'It's tough to be here.' Caty McNally conquering the comeback trail from elbow surgery

‘It’s tough to be here.’ Caty McNally conquering the comeback trail from elbow surgery

Posted by Admin August 14, 2024 Tennis

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MASON, Ohio − When she was young, Caty McNally would rush into the Lindner Family Tennis Center for the Cincinnati Open when gates opened in the morning and wouldn’t leave until they closed.

That’s why it’s difficult for the 22-year-old Madeira native to be on the sidelines again for her hometown tournament while she recovers from elbow surgery in March.

It’s the second-straight Cincinnati Open McNally has missed with elbow issues that began in Rome last year and persisted through a separate injury (torn hamstring), a trip to Wimbledon and a doubles title in the Transylvania Open in February.

“It’s tough to be here,” McNally said Tuesday. “There’s nothing more I want to do than play in front of my family and friends with the amazing support Cincinnati gives every year.”

More: Cincinnati Open 2024 results, schedule, live updates

Consistent elbow pain led McNally to go under the knife

For a good chunk of the 2023 season, McNally and her team were trying to avoid surgery at all costs.

“Once you have surgery it changes you,” she said.

McNally played in a few lower-level events this year, but conservating routes didn’t help her ailing elbow and she ultimately opted for surgery at the Andrews Sports Medicine & Orthopaedic Center in Birmingham, Alabama.

More: ‘I knew how important it was.’ Why Coco Gauff is happy Cincinnati Open remained in Mason

“I knew that if I wanted to get back to competing at the highest level, surgery was going to be the best option for me,” McNally said. “As much as you want to avoid that, it’s how everyone on my team and family was thinking. I’m really happy with the decision so far.”

McNally trying to clear the mental hurdle

Patience is not the greatest asset for a professional athlete coming out of surgery. McNally had to tame her drive to get back to the player she was before.

But days in Birmingham began to blend into a seemingly never-ending monotonous routine of physical therapy while she waited six weeks just to be flexible enough to put her hair up.

“It’s just a grind. A lot of days are looking very similar. There is progress, but you’re not visibly seeing it like you are when you get your brace adjusted or you get the brace off,” she explained. “You have to remind yourself each day that you’re doing the best you can.”

So far, McNally is counting the small wins, like getting her brace off at the six-week mark, completing another three-and-a-half-hour physical therapy session and being cleared to start serving a month ago.

“You’re gonna have good and bad days during recovery. Even on bad days, just knowing that it’s just a bad day, there’s another day tomorrow, let’s change it, have a good attitude and go about your business.”

More: ‘The sh*t that people don’t see.’ Taylor Townsend’s rocky road to the Cincinnati Open

McNally aiming for 2024 return

McNally spent time in Mason this week hitting with some players, including World No. 15 Anna Kalinskaya.

While stacking good days, McNally doesn’t have an exact date in mind but is trying to play in events by the end of the year.

“I want to compete this year multiple times,” she said. “If I keep doing what I’m doing now, I think I’m on a good path. The comeback is gonna be so much better. I’m gonna be so much more grateful when I’m out on the court because I’ve missed it so much.”

McNally on Cincinnati Open campus: ‘It’s incredible.’

Aside from the Mason memories that flood McNally’s mind, she’s also missing out on a revamped Cincinnati Open campus that will receive $260 million in upgrades by 2025.

“It’s incredible. They’re turning it into this big tournament that people are gonna want to come to,” McNally said. “I’m super blessed because this is my hometown.”

For McNally, though, her hometown tournament always felt like the grand stage.

“Nothing is ever gonna change. I’m always gonna think this is an amazing tournament.”