Amanda Anisimova Reflects on the Biggest Learnings From the Lopsided Wimbledon Final loss to Iga Swiatek After Gaining Revenge at the US Open

Amanda Anisimova got her brutal Wimbledon final loss revenge against Iga Swiatek with a stunning victory in the quarter-finals of the US Open. The American star suffered a 0-6, 0-6 final loss at the All England Club in July against Swiatek, but less than two months later, she downed the Polish star in straight sets.

Swiatek was a clear favorite going into the encounter on Wednesday (September 3) as she had dropped only one set since the Cincinnati Open. In fact, she had suffered only one loss in her last three tournaments. The former World No.1 was pretty much at an advantage, having won six Grand Slams in her career, while Anisimova had none.

But that was not the case at the Arthur Ashe Stadium as Anisimova was on fire. She won 24 of her 34 first-serve points and, more importantly, finished with 23 winners, while converting 4 of her nine break points. Swiatek, on the other hand, struggled to keep up with Anisimova’s intensity on the court.

She hit just 13 winners and two aces, while converting two of her four break points and hitting 15 unforced errors. However, Anisimova didn’t begin the match as expected as she was broken in the opening game, but she fought back to beat the World No.2 6-4, 6-3 and book her place in the semi-finals of the US Open.

During her post-match press conference, she was asked how she approached the match against Swiatek despite a crushing lose against her at Wimbledon. The World No.9 revealed that she made sure not to approach the match with any iota of fear for the six-time Grand Slam champion:

I’ve also been learning during this tournament: not to approach a match with fear. When I started the tournament, I felt a bit of fear inside me, which was holding me back. As I progressed, I kept telling myself that I couldn’t go into a match with fear. It was non-negotiable. If I wanted to win, I had to be brave. Today, I stepped on the court with no fear at all. If you watch the match, you’ll see that I was constantly moving, something I never do.

Anisimova reached a career-high ranking of World No.7 after finishing as a runner-up at Wimbledon. She’s set to get beyond that after the US Open; she will reach either No.6 or No.5 after the tournament, as she has currently racked up 770 points at the tournament. But should the 24-year-old get more points, she might be able to topple Jessica Pegula at No.4.

Amanda Anisimova to face Naomi Osaka in the semi-final of the US Open

Amanda Anisimova has now beaten the top 2 players in the women’s circuit on two different surfaces and two different Grand Slam tournaments. She earned her first against Aryna Sabalenka in the semi-final of Wimbledon before taking her second against Iga Swiatek at the US Open.

She will face Naomi Osaka in the semi-final of the US Open as she hopes to progress to her second consecutive Grand Slam final. But Osaka has yet to lose a US Open semi-final or quarter-final clash. She made a statement victory against Coco Gauff in the fourth round, beating the World No.3 in straight sets.

The Japanese star has been at her best level since the Canadian Open. It was at the event that she and Swiatek’s ex-coach, Tomasz Wiktorowski, began working together. She had previously worked with Patrick Mouratoglou, but the partnership didn’t yield desired results. Now, since her time with Wiktorowski, she has been to back-to-back semi-finals on tour.

However, Anisimova holds a 2-0 lead over Osaka in their head-to-head record. Their first meeting came at the 2022 Australian Open, where the American star stopped Osaka from defending her title. She then beat the 27-year-old in straight sets at the French Open later that same year.

Also Read: Jannik Sinner Recalls the Worrying Moment When a Person Tried to Steal From His Bag at the US Open

Subscribe to our Newsletter

Join our newsletter to receive exclusive updates and curated insights directly to your inbox.

Subscribe NOW