Amanda Anisimova--I want what she's having

Sabalenka 🆚 Anisimova US Open final is on! 🏆

Saturday can't come soon enough 🙌#USOpen pic.twitter.com/GR5pXXRnsP

— wta (@WTA) September 5, 2025

We often look to sports figures for inspiration for obvious reasons--(some of) their struggles are on public display, and their bodies are at risk much of the time. They get injured, and they come back. They get injured repeatedly and they keep coming back. They lose heartbreaking matches, then we see them on the court again. The discipline of sport can indeed be inspirational.

Amanda Anisimova's story is not only one involving the mental/emotional part of an athlete's struggle, but--to make it more intense--the effects of a recent loss that most people would probably refer to as "humiliating." 

There was never any doubt that Anisimova was talented, yet--prior to this year--she had won only two tournaments, both at the 250 level. In May of 2023, Anisimova took a break from the tour to deal with burnout and mental health issues. She returned eight months later, and--that summer--she reached her first WTA 1000 final, in Toronto. This year, she won her first 1000 event, in Doha. 

That was the beginning of what has become Anisimova's banner year. Earlier this summer, she reached the final at Wimbledon, having upset world number 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals. In the final, she faced world number 2 Iga Swiatek, who was on a mission to win her first Wimbledon title. Swiatek defeated Anisimova 6-0, 6-0. And, while a beat-down is a beat-down, a beat-down in the final of a major (even if delivered by the woman known as the Bagel Queen) is another matter altogether.

Anisimova responded by reaching the final of the U.S. Open. She didn't "need" to: reaching the second week of the tournament would have looked very impressive to those in the tennis world. And, to add considerably to the drama, Anisimova had to play Swiatek in the quarterfinals. She beat her, too--in straight sets, and called it "the most meaningful victory I've had in my life."

Anisimova's next task was to take on two-time champion Naomi Osaka in the semifinals. A year ago, that might not have seemed like an especially big obstacle, but Osaka is obviously "back," with her big, deadly game. The Japanese star did get a bit of a break in her quarterfinal match because her very talented opponent, Karolina Muchova, sustained an injury and had some problems with movement. But even so, Osaka looked as good as she has ever looked.

It was a tense match, and it lasted almost three hours. Anisimova played her big game, which included 50 winners and 45 unforced errors, but--other than those numbers (Osaka hit 32 winners and made 27 unforced errors)--the stats for the two players were very similar. And while she played very well, Osaka did display some vulnerabilities, and her opponent took advantage of them. Anisimova won the match 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 6-3. She is the first player to defeat Osaka in a major semifinal.

The other semifinal was just as competitive. Defending champion and world number 1 Aryna Sabalenka competed against 4th seed and 2024 finalist Jessica Pegula. There they were again, facing each other, just one rung beneath last year's contest, in which Sabalenka defeated Pegula 7-5, 7-6. 

It was a match of momentum swings, with Pegula taking the first set, 6-4. Sabalenka became more consistent in the second set, and won it with a 6-3 score. The final set was as dramatic as one would have hoped it to be. In this set, Pegula had four break points, but was not able to convert any of them, and Sabalenka took the set, 6-4. The world number 1 hit 43 winners to Pegula's 21. She also hit eight aces, putting some emphasis on how much her service game has improved.

This is the third time in a row that Sabalenka has reached the U.S. Open finals. She was, of course, the winner last year, and in 2023, she was defeated by Coco Gauff. 

Anisimova is 6-3 against Sabalenka, and she is 2-1 against her on hard courts.

Paths to the final:

ARYNA SABALENKA (1)

round 1--def. Rebeka Masarova
round 2--def. Polina Kudermetova
round 3--def. Leylah Fernandez (31)
round of 16--def. Cristina Bucsa
quarterfinals--def. Marketa Vondrousova (walkover)
semifinals--def. Jessica Pegula (4)

AMANDA ANISIIMOVA (8)

round 1--def. Kimberly Birrell
round 2--def. Maya Joint
round 3--def. Jaqueline Cristian
round of 16--def. Beatriz Haddad Maia (18)
quarterfinals--def. Iga Swiatek (2)
semifinals--def. Naomi Osaka (23)