US Open 2025 girls’s singles winner Aryna Sabalenka paid tribute to her opponent, Amanda Anisimova, after defeating her within the last.
The World No. 1 tennis star, 27, efficiently defended the US Open championship that she initially gained final 12 months on the Billie Jean King Nationwide Tennis Middle in Queens, New York, on Saturday, September 6, with a last rating of 6-3 and 7-6 in straight units. This historic victory made Sabalenka the primary lady to defend her US Open championship since Serena Williams in 2014.
Sabalenka dropped to her knees and let loose a cheer after clinching victory, earlier than graciously hugging Anisimova on the courtroom. Sabalenka acknowledged Anisimova’s effort throughout an on-court interview moments later.
Along with her opponent standing toes away, the US Open 2025 girls’s champion instructed Anisimova: “Congrats Amanda on reaching again to again Slam last [Wimbledon and US Open]. I understand how a lot it hurts, dropping within the last. However belief me, the second you’re going to win the primary one — and you’ll win it. You play unbelievable tennis!”
“Congrats to you and your crew on the belongings you’ve achieved after your comeback,” she added. “Woman, you’re gonna get pleasure from it much more after the powerful losses within the last.”
In her personal on-court interview, Anisimova instructed the gang: “Shedding in two last in a row is nice but it surely’s additionally tremendous onerous. I believe I didn’t combat onerous sufficient for my goals at this time however I simply need to say congrats to Aryna.”
Anisimova, 24, has mounted a outstanding comeback after stepping away from the game to give attention to her psychological well being. Amanda initially stored enjoying following the demise of her father and coach, Konstantin Anisimov, in 2019 however introduced she was taking time without work from tennis in 2023.
“I’ve actually been battling my psychological well being and burnout for the reason that summer time of 2022,” Anisimova defined through Instagram in Could 2023. “It’s grow to be insufferable being at tennis tournaments.”
Aryna Sabalenka and Amanda Anisimova after successful Girls’s Singles Remaining match at US Open. Susan Mullane/ISI Pictures/ISI Pictures through Getty Pictures
She went on, “At this level, my precedence is my psychological well-being and taking a break for a while. I’ve labored as onerous as I might to push by way of it. I’ll miss being on the market, and I admire all the continual help.”
Ranked No. 50 worldwide in August 2024, she surged to No. 9 after first making it to the Wimbledon last in July — the place she misplaced to Iga Świątek — and adopted up with a formidable run within the US Open, the place she avenged her Wimbledon loss to Świątek within the quarterfinal this week.
Whereas Anisimova and Sabalenka confirmed their respect for each other on the US Open last on Saturday, they did have a testy change earlier within the 12 months. The New Jersey native upset Sabalenka within the Wimbledon 2025 semifinal in July, although there was controversy throughout a recreation within the third set the place Anisimova’s forehand volley touched the highest of the online twine earlier than falling over.
Sabalenka recommended in a post-match press convention that Anisimova owed her an apology for the error.
“I simply checked out her and I simply, for positive, she didn’t hear me, however I used to be identical to, ‘You don’t need to apologize?’ However she simply needed, I suppose, badly to win this match. It’s on her,” Sabalenka admitted to reporters.
Tennis star Aryna Sabalenka is providing a behind-the-scenes look into her life off the courtroom in a brand new YouTube sequence titled Aryna’s Enviornment. The “first-of-its-kind, real-time, episodic sequence” from the 27-year-old World No. 1 girls’s single tennis champion will launch Thursday, July 17, on her Youtube channel, Us Weekly can completely reveal. The sequence will […]
Following her 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 semifinal loss at Wimbledon, Sabalenka additionally complained that Anisimova prematurely celebrated a degree and may have been docked by the referee.
“I used to be simply making an attempt to chase the ball. She was already celebrating it. I imply, that’s a bit too early,” Sabalenka insisted. “Then she sort of pissed me off, saying, ‘Oh, that’s what she does on a regular basis.’ … I got here again as a result of I obtained actually offended in that second, in all probability within the third set [which she lost] I ought to have remembered that.”
At her personal press convention, Anisimova tried to downplay the dispute by clarifying that she was “not celebrating” the purpose prematurely.
“It was identical to a protracted grunt, I suppose,” she stated in July. “I don’t actually know what was the deal there to be sincere as a result of I didn’t really feel prefer it was that interfering. I attempted to not do it once more.”
In the meantime, Sabalenka secured her fourth Grand Slam championship along with her victory over Anisimova throughout Saturday’s US Open last.
“It’s simply loopy,” she stated in her post-match interview. “All these powerful classes [were] value this one. I’m speechless proper now. I adore it right here. I really like the help. I like all through the years [the fans and I] constructed a sort of relationship, and also you guys give me a lot help … Thanks guys for bringing one of the best environment.”
