Amanda Anisimova responds when asked if she wants to play Iga Swiatek again at the US Open
Amanda Anisimova heads into the US Open as a new Grand Slam finalist, and yet there is little buzz around her.
After all, the nature of her loss in the Wimbledon final perhaps dampened appreciation for how mesmeric her run to that stage had been.
The American stunned Aryna Sabalenka in the semi-finals, but was subsequently destroyed in the final by a resurgent, ruthless Iga Swiatek.
The 6-0, 6-0 scoreline was tough to watch, with some calling for a tennis rule change after that Wimbledon final.
However, Amanda Anisimova has played two tournaments since then, with the time that has passed seemingly helping refresh her memory of that dark day.
After all, in isolation, it was a disaster, but in the context of her sparkling tournament, it was a sad end to a magical two weeks.
What Amanda Anisimova said about Iga Swiatek at her US Open press conference
Asked less about that specific match and more about the match-up she shares with Swiatek, Matt Roberts of The Tennis Podcast has now revealed how she reacted to such a line of questioning.
Seemingly, her reply indicated a player who has firmly moved on from such disappointment, and will relish the challenge of gaining revenge.
Roberts claimed: “No, well, we actually had a chat about what to ask her, and you say, like, I’d love to know whether she would like to play Iga Swiatek again.
“So I asked her, you know, how keen is she to play Iga Swiatek again, you know, and have a new experience after the Wimbledon final. I did slightly tread carefully, because you don’t want to give away a player’s draw if they don’t want to know it. And obviously, Swiatek is in Anisimova’s quarter.
“But I thought she’d reference the Wimbledon final enough that it felt like a question I could ask. And she said yes, she does want to play her again. That is something I think she’s keen to do, and she said I want to play her when I’m myself. Which I thought was quite a good line, quite a telling line.
“She knows she can trouble top players. She literally beat the world number one before facing Iga Swiatek, and yes, matchups are a thing, but it’s not that much of a matchup problem that it was 6-0, 6-0. You know, she was not herself in that Wimbledon final, and she’s done a lot, I think, to try and get over it and learn from it.
“She said, that’s the big thing is nerves, you know, whereas, I think, in her post, Wimbledon final press conference, she was kind of keen to downplay nerves. She talked a lot about how tired she was.
“Here, she really mentioned nerves and stress, and she said that that final, you know, hopefully, is gonna prove to be a lesson in terms of how to deal with those nerves and that stress and playing Iga Swiatek will be another way to help try and get over it.”
How has Amanda Anisimova performed since her Wimbledon final?
As noted earlier, Anisimova has played two tournaments since Wimbledon.
And whilst she did not challenge for the title in either of them, it will have still afforded her crucial minutes on the hard courts, and time to distance herself from the All-England Club.
First appearing in Montreal, the 23-year-old impressed as she swept aside both Lulu Sun and an in-form Emma Raducanu, before losing to Elina Svitolina in straight sets in the Round of 16.
