New York [US], September 5 : America's Amanda Anisimova stormed into consecutive Grand Slam finals, continuing her redemption arc by taking down four-time major winner Naomi Osaka in the semi-finals of the women's singles at the US Open.
The Arthur Ashe Stadium played host to Anisimova, leaving the spectators gobsmacked by turning the tide and scripting a 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 6-3 in a nail-biting late-night thriller that lasted for 2 hours and 56 minutes.
The 24-year-old American was reduced to tears after she endured arguably the most brutal defeat during the Wimbledon final at the hands of Iga Swiatek. She eventually extracted her revenge against Swiatek by knocking her out cold in the quarter-finals.
The number eight seed continued her resurgance even though there was a razor-thin difference between the two. At one point, the number 23 seed stood four points away from punching her way through the final. But Anisimova upped the ante to deny the Japanese the opportunity to feature in Saturday's final.
"Oh my god, I don't know. Naomi is playing amazing tennis, and she is back where she belongs. And I told her I'm so proud of her after having a baby and playing at this level. It's insane," said Anisimova, after she dropped to her knees in jubilation and pounded the famous Arthur Ashe Stadium hard court, as quoted from the US Open.
Featuring in her first major semi-final, Osaka gave Anisimova a run for her money by winning the first 11 of the 13 points. After wrapping up the first set, Osaka struggled to carry forward the momentum with Anisimova increasing the intensity of her strokes.
After the American restored parity by clinching the set in the tiebreak, Osaka showed signs of struggling with physical discomfort. Still, Anisimova kept coming back at her with full-blooded backhands.
"She was really giving me a run for the final. I wasn't sure I was going to make it to the finish line. I tried to dig deep, and it was a huge fight out there today. We were both playing some amazing tennis. [I thought] how are we making these shots? But we were, and we just kept going," Anisimova added.
Anisimova now faces a massive hurdle with the defending champion, Aryna Sabalenka, waiting for her in the showdown. The duo have squared off against each other nine times, and Anisimova enjoys a healthy 6-3 lead.