Amanda Anisimova admits 6-0, 6-0 Wimbledon final loss to Iga Świątek is 'tough to digest'
American Amanda Anisimova starred in both.
The first one launched the 23-year-old on the path to her first major singles final as she thrashed Yulia Putintseva in the opening round.
Sadly for Anisimova, she was on the receiving end of the second and it came at the worst-possible time.
In front of a packed Centre Court crowd and millions of television viewers in the final, her hopes of winning the title evaporated in 57 cruel minutes as she was put through the wringer by Poland's Iga Świątek.
The only other occasion a Wimbledon singles final was decided by a 6-0, 6-0 scoreline was in 1911 when Dorothea Lambert Chambers beat fellow British player Dora Boothby.
It had happened only once at any of the other major finals, in 1988 when Steffi Graf demolished Natasha Zvereva in 34 minutes at the French Open.
At least 13th seed Anisimova almost stretched it to an hour.
It is customary at the majors for the runner-up to say a few words before the champion following the final.
Anisimova probably wished Centre Court would open up and swallow her as she answered questions from former British player Annabel Croft, managing to hold herself together enough to say a few coherent words through the tears.
Later, in the relative sanctuary of the media conference room, she was reflective as she spoke of how she had been frozen by nerves in the biggest match of her career.
"It was tough to digest," Anisimova said.
"It's not how I would have wanted my first grand slam final to go. I think I was in shock afterwards.
"It's not an easy thing to go through, losing zero and zero."
A sense of perspective is perhaps easier for a player who was marked out as a future major champion as a teenager but who needed to step away from the game for eight months in 2023 as she struggled with burnout and mental health issues.
She did not even feature in the Wimbledon main draw last year, losing in the third round of qualifying when she was ranked 189th in the world.
So despite how the final panned out, Anisimova preferred to take the positives from a run that included a scintillating semifinal victory against world number one Aryna Sabalenka.
"I feel like the last two weeks, if anything, what I've learned it was you're never going to be perfect, and every match is different," Anisimova said.
"My fighting spirit has gotten me to the final of today. It wasn't me playing perfect in a way. There were matches where I struggled and I wasn't playing to my full potential.
"I think me just staying focused and fighting my way through certain moments and lifting myself up and trying to not get negative on myself was the most important thing.
"I think that's really what got me to the final."
Reuters
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There were two so-called 'double bagels' — the term used to describe a match finishing with a 6-0, 6-0 scoreline — at this year's Wimbledon. American Amanda Anisimova starred in both. The first one launched the 23-year-old on the path to her first major singles final as she thrashed Yulia Putintseva in the opening round. Sadly for Anisimova, she was on the receiving end of the second and it came at the worst-possible time. In front of a packed Centre Court crowd and millions of television viewers in the final, her hopes of winning the title evaporated in 57 cruel minutes as she was put through the wringer by Poland's Iga Świątek. The only other occasion a Wimbledon singles final was decided by a 6-0, 6-0 scoreline was in 1911 when Dorothea Lambert Chambers beat fellow British player Dora Boothby. It had happened only once at any of the other major finals, in 1988 when Steffi Graf demolished Natasha Zvereva in 34 minutes at the French Open. At least 13th seed Anisimova almost stretched it to an hour. It is customary at the majors for the runner-up to say a few words before the champion following the final. Anisimova probably wished Centre Court would open up and swallow her as she answered questions from former British player Annabel Croft, managing to hold herself together enough to say a few coherent words through the tears. Later, in the relative sanctuary of the media conference room, she was reflective as she spoke of how she had been frozen by nerves in the biggest match of her career. "It was tough to digest," Anisimova said. "It's not how I would have wanted my first grand slam final to go. I think I was in shock afterwards. "It's not an easy thing to go through, losing zero and zero." A sense of perspective is perhaps easier for a player who was marked out as a future major champion as a teenager but who needed to step away from the game for eight months in 2023 as she struggled with burnout and mental health issues. She did not even feature in the Wimbledon main draw last year, losing in the third round of qualifying when she was ranked 189th in the world. So despite how the final panned out, Anisimova preferred to take the positives from a run that included a scintillating semifinal victory against world number one Aryna Sabalenka. "I feel like the last two weeks, if anything, what I've learned it was you're never going to be perfect, and every match is different," Anisimova said. "My fighting spirit has gotten me to the final of today. It wasn't me playing perfect in a way. There were matches where I struggled and I wasn't playing to my full potential. "I think me just staying focused and fighting my way through certain moments and lifting myself up and trying to not get negative on myself was the most important thing. "I think that's really what got me to the final." Reuters
