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American tennis star Amanda Anisimova defeated Naomi Osaka in three grueling sets, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (3), 6-3, to advance to the U.S. Open final at Arthur Ashe Stadium in a match that began Thursday and ended at about 1 a.m. ET on Friday.
The match lasted 2 hours and 56 minutes, and Anisimova said she wasn't sure she was going to make it past the "finish line" to advance to her second straight major final.
"I wasn’t sure I would make it past the finish line and I tried to dig deep," said Anisimova, who needed three match points to get the job done. "It was a huge fight out there today."
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Amanda Anisimova reacts after defeating Naomi Osaka during the women’s singles semifinals of the U.S. Open tennis championships in Flushing Meadows, New York, on Sept. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Anisimova was on the receiving end of one of the most dominant performances in Wimbledon finals history when she lost to Iga Swiatek, 6-0, 6-0. This time, Anisimova got the better of Swiatek to advance to the U.S. Open semifinals.
Anisimova will play No. 1-seeded Aryna Sabalenka in the U.S. Open final on Saturday.
The 24-year-old defeated Sabalenka in three sets in the Wimbledon semifinals in July and is one more upset win away from winning her first Grand Slam title.
Here's what you need to know about Anisimova heading into the U.S. Open final.
Youth and upbringing
Amanda Anisimova is the daughter of Konstantin and Olga Anisimova. The couple emigrated from Russia to the United States in 1998. She was born in New Jersey, but her family moved to Miami, Florida, when she was 3 years old.
Anisimova's father introduced her to tennis when she was 5 years old and became her coach. Her tennis idols growing up were Williams and Maria Sharapova.
In 2019, while preparing for the U.S. Open, her father died at 52 due to a heart attack. Anisimova withdrew from the tournament as she dealt with the sudden loss.
"It was the worst thing that ever happened to me, it was very tough," Anisimova said, per The Sun. "But you can't change it, and you have to get back to life."
TRUMP TO ATTEND US OPEN MEN'S FINAL IN NEW YORK
Amanda Anisimova reacts after defeating Naomi Osaka during the women’s singles semifinals of the US Open tennis championships in Flushing Meadows, New York, on Sept. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
The teenage prodigy
Anisimova burst onto the scene when she reached the 2016 Roland Garros girls’ final at just 14 years old. That same year, she reached a career-high ITF ranking of No. 2 in the world. The following year, she defeated Coco Gauff for the 2017 U.S. Open junior title, where she did not drop a single set during the tournament.
Anisimova won five titles in her junior career.
The New Jersey native made her debut on the WTA Tour at the 2017 Miami Open at 15 when she was granted a wildcard into the main draw. She made her Grand Slam debut at the French Open just a few months later, becoming the youngest player to participate in the main draw of the French Open since 2005, when Alize Cornet did it.
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Amanda Anisimova reacts after defeating Naomi Osaka during the women’s singles semifinals of the US Open in Flushing Meadows, New York, on Sept. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
WTA career
Her first match win on the WTA Tour came at Indian Wells in 2018, where she made it to the fourth round before losing to Karolina Pliskova. Anisimova’s first WTA title came at the Claro Open Colsanitas in Bogota in 2019.
"I’m really happy and proud of myself for how I got through them, and winning my first WTA title means so much," Anisimova said after the match, per the WTA website.
Anisimova continued her strong play in the 2019 French Open as she made it to the semifinal. She defeated Harmony Tan, Sabalenka and Simona Halep before losing to Ashleigh Barty in three sets.
Anisimova won her second career WTA Title at the Melbourne Summer Set 2 at the beginning of 2022, after mixed results during the 2020 COVID-season and 2021.
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Amanda Anisimova reacts after defeating Naomi Osaka during the women’s singles semifinals of the US Open tennis championships in Flushing Meadows, New York, on Sept. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
Stepping away from the game
In May 2023, 21-year-old Anisimova announced she was stepping away from the game of tennis, citing concerns about her mental health. She wrote in an Instagram post that she had been struggling with "mental health and burnout since the summer of 2022."
"It's become unbearable being at tennis tournaments. At this point, my priority is my mental well-being and taking a break for some time," she wrote in her post.
At the time she stepped away, she was ranked No. 46 in the world.
Anisimova returned to play in January 2024 at the ASB Classic, as she took eight months away from the game. Upon returning, Anisimova played some of her best tennis as she won her first WTA 1000 title at the 2025 Qatar Open.
After she advanced to the Wimbledon final, she said after the match that she "would not believe" that she had made it.
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Amanda Anisimova reacts after defeating Naomi Osaka during the women’s singles semifinals of the US Open tennis championships in Flushing Meadows, New York, on Sept. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
"It’s been a year turnaround since coming back and, to be in this spot, it’s not easy and so many people dream of competing on this incredible court. It’s been such a privilege to compete here, and to be in the final is just indescribable."
While things didn’t go how Anisimova had hoped in the Wimbledon final against Swiatek in July, she now has a chance to redeem her loss and win her first Grand Slam.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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