Anisimova serves up sweet revenge

Amanda Anisimova upset Iga Swiatek 6-4, 6-3 in the US Open quarterfinals Wednesday, less than two months after losing to the six-time Grand Slam champion in the Wimbledon final by a 6-0, 6-0 score.

The No 8-seeded Anisimova reached her third major semifinal and first at Flushing Meadows in New York.

"To come back from Wimbledon like that is really special to me," said Anisimova, a 24-year-old who was born in New Jersey and grew up in Florida. "I feel like I worked so hard to try and turn around from that.

"Today is really special."

The powerful strokes and poise she displayed in Arthur Ashe Stadium against No 2 Swiatek — the 2022 US Open champion — were such a striking contrast to what happened at the All England Club's Centre Court on July 12.

That title match lasted just 57 minutes, and Anisimova only managed to win 24 points that day, a total she eclipsed about midway through the first set this time.

"Everybody knows how Amanda can play. Yeah, she didn't play well at Wimbledon," said Polish 24-year-old Swiatek, "but it's not like she's always going to make the same mistakes or feel the same."

Anisimova cried during her runner-up speech during the trophy ceremony at Wimbledon; on Wednesday, she was all smiles while addressing thousands of supportive spectators who kept interrupting her on-court interview with cheers.

"Playing here is so freaking special," Anisimova told them, "and I've been having the run of my life here."

On Thursday, Anisimova will try to reach a second consecutive major final. She'll face four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka — who eliminated Coco Gauff on Monday — after the No 23 seed beat No 11 Karolina Muchova 6-4, 7-6 (3).

After one game against Swiatek in the quarterfinals Wednesday, Anisimova might have been forgiven for thinking, "oh, no. Not this again."

That's because Anisimova served first and got broken immediately when she lost three points in a row by missing forehands — one into the net, one wide and one long.

But Anisimova broke right back, and soon, she was the one dictating points with her strong, flat groundstrokes that wound up contributing to 23 total winners, 10 more than Swiatek accumulated. Anisimova also played quite cleanly, making just 12 unforced errors.

"She moved better, she played better," Swiatek said, comparing this match to the one at Wimbledon. "Everything was different."

Swiatek's serve was problematic: She only put in 50 percent of her first serves and was broken four times.

"I couldn't win today's match playing like that, serving like that," Swiatek said, "and with Amanda being so aggressive on the returns."

In the second set, Anisimova fell behind early again, this time 2-0.But, again, she regrouped and quickly gained the upper hand. Swiatek was the one looking increasingly frustrated, shaking her head or slumping her shoulders between points, spreading her arms wide and looking to her coach for advice, and leaning back in her changeover chair as if pondering what, exactly, she could do differently.

When Swiatek double-faulted to trail 5-3 in the second set, that allowed Anisimova to serve out the victory.

"From the get-go, I was trying to fire myself up," Anisimova said. "She is one of the toughest players I've ever played. I knew I was going to have to dig deep."

Anisimova's semifinal opponent, Osaka, surged back to the final four of the US Open for the first time in five years on Wednesday with a straight-sets defeat of Muchova.

Two-time US Open champion Osaka, seeded 23rd, will head into the semifinal showdown brimming with confidence after another polished performance.

Osaka has beaten three higher-ranked opponents on her journey to the semis and has shown flashes of the class that earned her four Grand Slam singles titles, before she paused her career in 2023 due to the birth of her daughter.

Osaka, 27, said that, during her hiatus from tennis, she had dreamed of returning to the elite stage.

"I'm just really grateful to be here. Honestly I was sitting up there and watching and hoping I would have the opportunity to play on this court again. My dream is coming true."

Osaka said her journey back to the elite level of Grand Slam tennis had given her a new perspective on the sport.

"I learned I loved tennis way more than I thought I did, and I learned that I actually really love challenges," she said.

"It's like a video game. You pick it up, and even if you lose a level, you kind of just restart and keep going until you eventually win.

"It's a little tough sometimes, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. I appreciate the journey a lot more now. I think when I was younger, I kind of just kept thinking the next one, the next one, the next one."

Sinner sails to semis

Jannik Sinner returned to the US Open semifinals by beating No 10 Lorenzo Musetti 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 on Wednesday night in an all-Italian quarterfinal matchup.

The No 1 seed continued what's been an easy title defense so far, and on Friday will face Canadian No 25 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, who beat No 8 Alex de Minaur of Australia 4-6, 7-6 (7), 7-5, 7-6 (4).

Sinner is into his fifth straight Grand Slam semifinal, and a win on Friday would put him into his fourth major final of the year.

He has won 26 consecutive matches in majors on hard courts. That includes the past two Australian Open titles along with his triumph in New York a year ago.

"It was a great performance. Very solid, especially starting very, very well," Sinner said.

He needed just two hours — the first set took only 27 minutes — fighting off all seven break points he faced. He has dropped just 38 games in his five matches, the second-fewest by a man to reach the US Open semifinals since 2020.

Agencies