logo
American Amanda Anisimova faces Poland's Iga Swiatek in the Wimbledon women's final

American Amanda Anisimova faces Poland's Iga Swiatek in the Wimbledon women's final

Washington Post18 hours ago
LONDON — Amanda Anisimova and Iga Swiatek both will be aiming to win Wimbledon for the first time when they meet in the women's final.
Saturday's title match at Centre Court is the first for Anisimova , a 23-year-old American, at any Grand Slam tournament.
Swiatek, a 24-year-old from Poland, already owns five such trophies, going 5-0 in major finals, but never had been this far on the grass courts of the All England Club. She's been the champion on the French Open's red clay four times and on the U.S. Open's hard courts once.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Roberts, Murphy defend Misiorowski 's selection to NL All-Stat roster
Roberts, Murphy defend Misiorowski 's selection to NL All-Stat roster

Fox Sports

time18 minutes ago

  • Fox Sports

Roberts, Murphy defend Misiorowski 's selection to NL All-Stat roster

Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The addition of Milwaukee Brewers rookie phenom pitcher Jacob Misiorowski to the National League All-Star team drew mixed reactions around Major League Baseball. Some players and fans quickly took to social media to express their frustrations over a player with only five starts in the majors being added to the NL roster instead of other players who have put up as good, if not better, numbers during the first half of the season. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who will manage the NL squad Tuesday in Atlanta, is on the opposite end of the spectrum. Roberts made it clear that he had no voice in selecting Misiorowski but sees the move as a positive, given the entertainment value of the Midsummer Classic. 'The All-Star game is about the fans,' Roberts said. 'Yes, this kid hasn't pitched a whole lot in the big leagues but I do think it sparks some more excitement, seeing the velocity.' The 23-year-old, who is 4-1 with a 2.81 ERA, quickly gained attention when he threw a 100.5 mph fastball for his first pitch in the big leagues. Brewers manager Pat Murphy said he understood the backlash from around the league but sees it as giving fans what they want. 'People want to see Miz pitch,' Murphy said. 'He's the new shiny toy in the league. It's not deserving, that has nothing to do with it. He's been given this opportunity. It's not his fault. 'This wasn't a fly by night decision. This is something they thought through. I think it would be really tough for the kid to say no to that.' Murphy likened Misiorowski to former Detroit Tigers pitcher Mark 'The Bird' Fidrych. Fidrych was an All-Star his first two seasons in the majors, a unique player who would often talk to his glove while on the mound. Fans embraced Fidrych and his eccentricities because he had the stuff on the mound to back it up. He pitched 24 complete games as a rookie in 1976, including back-to-back games when he logged 11 innings each time. 'From what I know of The Bird, it just seems that he was really authentic and really super talented,' Murphy said. 'There's some parallels there for sure.' ___ AP MLB: recommended Item 1 of 3

Anisimova 'frozen with nerves' in heavy Wimbledon loss
Anisimova 'frozen with nerves' in heavy Wimbledon loss

Yahoo

time20 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Anisimova 'frozen with nerves' in heavy Wimbledon loss

From the moment Amanda Anisimova stepped out on to Centre Court, you could see the tension etched across her face. The 23-year-old American had never played in a Grand Slam final before and, as the 6-0 6-0 defeat by Iga Swiatek in the Wimbledon final showed, the occasion overwhelmed her. Advertisement From the start of a match which lasted 57 minutes, Anisimova looked tight and made a stream of unforced errors as she fell to the heaviest defeat in a women's final at the All England Club in more than a century. "From my side, I think I was a bit frozen there with my nerves," said Anisimova, who will rise to a career high of seventh in the world rankings after a run that included beating world number one Aryna Sabalenka. "There's a lot of room for improvement. If anything, I think it's more experience for me on how to handle nerves. "It's my first Slam final, so at least I have that experience now." Advertisement Anisimova left the court briefly at the end of the match before returning for the prize-giving ceremony, where she was consoled by Catherine, Princess of Wales. Anisimova did not want to disclose the full nature of their conversation, but said the "kind words" offered by the royal helped pick her up. "It was such an honour to meet her," Anisimova added. "She definitely had a few things to say that were making me emotional again. She told me to keep my head high. "She had all the best to say to me. I guess it was a positive of today and I can try and focus on that and not the match." The Princess of Wales had "kind words" for Anisimova after a chastening afternoon [Getty Images] Anisimova, who also reached the Queen's final last month, said fatigue had played a part in her performance. Advertisement She did not practised on Friday and said she felt she "had to take a break after every single rally" during her warm-up on Saturday. "I feel like maybe the last few weeks have got to me in a way and I wasn't able to perform to my full potential," she told BBC Sport. "But I can still walk away from today with my head high. I am taking today as a learning experience and coming out a bit stronger." How quickly might Anisimova recover? Getting over a demoralising defeat can take time for some players. Germany's Alexander Zverev talked about "feeling lost" after suffering a third successive Grand Slam final defeat. Advertisement But others - like Jannik Sinner, who reached the Wimbledon men's final 35 days after losing a classic French Open final - have been able to quickly bounce back. Anisimova, who took a break from the sport two years ago to protect her mental health, might look to what she learnt during a stint studying business with psychology at university in California. She hopes a quote by American author Marianne Williamson - about how pain can "burn you up and destroy you or burn you up and redeem you" - will help the process. And she will also take inspiration from the quote from Rudyard Kipling's poem 'If' - 'If you can meet with triumph and disaster, and treat those two impostors just the same' - that is above the entrance to Centre Court. Advertisement "I think it's really helpful that that quote is up there and it's definitely going to stay on my mind the next few days," she told BBC Sport. Former world number one Tracy Austin said she hoped Anisimova would recover well because of the work she has done on her mentality. "Having her people around - her mum, sister and nephew are in town - will help," Austin told BBC Sport. "She might be able to quickly realise that it is her first major final against a former world number one who was 5-0 in major finals. "This was a lot for Amanda to take on. Wimbledon adds another 25-30% of pressure because it is Wimbledon." Advertisement Anisimova said she had never lost a match 6-0 6-0. "For it to be in my first Grand Slam final was definitely very hard to digest, but I've been in difficult situations before in my career, and I feel like I've learned so much from those moments," she told BBC Sport. "The only thing I told myself was to keep my head high and to keep fighting because I didn't want to let myself down at any moment." What's it like to be overcome by nerves? Anisimova showed nerves in some of her previous matches – including her semi-final win over top seed Sabalenka - but was able to overcome them. Advertisement While Anisimova said she felt nerves before the showpiece match, she added they were not "out of this world". But the pressure of playing in a Wimbledon final took its toll. "She's playing in front of 15,000 people and you feel such a pressure to perform," said former British player Naomi Broady. "People have spent so much money on their tickets and they want to see a great match and you are desperate to do so, not just for them but for yourself, your team, your family. "She just couldn't shake the nerves, the moment became too much for her."

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store