Amanda Anisimova Didn’t Expect to Be Back This Fast Either

Speaking with Sports Illustrated, the top-ranked Anisimova got candid about her return to the court and her career year.

Anisimova is competing in the U.S. Open mixed doubles draw with Holger Rune of Denmark. / David Kirouac-Imagn Images

Tennis star Amanda Anisimova is on a career run. And it only took her about eight months off to do it.

In May of 2023, the then-21-year-old decided to step away from the sport indefinitely to protect her mental health and address concerns of burnout. Now, a little over two years later, she's back in peak form, having won her first WTA 1000 title in Doha in February before unseating world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka to advance to the Wimbledon final in July.

Speaking with Sports Illustrated last week to promote her partnership with Vita Coco, the 23-year-old got candid about her return to the court.

“I would say probably how quick of a turnaround it's been since my comeback," she said, asked what surprised her about her return. "I am at a career high and have achieved things I didn't previously achieve in my career, and it's all happened within a year, so I think that's a bit surprising to me, especially where the game is at today.

"It's so competitive and the level is so high. Going into it, I mean, I wasn't trying to put too much expectation on myself. I was just testing the journey and all the work I'm doing, so I was really focusing on the day-to-day stuff and trying to do all the right things, and yeah, I'm just super grateful and happy with how everything has turned out for me."

As for athletes experiencing similar struggles regarding mental health, Anisimova thinks "the biggest thing is to trust your gut and listen to yourself," she continued. "I feel like nobody knows you better than yourself. That's the number one thing. And everyone has their own timeline and their own journey. [Don't compare] yourself to others. I think that's the worst thing you can do to yourself, to look at other people and look at what they're doing. I feel like everyone has their own path and everything works differently for everybody."

Lucky for all of us at home, we'll get more of this new-look Anisimova at the U.S. Open, where she will start her first round with a match against Kimberly Birrell of Australia on Tuesday, Aug. 26.

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