On Christmas Day of the WTA season assessments, after working through 36 others, we arrive at the Top 4. Amanda Anisimova earns that place not on reputation, but on evidence. She began 2025 ranked outside the elite conversation (No.36)and finished it as one of the tour’s most complete competitors, a player who survived momentum swings, absorbed heavy defeats, and still produced two of the most convincing title runs of the year.
This was not a smooth ascent. It was a demanding one, shaped by resilience, tactical growth, and a year-long refusal to disappear after setbacks.
Australian Summer: Promise, Then a Reality Check
Anisimova’s year opened in Hobart with solid wins over Daria Saville and Anna Bondar before a walkover ended her run abruptly.
The Australian Open followed a similar pattern. She dismissed Maria Lourdes Carle 6-2 6-3 with ease, only to run into Emma Raducanu in round two, losing 6-3 7-5 with little hint of what would become an excellent 2025.
That loss mattered. Anisimova converted just two of ten break points and won only 25.8 percent of second-serve points. It was an early reminder that her game still required sharper margins against elite returners.
Doha: A Title That Changed the Season
February in Doha altered the trajectory of Anisimova’s year. The confidence, the discipline, and the physical resilience all arrived together.
She did not fluke this title. She built it, match by match, against a deep field.
Her Doha run unfolded as follows:
- R64: d. Victoria Azarenka 6-3 7-5
- R32: d. Paula Badosa 6-4 6-3
- R16: d. Leylah Fernandez 6-3 6-0
- QF: d. Marta Kostyuk 4-6 7-5 6-4
- SF: d. Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-3 6-3
- F: d. Jelena Ostapenko 6-4 6-3
Across the week she saved 68 percent of break points, repeatedly absorbed pressure, and finished points with conviction rather than haste. The final against Ostapenko was especially telling. Anisimova allowed no emotional surges, kept first-serve points above 72 percent, and controlled the center of the court from start to finish.
This was the first signal that 2025 would be different.
Post-Doha Dip: A Necessary Comedown
Dubai brought a flat and slightly worrying loss to McCartney Kessler, a 6-2 6-3 defeat in which Anisimova won just 38.1 percent of second-serve points and never established baseline control. Despite landing over 64 percent of first serves, her return game failed to apply pressure, converting only four of nine break opportunities.
Indian Wells ended with a three-set loss to Belinda Bencic, 6-4 6-7(3) 6-1, a match that swung sharply once the decider began. Anisimova fought hard to force the tiebreak in the second set, but overall she won barely 35 percent of second-serve points and faced constant pressure, saving just six of thirteen break points.
Miami offered a sharper contrast. She opened with a clean 6-2 6-2 win over Mayar Sherif, then produced one of her most resilient victories of the spring by outlasting Mirra Andreeva 7-6(5) 2-6 6-3, saving 12 of 16 break points across nearly three hours.
That progress stalled abruptly in the fourth round, where Emma Raducanu overwhelmed her 6-1 6-3, exploiting a first-serve win rate below 50 percent and shutting down rallies before Anisimova could impose her weight of shot.
These were not collapses. They were reminders that consistency, not peak level, still defined her ceiling.
Clay Season: Competitive, Unsettled
Charleston hinted at authority with wins over Veronika Kudermetova, Yulia Putintseva, and Emma Navarro before a retirement loss to Sofia Kenin halted progress.
Madrid and Rome followed with narrow but instructive defeats that exposed the same fault line.
In Madrid, Peyton Stearns edged her 6-2 2-6 7-5 despite Anisimova generating 18 break-point chances, converting only 11 and failing to close from 5-3 in the deciding set.
Rome brought a tighter scoreline but the same outcome, Veronika Kudermetova winning 7-6(5) 7-5 as Anisimova’s second-serve points dropped below 40 percent and extended baseline exchanges consistently tilted away from her under pressure.
A short Paris 125 stint brought wins over Yuliia Starodubtseva and Petra Martic before another retirement ended momentum.
At Roland Garros, Anisimova moved through the first week with increasing clarity, beating Nina Stojanovic, Viktorija Golubic, and Clara Tauson without dropping a set.
The run ended in the fourth round against Aryna Sabalenka, who edged her 7-5 6-3 in a match defined by sustained pressure rather than collapse. Anisimova saved eight of eleven break points, held serve under repeated strain, and remained within striking distance deep into both sets before Sabalenka’s weight of shot finally told.
Grass Season: Breakthrough and Brutality
Grass delivered both the most exhilarating and the most humbling moments of her year. Queen’s Club ended in a final loss to Tatjana Maria, but the build-up was impressive. She beat Emma Navarro and Qinwen Zheng in successive rounds, absorbing variety and pace without losing structure.
Wimbledon became her defining fortnight.
Wimbledon became the clearest expression of Anisimova’s evolving authority. She opened the fortnight by overwhelming Yulia Putintseva 6-0 6-0 in just 44 minutes, striking freely off both wings and conceding nothing on serve.
The control carried through the middle rounds, where she handled Renata Zarazua with efficiency and navigated a more physical test against Dalma Galfi without losing composure late in sets.
The second week demanded more. Against Linda Noskova, Anisimova absorbed pace and variety across three sets, then showed tactical discipline to dismantle Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the quarterfinals, closing the match with poise under pressure. The semifinal against Aryna Sabalenka was the defining moment. Anisimova saved 11 of 14 break points, refused to be rushed by raw power, and trusted her depth through the middle of the court to secure a three-set upset that announced her arrival on the sport’s biggest stage.
Wimbledon match results:
SF: d. Aryna Sabalenka 6-4 4-6 6-4
R128: d. Yulia Putintseva 6-0 6-0
R64: d. Renata Zarazua 6-4 6-3
R32: d. Dalma Galfi 6-3 5-7 6-3
R16: d. Linda Noskova 6-2 5-7 6-4
QF: d. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-1 7-6(9)
The final was brutal. Iga Swiatek overwhelmed her 6-0 6-0 in under an hour. It was a scoreline that demanded context rather than judgment. Anisimova had arrived early, not late.
North America: Reasserting Control
Montreal and Cincinnati were mixed, but the US Open delivered her most complete Slam run of the year.
The US Open delivered Anisimova’s most complete hard-court run of the season and her clearest proof of belonging at the business end of majors. She opened the second week by dismantling Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-0 6-3, dictating relentlessly off the return and allowing no foothold once rallies extended beyond four shots.
The quarterfinal against Iga Swiatek marked a genuine breakthrough. Anisimova outplayed her 6-4 6-3, absorbing heavy topspin before stepping inside the baseline to finish points early. She held her nerve on serve, winning over 70 percent of first-serve points, and never allowed Swiatek to dictate patterns for sustained stretches.
The semifinal against Naomi Osaka was a test of nerve rather than firepower. After losing the opening-set tiebreak, Anisimova steadied her delivery, improved her second-serve depth, and edged both pressure sets 7-6(3) 6-3. Across nearly three hours, she converted key break chances late and refused to retreat when rallies tightened.
The final against Aryna Sabalenka slipped away, 6-3 7-6(3), in a match decided by fine margins. Anisimova created opportunities but converted just one of six break points, and when the door cracked in the second set, Sabalenka slammed it shut. Even so, the performance reinforced the same conclusion reached at Wimbledon: Anisimova now belonged in these matches, not as a guest, but as a contender.
US Open match results:
R128: d. Kimberly Birrell 6-3 6-2
R64: d. Maya Joint 7-6(2) 6-2
R32: d. Jaqueline Cristian 6-4 4-6 6-2
R16: d. Beatriz Haddad Maia 6-0 6-3
QF: d. Iga Swiatek 6-4 6-3
SF: d. Naomi Osaka 6-7(4) 7-6(3) 6-3
F: l. Aryna Sabalenka 6-3 7-6(3)
The combined impact of her Wimbledon and US Open runs pushed her into the Top 4.
Beijing: The Second Title and Full Authority
Between August and December, she limited her schedule to Beijing and the Riyadh Finals and still held on to the No.4 ranking.
Beijing showcased the best version of Anisimova’s all-court game. Calm under pressure, ruthless when ahead, and physically composed.
Her title run looked like this:
- R64: d. Katie Boulter 6-1 6-3
- R32: d. Shuai Zhang 7-6(11) 6-0
- R16: d. Karolina Muchova 1-6 6-2 6-4
- QF: d. Jasmine Paolini 6-7(4) 6-3 6-4
- SF: d. Coco Gauff 6-1 6-2
- F: d. Linda Noskova 6-0 2-6 6-2
The semifinal against Gauff was clinical. The final showed composure after a second-set wobble. She won 60 percent of second-serve points across the tournament and converted pressure into control far more efficiently than earlier in the year.
Riyadh Finals: Belonging Confirmed
At the WTA Finals, Anisimova confirmed her place among the elite rather than merely sampling it. She opened round-robin play by outlasting Iga Swiatek 6-7(3) 6-4 6-2, flipping the match with improved second-serve depth and refusing to be pushed behind the baseline in the deciding set. A 4-6 6-3 6-2 win over Madison Keys followed, again showing her growing comfort in three-set pressure matches and her ability to absorb first-strike tennis without panicking.
The loss to Elena Rybakina was heavy, a 6-3 6-1 defeat where Anisimova struggled to neutralize the serve and never gained traction on return. But the week’s meaning was defined in the semifinals against Aryna Sabalenka. Anisimova pushed the world No.1 to three sets, 6-3 3-6 6-3, staying competitive deep into the decider and converting nine of fourteen break points across the match. The result ended her run, but not the conclusion. She belonged in this room, not as a passenger, but as a permanent presence.
Amanda Anisimova Assessment
What improved most was match management. Wins over Swiatek in New York and Beijing, plus the Doha and Beijing titles, showed sharper break-point execution and better emotional control in third sets.
What still limits her is second-serve vulnerability against elite pace. Losses to Raducanu early in the year and Sabalenka in both Slam and Finals settings exposed moments where second-serve points dipped below 40 percent. Against the very best, that remains costly.
Final Verdict A
Anisimova’s 2025 was a tier-changing season rather than a breakthrough. She proved she could absorb setbacks, win titles, and return stronger each time.
GPA: 3.9
If this trajectory holds, the Top 4 will feel like a beginning, not a destination. A Grand Slam win in 2026 feels increasingly likely, driven by the fiercest backhand on tour.
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