NEW YORK — When she woke up 53 days ago on the morning of the Wimbledon final, Amanda Anisimova knew something was off. Maybe it was nerves, maybe just fatigue after going deeper than she ever had in a Grand Slam. Either way, when Anisimova went to warm up for the most important match of her career, she couldn’t hit more than a few balls without needing a break.
The resulting 6-0, 6-0 loss to Iga Swiatek was a tennis player’s worst nightmare. On the biggest stage in the sport, she completely froze.
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So imagine what Anisimova must have felt walking out on the court Wednesday for a U.S. Open quarterfinal against the same opponent who had carried the momentum of that Wimbledon title through the hard court season and seemed primed to win her seventh major title here.
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Sure, Anisimova has been around long enough to know that no two matches in tennis are ever the same — different court, different balls, different atmosphere, different stakes. But for any human being, much less a 24-year old who has been through some of the things Anisimova has been through, failing to acknowledge the presence of scar tissue would be contrary to everything we all experience.
“It happens,” she said. “I’m human.”
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It made what unfolded over the next 96 minutes Wednesday even more magical, as Anisimova’s embarrassment in London transformed into a New York triumph and perhaps the best win of her career. By turning the tables on the second-seeded Swiatek, 6-4, 6-3, Anisimova has given herself a place in the U.S. Open semis and a chance for the ultimate Grand Slam redemption.
“Today is the most meaningful victory I’ve had in my life,” she said. “I have that belief in myself that I’m able to play at the top level and go head-to-head with the top [players]. I’ve shown that. I was able to prove that to myself.”
The truth is, if you could simply erase what happened at Wimbledon from everyone’s memory, Wednesday’s result wouldn’t be so surprising.
After taking a mental health break from tennis in 2023 — a buildup of burnout and the emotional toll of her father’s sudden death before the U.S. Open five years ago — Anisimova has slowly worked her way back to being one of the best players in the world.
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On fast hard courts especially, it’s her backhand — a flat slingshot that makes the sweetest thumping sound when it comes off her racket — that makes her a threat to beat anyone.
Swiatek knew that, too. But unlike that day at Wimbledon where nothing felt right and Swiatek merely needed to keep the ball in the court, she expected a challenge this time.
“I think everybody knows how Amanda can play,” Swiatek said. “Yeah, she didn’t play well in Wimbledon but it’s not like she’s always going to do the same mistakes or feel the same.
Amanda Anisimova (R) and Iga Swiatek hug after Anisimova won their women’s singles quarterfinal match. (Photo by Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images)
(TIMOTHY A. CLARY via Getty Images)
“It was totally different, but it’s not a surprise. I practice with her. I know how she can play. She moved better, she played better. Everything was different.”
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Still, the match began with trepidation for a crowd on Arthur Ashe Stadium that was well aware of the recent history. Swiatek broke Anisimova’s serve straightaway with a series of penetrating returns, and a wave of nervous murmuring echoed through the 23,771 seats here. Were they about to watch another whitewash?
But when Anisimova broke back immediately, whipping Swiatek’s second serves right back at her feet, it was as if everybody in the place exhaled — including Anisimova herself.
“When I wasn’t able to hold in that first game, I was like, ‘OK, here we go,’” she said. “That was a little stressful. But winning that first game took some stress off my shoulders for sure and I think I was into the match. I wasn’t worried about it. I knew I was going to be playing some good tennis. I’ve played great all week, so I was trying to treat it like a match I’ve never played before, go into it with a fresh mindset. Once I got myself going, was getting more and more comfortable and more confident and able to put what happened in the past really in the past.”
From there, Anisimova was simply the better player. She served more effectively, was able to rush Swiatek from the baseline and draw misses, then held her nerve in all the little moments when a champion like Swiatek typically pounces.
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In fact, this time, it was Swiatek who clearly felt more pressure. At 3-4, 30-all, Anisimova got a good look at a second serve and leaned on it, firing it right through the middle of the court with such pace that Swiatek had no time to react and hit a full shot.
Then on break point, Swiatek’s second serve landed right in the middle of the net, handing Anisimova the opening to finish off the match a few moments later.
Anisimova’s reaction on match point was muted, having won it with a backhand that clipped the tape and dribbled over, bouncing twice before a full-out Swiatek could get her racket on it. But as Anisimova walked to the microphone for her on-court interview, it was impossible not to think about her smile juxtaposed against the tears she wiped away as she held the runner-up trophy at the All England Club in July.
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“The most important part of today was lifting myself up and pumping myself up with positive affirmations, and I think that was something I was really lacking in the Wimbledon final,” she said. “I wasn’t showing much. My attitude and presence wasn’t really there. I felt good out there [today] and was supporting myself, which in turn helps me play better.”
Though such a massive turnaround from Wimbledon seemed surreal, it was also what makes tennis such compelling theater. Every week, all but one player is going to walk away from the tournament with a loss. To have a lasting career in the sport, lingering embarrassment or regret just isn’t an option.
Anisimova is now mature enough, has endured enough, to understand that.
She played her first major when she was 15 years old, an American-born prodigy whose Russian immigrant parents followed the blueprint that launched Maria Sharapova to stardom.
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When Anisimova got to the French Open semifinal at age 17, future titles seemed like her destiny. Then, just as she began to establish herself on tour, her father dying of a heart attack at age 52 rocked her foundation.
It has taken until now for Anisimova to mature into a young woman who could process what happened and reach her potential as one of the best tennis players in the world.
Now it seems like she can handle anything this game is going bring, and it won’t be a surprise anymore if that includes a big silver trophy on Saturday night.