Amanda Anisimova produced one of the biggest shocks in French Open history by beating defending champion Simona Halep 6-2 6-4 in the quarter-final.
The American, 17, is tipped as one of the future stars of women’s tennis but few observers expected her to reach such heights this early in her career.
“I can’t believe it,” Anisimova said in her on-court interview. “I’ve been working so hard but I didn’t think it would pay off like this. This is honestly more than anything I could ask for.”
She continued, “I know I’ve been really well every single day because I’m in the quarter-finals. But I knew if I wanted to win today I had to do something different because this wasn’t going to be an easy match. I’m really happy with my performance because this is one of the best matches I’ve ever played.”
Anisimova makes nerveless start
Right from the start, Anisimova looked ready for the challenge. She did not show any nerves as she held serve three times to establish herself in the match.
Then the American attacked Halep’s serve. She took the ball early, hit it hard and deep and found some great angles to earn two consecutive breaks and take the set 6-2.
In between those breaks, Anisimova saved a break point during a tricky service game. And every time the youngster won a point, one thing was crystal clear: Halep could not cope when the American produced her best shots.
Anisimova withstands Halep fightback
Anisimova continued her charge in the second set. She won three consecutive games to raise the possibility of an embarrassing scoreline for the defending champion.
This was when Halep finally gained a foothold in the match. She played her best game on serve to stop the run of seven games against her and then earned three break points on the American’s serve.
Anisimova saved all three and moved 4-1 ahead, but the Romanian created more opportunities in her next service game, and this time she got the break she needed to restore order.
The last three games of the match were very closely contested, as both players seemed to have finally got the measure of one another towards the end of their first meeting.
While this was an encouraging sign for Halep, it ultimately came too late to change the outcome of this encounter. Anisimova earned a match point on the Romanian’s serve in game ten and seized it with a brilliant backhand down the line.
“Look at this young lady,” Chris Evert said on commentary for Eurosport. “A star is being born right now. Her idol is Maria Sharapova and she plays very much like her. We haven’t seen a 17-year-old with a power game like that for a while.”
Anisimova’s exploits analysed
During his analysis for Eurosport, Pat Cash compared Anisimova’s exploits to those of Ostapenko in 2017.
“The women’s tour has been quite incredible in the last few years,” the Australian said. “Typically, we see someone coming out and doing something unusual at the French Open. We’ve seen some strange winners – like Ostapenko from nowhere.”
Cash continued, “The game plan to beat Halep is take the time away from her and really go for it. She tends to get over-powered from time to time and this was a classic example.”
“Her technique is so fantastic off both wings,” Annabel Croft added. “You can’t underestimate (the impact of) how early she takes it. And look at the variety she has already developed in her game – drop shots, great balance on her groundstrokes and superb serving when she needed it most.”
She continued, “Halep looked a little lost tactically because Anismova constantly out-manoeuvred her. She stepped into court, got the first strike in and was brave with her shots.”
Croft concluded, “It felt like Halep was always on the back foot and had to flail at shots. She could never find her balance. Normally Halep is the one who likes to move opponents into the corners and change the direction of the ball. Today she was having it done to her. She was almost being blasted off the court.”
It was a truly remarkable performance from Anisimova, and her reward will be a semi-final clash with Ashleigh Barty, after the Australian beat Madison Keys 6-3 7-5.
