The ultimate comeback: How Anisimova defeated Swiatek
NEW YORK — Moments after losing in the Wimbledon final in July, and with tears streaming down her face, Amanda Anisimova was resolute as she spoke to the crowd.
She had just lost 6-0, 6-0 to Iga Swiatek in a devastatingly swift 57 minutes, and the fans at Centre Court seemed enamored by her words as she continued to speak and by her confidence that wouldn’t be diminished despite the lopsided outcome.
“I know I didn’t have enough today, but I’m going to keep putting in the work,” Anisimova said. “And I always believe in myself, so I hope to be back here one day.”
The 24-year-old American isn’t quite back to a major final — not yet anyway — but she had her chance to avenge the loss to Swiatek on Wednesday in the quarterfinals at the US Open. Much like at the All England Club, she entered the match as the clear underdog, but this time, with the vocal support of the crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium, Anisimova found a way to pull off the upset for a 6-4, 6-3 victory to advance to her first semifinal in New York.
When it was over, just 53 days after her disappointment at Wimbledon, Anisimova initially appeared almost expressionless. Or perhaps she was in shock after she won on her third match point. But after she had exchanged a hug with a stunned Swiatek, a large smile appeared on her face and she put her arms on her head and nodded, before gesturing to her team with her clenched fist over her heart.
“Playing here is so freaking special and I’ve been having the run of my life here,” Anisimova said on the court moments later. “I mean, the first day I got here I was like, ‘OK, let’s try and get through one round.’ But yeah, this has been such a dream, and to come back from Wimbledon like that is really special to me.
“I feel like I worked so hard to try and turn around from that, and I mean, today proved everything for me. I can do it, so yeah. This is really special.”
To call Anisimova’s season resurgent would be an understatement. An exciting junior prospect and the 2017 US Open girls champion, Anisimova burst onto the professional scene with a surprise semifinal appearance at the 2019 French Open as a 17-year-old. The hype and endorsements immediately followed.
But her career was derailed by a number of personal and professional setbacks, including the unexpected death of her father and several injuries. After a difficult start to her 2023 season, Anisimova announced she would be taking an indefinite mental health break as tennis had become “unbearable” for her.
She spent eight months away from the tour, taking time to pursue other interests and, in her words, “reset.” She returned at the start of 2024 and reached the fourth round at the Australian Open but had largely mixed results in her comeback year.
But 2025 has been completely different. Anisimova won the biggest title of her career at the 1000-level Qatar Open in February. She reached her first grass-court final at Queen’s Club in June — and then followed it with her miraculous run at Wimbledon, including a thrilling three-set victory over world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals. She subsequently entered the top 10 for the first time. After her win over Swiatek on Wednesday, she’s expected to rise to a new high of No. 5.
After taking about 30 minutes to cry and mope following the defeat at the All England Club, Anisimova said a phone call with a friend almost immediately after helped her find the humor in the loss. She took some brief time off following Wimbledon to spend time with her young nephews and surf on the beach in Montauk, New York, but returned by the end of the month to play the Canadian Open.
In her two tournaments leading into the US Open, she had just two wins and had never previously advanced past the third round at the tournament. But she still arrived at the year’s final major brimming with momentum and positivity — and with everything she learned from reaching the Wimbledon final.
“I think just having that experience and experiencing what that final was like definitely gives me some thoughts and certain things that I can bring with me going into this tournament, especially dealing with the stress and the tension of it being, like, a home slam, and there is a little bit of pressure on me,” Anisimova said before the tournament got underway. “I think just the way that the final went, it gave me a better perspective on how I should be handling my nerves.”
With her elevated profile and seeding, Anisimova has played every match thus far on a show court and, despite any extra attention, she has shown incredible composure and mental strength. She’s dropped just one set — against unseeded Jaqueline Cristian in the third round — but has otherwise firmly been in control of every match. She recorded a bagel set against No. 18 seed Beatriz Haddad Maia on Monday in the round of 16. Through her first five matches, she has 28 aces, the second most in the tournament, and she’s won 82% of her service games.
On Tuesday night, while mentally preparing for the quarterfinal match from her hotel room, she forced herself to rewatch the Wimbledon final, to take whatever she could from it. It was difficult, but necessary. She noticed she was “slow as hell” and fatigued but already believed she was in a better position this time due to simply having that previous experience.
On Wednesday, playing in front of a crowd that frequently shouted words of support like, “Come on ‘Manda, you got this babe!” and “We love you, Amanda,” Anisimova was broken in the opening game of the match, just like she was at Wimbledon, and she couldn’t help but briefly panic. “When I wasn’t able to hold in that first game, I was really, like, ‘OK, here we go,'” she said with a laugh at her news conference. “That was a little stressful.”
But she recovered immediately by breaking Swiatek. And, she said, that took some “stress off of my shoulders, for sure.”
After taking the opening set, it initially appeared Swiatek had rediscovered her championship form as she handily took the first two games of the second set.
But Anisimova did not seem deterred, and she tried to fire herself up with positive affirmations and keep moving after every point — something she later admitted was not natural for her. She went on to win six of the next seven games, behind her strong serving, blistering returns and unwavering attitude. She had 23 winners on the day and just 12 unforced errors.
Swiatek said her inconsistent serving day “made the difference” in the match’s outcome. But she also said she wasn’t surprised by the level Anisimova brought.
“I think everybody knows how Amanda can play,” a dejected Swiatek told reporters after the match. “Yeah, she didn’t play well [at] Wimbledon, but it’s not like she’s always going to do the same mistakes or feel the same.
“No, I know that she’s a good player. She can play great tennis. So for me I was ready for a tough match.”
Anisimova later called it the “most meaningful victory” she has ever had.
Now into her third career major semifinal, Anisimova will next take on four-time major champion Naomi Osaka. Anisimova has beaten Osaka twice but hasn’t faced her since 2022.
On Thursday, just over 24 hours after one of the biggest wins of her career, she will have the chance to reach her second consecutive Slam final. But no matter what happens, she was letting herself feel proud of what she had already achieved this summer — and proved to herself and the world.
“It still feels a bit surreal, for sure,” she said to the packed room of reporters, with a backwards Nike baseball hat on her head. “I mean, I have that belief in myself and that confidence that I’m able to play at the top level, and I’m able to really go head-to-head with these top three and everyone who is in the top 10. I’ve shown that, and I think I was able to prove that to myself time and time again for a long time now.
“It’s really competitive these days, and also the Grand Slams are really tough, so I’m just really pleased to make it this far for the first time.”