Amanda Anisimova has finally addressed the viral moment fans thought she was drinking a beer in the middle of a match.
Anisimova went viral for appearing to drink a beer during her Round of 32 match against Alexandra Eala at the Cincinnati Open last month.
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Anisimova thought that nobody would see her drinking, but didn’t name what she had in the cupCredit: Getty
After losing the first set, cameras panned to the 25-year-old and commentators were left absolutely baffled by the mystery drink in her cup.
“What is that? Could it be apple cider?” the commentators could be heard saying.
“I would never suggest a player was drinking a beer in the middle of a match, but… that’s certainly what it looked like,” the lead announcer added.
Nothing more has been said about it, until now.
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Anisimova breezed through her 2026 US Open first-round match against Ashlyn Krueger 6-1, 6-3.
After the victory, she was asked by a reporter to detail what went on during the match two weeks prior, to which she had a very vague response, although she confirmed it was not beer like everyone thought.
“I thought nobody was going to see it, that was my whole intention of having it be very discreet,” Anisimova said.
“I thought it wasn’t going to be anywhere and it obviously ended up being the biggest thing of the week.
“I think that’s a learning lesson to not try and be low key about things maybe.
“I was just trying to not have it be shown, but ended up being some form of entertainment for a lot of people.
“Not beer though.”
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Anisimova beat Krueger 6-1, 6-3 in the first round of the US OpenCredit: Getty
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Anisimova lost back-to-back Grand Slam finals
Some have speculated it was an energy drink, as the broadcast captured an empty Red Bull can next to her bench.
Up next for the World No.10 will be a second-round match against Austrian Lilli Tagger at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Anisimova has established herself as one of tennis’ brightest stars – she made a major breakthrough late last season by reaching back-to-back Grand Slam finals at Wimbledon and Flushing Meadows.
Unfortunately, she would lose both.
At SW19 she broke down in tears and apologized after suffering an infamous double bagel against Iga Swiatek.
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The home favorite was beaten 6-3 7-6 [7-3] by Aryna Sabalenka in New York in what was a second consecutive Grand Slam final loss for the 24-year-old.
After reaching the quarter-finals of the Australian Open to kick off 2026, the fan favorite will be hoping her latest US Open run delivers that long-awaited first Grand Slam title.