Amanda Anisimova Prefers Not To Think About Her Big Summer Points Defense

The next few months are going to be crucial for Amanda Anisimova’s stay in the top 10 of the WTA rankings. The American star reached at least the quarter-finals of all her grass-court tournaments last year and reached the final of the Wimbledon Championship. The World No.5 will need to repeat those kinds of performances this summer.

Initially, reaching back-to-back Grand Slam finals was a big step in the right direction for Anisimova. She was praised for her resilience on the court and her willingness to improve after a hiatus from the tour in 2023 and her return the following year. However, the burden comes when she needs to defend those runs or risk dropping in the WTA rankings.

Anisimova kicked off her run this time last year at the Queen’s Club Championships, where she reached the final before losing to Tatjana Maria, which gave her the momentum on the court. She continued with the form at the Berlin Tennis Open, reaching the quarter-finals, and then got to the final of her first Grand Slam at the Wimbledon Championship.

Those three runs saw her climb into the top 7 of the WTA rankings, and she climbed further after reaching her second consecutive major tournament final at the US Open last September. But this year, she has not been in her best form. In fact, she’s yet to play in a tournament’s final and already failed to defend the Qatar Open in February.

The pressure in defending big tournament points on tour is more than the initial run. Players often try to find a means to relieve themselves of such pressure by accepting that they might not be able to reach their last season’s level on the court. Anisimova has resorted to such a method, entering the Queen’s Club Championships:

Honestly, this is something I am trying not to dwell on too much; I prefer to approach it from a different perspective. Ultimately, every season is a new one, so there is no time to waste energy thinking about those matters; I prefer to focus entirely on the game. I know that during these weeks, I will need all the concentration possible in every match and every moment. Players try not to look too far ahead in that aspect, not beyond two or three weeks…

Anisimova’s best run this season came at the Dubai Tennis Championships, where she reached the semi-finals before losing to fellow compatriot Jessica Pegula. Before that, she had lost to Pegula in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. She climbed to World No.5 in the WTA rankings due to Coco Gauff’s poor run at Roland Garros.

Amanda Anisimova hopes to use last year’s experience this grass-court season

Amanda Anisimova currently holds a 13-7 win-loss record, which is nowhere near the level she showed last year. She won two WTA 1000 titles last year, including the Wuhan Open after beating Linda Noskova. She also reached the semi-finals of the WTA Finals before losing to Aryna Sabalenka in three sets.

Having achieved that last year, she was expected to improve with experience on the court, but she’s yet to show it. During the aforementioned press conference, she revealed that she didn’t have much energy to compete at the level she did last year, but she’s hoping all that will change at the Queen’s Club Championships:

I am very pleased with the experience I had here in 2025, with all the matches I played, although the final was a bit tough; I didn’t have much energy left to keep competing. Starting the grass season is never easy, but I feel good now; I am here ready to play as needed, I love playing on grass. It’s a very short season, so I will try my best to play several matches.

Taking things one game at a time is all that matters for Anisimova. Should she reach the same stage as she did last year at the Queen’s Club Championships, it will give her boost going into other tournaments. However, she will be under a little more pressure at the All England Club later this month.

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