Amanda Anisimova’s breakout summer in New York reached another level on Thursday night, as the 23-year-old American stormed back from a set down to defeat Naomi Osaka 6-7(5), 7-6(3), 6-3 and book her spot in the US Open final in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Into her second career Grand Slam final, Anisimova will face defending champion Aryna Sabalenka for the title on Saturday in Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“It was a really tough match,” Anisimova said after her 2:56 triumph, in which she cracked 50 winners to Osaka’s 32.
The match ended well after midnight, but Anisimova’s energy never wavered as she remained undefeated against the four-time major champion and improved to 12-1 in her last 13 Grand Slam matches.
“Most of the time I thought that it’s going to slip away from me, and I’m not going to make it into the final,” she told reporters. “At some points I was trying to accept that, as tough as that was. Yeah, and in the later moments of the second set I was trying to remind myself what was on the line and the opportunity I have.”
Osaka, contesting her first major semifinal since 2021, was two games from victory in the second set, but Anisimova had other ideas. The American kept things tight late in the second as the quality of tennis ramped up, then surged to a 4-0 lead before claiming the set.
From there, she dominated early in the third as Osaka struggled with a right calf issue.
“Stepped onto the court, and I felt like I wasn’t playing my tennis because I was nervous, and I was letting the stress get to me a little bit,” Anisimova admitted. “But then I tried to dig deep and find my game. I feel like throughout the match I was able to find it more and more, and yeah, the most important thing was that I kept fighting.”
The loss marks Osaka’s first defeat in a Grand Slam semifinal. Before this year’s US Open she had won all four majors in which she had reached at least the quarterfinals.
Gracious in defeat, the 26-year-old found positives in her run, her first major played under new coach Tomasz Wiktorowski.
“Honestly I don’t feel sad,” she said. “It’s really weird. Well, it’s not weird, because I just feel like I did the best that I could. Honestly, it’s kind of inspiring for me, because it makes me just want to train and try to get better, and hopefully just give it my very best shot again and see what happens. But I think I can’t be mad or upset at myself.”
Anisimova will take the court again on Saturday, facing Aryna Sabalenka for the title. Earlier in the evening the Belarusian defeated Jessica Pegula in a rematch of last year’s women’s singles final in Flushing.
Anisimova defeated Sabalenka in the Wimbledon semifinals in July, and owns a 6-3 lifetime edge over her.
“It’s the No. 1 player in the world, and she’s playing amazing tennis,” she said. “It’s going to be a really tough match and a battle. Yeah, I’m excited. Every single time we have played, it’s been great.”
