The last women’s singles Grand Slam final of 2025 has taken place after Aryna Sabalenka won the US Open title.

Sabalenka beat Amanda Anisimova to win her first Grand Slam of the year and defend her US Open title.

It is a second consecutive major final defeat for the American, but Sabalenka has backed Anisimova to win a Grand Slam in the future.

While there were signs of joy for Sabalenka, who avenged previous major final defeats, former world number one Andy Roddick believes something needs to change at the US Open next year.

Andy Roddick speaks during the IBM US Open Event at Madison Square Park.Photo by John Lamparski/Getty ImagesAndy Roddick calls for the US Open to change trophy ceremonies next year

Anisimova was evidently emotional after losing the US Open final, crying into her towel on the bench when waiting for the post-match ceremony.

This is something that Roddick spoke about on his podcast, calling for Grand Slams to change the way they conduct these ceremonies.

Roddick suggested that players should have time to regroup after the match before speaking publicly, admitting that he ‘felt so bad’ for Anisimova.

“Then we get to the thing where Anisimova has to stay out there, doesn’t even get a hug from anyone she loves,” said Roddick. “And people are like, ‘Well everyone has to talk’, and like yeah I know I understand press conferences exist. They also exist after a certain amount of time, when you’ve probably cried on someone or hugged someone or had a conversation to at least process a little.

“You know, but we go through these ceremonies and Anisimova has to say something. You can see her stepping up to the mic and the goal is just to get through it without breaking down and I don’t know, do you guys like watching that?”

Roddick’s producer Mike Hayden responded, “Not particularly. I mean we were on a group throughout with some people we went to the US Open with and they were kind of saying the same thing and it’s just like tough.

“I do like the idea of going up and receiving the trophy, there is tradition there and being present for that for a bit, but there was a painfully long time between the end of the match and going up to the player’s box, and then they are just sitting there like waiting and then they come up on to the stage.

“I just think that could be tightened a little bit. And then I don’t know why she has to stand up after, she says her two bits. Like, wave to the crowd, I do think it’s cool when the crowd appreciate her.”

Roddick then offered a suggestion of his own, adding some insight as to how it feels to be the runner-up after a trophy ceremony.

“I do think that moment can happen, she can walk off and I actually think she gets more of a moment,” added Roddick. “I’ll tell you how this goes because I’ve done it. The ceremony ends and everyone awkwardly walks off. It’s just over, there’s music and whatever.

“I don’t know, ‘Our runner-up, give her a round of applause as she exits this year and we’ll see her in 2026, Amanda Anisimova’…Yeah I don’t know, do we need to hand her millions of dollars publicly? That’s a weird thing that she has to smile, because obviously that’s a huge deal. But, she would give that money up for the win, no questions asked…I just felt so bad when she had to step up to the mic and come up.”

Tennis fans agree with Andy Roddick after the US Open receives criticism

While social media can often be a divided place, it appears that many people are agreeing with what Roddick has said about the post-match ceremony.

In a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), someone called for the US Open to take notes from Roland Garros on how to do a ceremony.

They wrote, “Every trophy ceremony should be like Roland Garros. No federation or sponsor speaking and they just give them a microphone so they can say what they need to say. National anthem is a nice touch too Wimbledon and US open interviews are cringeworthy.”

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Another person wrote, “Everyone involved in this trophy ceremony other than the 2 players should be ashamed.”

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The same sentiment was echoed in another post, “Can we address how terrible the US Open trophy ceremony is? Stop trying to interview the players and just let them speak… Completely unnecessary statements and questions from Mary Carrillo and they tried to give them their trophies before they could thank their teams!!”

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The calls for the US Open to make changes continued, “Okay… @usopen these interviews during the trophy ceremony do NOT work. Let the players speak and speak from the heart. Get rid ASAP!”

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“Things US Open can improve in 2026 – scrap pre-match interviews and interviews during trophy ceremonies. No need at all. (However, keep regular post-match interviews).”

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It seems unlikely that the US Open will now change this for the men’s singles final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.

However, these complaints coming in numbers suggest they have some thinking to do ahead of the 2026 tournament.