Pro Media & News

2024 Australian Open: 'Refreshed' Anisimova reaping rewards after mental health break

Arthur Kapetanakis | January 17, 2024

In May of 2023, Amanda Anisimova announced she would be taking an indefinite break from professional tennis in order to prioritize her mental health amidst struggles with burnout. The 22-year-old American put her racquets away for four months while she spent time with friends and family and explored her painting hobby, away from the daily grind of the WTA Tour.

 

In September, the former Top 25 star began training again with an eye on returning to the Australian Open, where she has twice reached the fourth round. Now that she has made it to Melbourne, Anisimova is reaping the rewards of her time away and that extended preseason.

Two weeks after picking up a win in Auckland in her first match back, Anisimova was handed a tough draw at the year's first Grand Slam: an opening test against 13th seed Liudmila Samsonova. Back on the Grand Slam stage for the first time since last year in Melbourne, Anisimova dazzled in a 6-3, 6-4 victory, battling back from a break down in both sets and winning the final five games of the contest to surge through the finish line.

 

Asked about the importance of that statement win so early in her comeback, her stoic answer showcased a new perspective.

 

"Of course, I'm happy with the win, but I expect a lot out of myself. Win or lose, I don't think it would really matter to me. If I lost, then I would just go back to training," she said in her post-match press conference.

 

"I'm just here for the journey right now and seeing how much I can progress. I think I would take it with whatever outcome I would get. But I am happy with the wins, and I really hope that I can build on from it."

Amanda Anisimova at the 2024 Australian Open. Photo by William West/AFP via Getty Images.

Anisimova has enjoyed her fair share of Grand Slam success in her young career, reaching the 2019 Roland Garros semifinals at age 17 and the Wimbledon quarters in 2022. At the Australian Open, she has notched upset wins against Aryna Sabalenka (2019) and Naomi Osaka (2022), who now have three Melbourne titles between them. While she's happy to be back in the ring, Anisimova is also grateful for the time she spent out of the spotlight.

 

"For sure it's a nice feeling winning matches. Being in that high-stress environment is unlike anything else," she reflected. "But I also really enjoyed my time at home. I think it's really special to just spend time with my friends and family and just have a normal day-to-day life. To me both of those are quite nice.

 

"But I didn't miss it in a sense, just the daily grind. I don't know. They're just both very different sides to life. But I don't mind the normal day-to-day life because I do like being at home. I get really homesick when I'm on the road, so that's something that I struggle with a lot."

Photo by Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images.

To ease the burden of the time away from home, Anisimova is staying with her good friend and fellow WTA player Priscilla Hon in an apartment near Melbourne Park, preferring that setting to a hotel. If her early Australian Open results are any indication, the American's stay could be an extended one.

 

After beating Samsonova on Sunday, Anisimova scored another dominant win, 6-2, 6-3, on Wednesday against Argentina's Nadia Podoroska. That set up a third-round showdown with Spain's Paula Badosa, who reached a career-high WTA ranking of No. 2 in 2022.

 

Badosa has since dropped to No. 100 after an injury-plagued 2023 season. But, like Anisimova, she has not dropped a set en route to the Australian Open third round. The same could be said for defending champion Sabalenka, who looms as a potential fourth-round opponent.

Whatever the outcome, Anisimova will take it in stride now that she has found joy once more on the tennis court.

 

"The most important thing is that I feel a lot more refreshed," she said when asked if her break gave her a new outlook on the game. "I'm enjoying practicing. I'm enjoying every second that I'm out there. Even when I was down [in the first round], I was still just enjoying the challenge.

 

"I'm just happy with how I feel coming back. I feel like I was very burned out while I was playing, and that really wasn't a nice feeling. Being able to just reset is really nice."

Skip Advertisement

Advertisement

Related Articles