis Club as the family’s unwavering support system.
The backdrop to Svajda’s ascent is deeply personal. Tom Svajda is battling cancer, a challenge that has fueled Zach’s drive at every turn. “I know he’s watching,” Zach said. “Should I be home with him? I was just crying. What do I do? Do I just skip this tournament and go home? But I didn’t want to default. I don’t like defaulting. So I just sucked it up and played through it.”
Last week, Svajda delivered the biggest win of his career, defeating Adrian Mannarino to win the Newport Open. The breakthrough carried into New York, where he defeated former USD star August Holmgren, Beibert Zhukayev and Marc-Andrea Husler to book his place in the main draw.
“It’s been a tough 12 months for me,” Svajda said after the Newport win. “I haven’t won any matches at all. Not just because of my dad but you know that has a lot to do with it, but just off-the-court stuff. It felt really good getting this title and playing for him.”
Tied to Svajda’s momentum is his younger brother, Trevor, a college standout at Southern Methodist University who has captured consecutive ITF World Tennis Tour titles and pursues professional dreams of his own. Both brothers are driven by their father’s journey and the family’s commitment to tennis through thick and thin.
“He’s fighting unbelievably hard,” Zach Svajda said. “I see it when I am with him in person or when I’m on the phone. He’s always talking about the right medication at the right time and he’s going in for his treatments. I can’t imagine what he’s going through. And he’s also doing it while he’s not feeling good at all. It made me think: You fighting really helps me.”
What to watch next: Svajda’s matchup with Piros could be a defining moment as he eyes a sustained run in a major, a potential signal that a new American presence is rising on the sport’s biggest stage. If he can navigate Saturday’s test, he would ride a wave of momentum into the early rounds of the main draw and momentum that his family’s resilience has already helped build.
Additional note: Svajda’s story is one of perseverance, family sacrifice and the power of sport to lift spirits in tough times. His ascent, anchored by his father’s fight and his brother’s growing ambitions, adds a compelling chapter to American tennis as the sport looks to the next generation of challengers on the world stage.
Summary: Zach Svajda’s ongoing run at the U.S. Open qualifiers, his ranking rise, and the personal backdrop of his father’s battle with cancer combine to create a powerful narrative of resilience and potential. If he can translate this momentum into his first major main-draw appearance, Svajda could become a notable force in American tennis in the years ahead.