Tennis star Amanda Anisimova bizarrely left commentators convinced she was drinking a beer during her match at the Cincinnati Open.
The American, 24, claimed a 4-6 6-4 6-2 victory over Czech star Alex Eala on Tuesday to set up a quarter-final clash with Linda Noskova.
Watch Amanda Anisimova drinking during the changeover via the video player above
But it was a moment during the second set changeover that stole the post-match headlines.
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As Anisimova took a breather, she was seen pulling out a Cincinnati Open-branded plastic cup from underneath her towel which contained a fizzy golden liquid.
It led Tennis Channel commentator Brett Haber to ask three-time Grand Slam singles champion Lindsay Davenport: “What is that, Lindsay?”
To which Davenport responded: “It could be apple cider, Brett?”
Haber replied: “I mean, I would never suggest that a player was drinking a beer in the middle of a match.”
Before Davenport added: “I have never seen that.”
When Haber proceeded to claim the substance “looked like” beer, he posed other possible explanations, saying: “It could be non-alcoholic, it could be cider, it could be anything. We don’t know.”
However, the puzzling footage was later explained by Haber as he revealed the drink in question was in fact a Red Bull.
He said: “We can confirm via one of our courtside camera operators that Anisimova asked for and was delivered a Red Bull. That is the mystery bevvie.”
And it appeared to work for her as she comfortably claimed the deciding set to progress through in Cincinnati.
World No. 10 Anisimova reached the Wimbledon and US Open finals in 2025.
In a desperately disappointing performance, she was beaten 6-0 6-0 by Iga Swiatek in the Wimbledon final.
But Anisimova put up much more of a fight against Aryna Sabalenka in New York, eventually succumbing to a 6-3 7-6 (3) defeat.
Originally published as Tennis star accused of drinking beer during match before mystery is solved