In May of 2023, Amanda Anisimova announced via Instagram that she would be taking a hiatus from tennis. At the time, she cited ongoing mental health struggles going back to the summer of 2022 as the driving force behind her decision; however, what Anisimova, who is now World No. 7 in the WTA live rankings, didn’t know at the time, was that the hiatus would eventually help propel her to a Wimbledon final years later.
Anisimova’s decision to walk away from tennis came just over a week after her first-round exit at the Madrid Open in April of 2023. In the years leading up to the start of her mental health battle in 2022, Anisimova made waves on the WTA Tour as a teenager, reaching the Round of 16 at the Australian Open in 2019 despite never having won a singles match at a major.
Months later, she went on to become the youngest semifinalist at the French Open in more than a decade.
With more attention, however, came more expectations, and in 2023, after a second-round exit at Indian Wells, a first-round retirement in Miami, and a first-round exit in Madrid, Anisimova decided she needed a break.
On May 5, 2023, she wrote on Instagram:
“Hey guys. I thought I’d make a post explaining what’s been going on and my plans. I’ve really been struggling with my mental health and burnout since the summer of 2022. It’s become unbearable being at tennis tournaments.
“At this point my priority is my mental well-being and taking a break for some time. I’ve worked as hard as I could to push through it. I will miss being out there, and I appreciate all the continuous support.”
Amanda Anisimova’s Time Away From Tennis
After punching her ticket to the Wimbledon final on Thursday, Anisimova spoke on the ESPN broadcast about what the accomplishment means to her.
As she indicated, back when she announced her hiatus in 2023, a lot of people told her that she would never be able to reach the same level again. Despite that, Anisimova prioritized her own mental health and stepped away from the WTA Tour.
During her hiatus, the American standout found some normalcy in things like taking a road trip through the Great Smoky Mountains, spending time with family, and enrolling in college classes.
In addition, she notably fell in love with art. During an interview with Olympics.com last month, she explained how much it meant to find a hobby she was passionate about off the court:
“I picked that hobby up when I was struggling with my mental health,” Anisimova says. “It was definitely something that I really enjoyed off the court, for a few hours to reset my mind and put something creative into the world. I was really enjoying that and doing the charity stuff when I was taking a break from tennis.”
“It was special to me and it felt like I was doing something other than tennis. It was nice to have a few interests outside of tennis.”
Anisimova’s Big Return
After eight months away from the WTA Tour, Anisimova made her return in January of 2024 at the Auckland Open. Several months later, she reached her first career WTA 1000 final in Toronto, however, the best was yet to come.
This season, Anisimova captured her first WTA 1000 title in Qatar, before then making her debut in the top 15 after reaching the Round of 16 at the French Open, where she defeated Nina Stojanović, Viktorija Gollubic, and Clara Tauson before being eliminated by Aryna Sabalenka.
Now, after avenging her French Open loss to Sabalenka in the semifinals on Thursday, Amanda Anisimova has a chance to win her first career Grand Slam.
Following Thursday’s win, Anisimova spoke in her on-court interview about the success she’s found following her 2023 hiatus, saying:
“To be honest, if you told me I would be in the final at Wimbledon, I would not believe you. At least not this soon because it’s been a year turnaround since coming back and to be in this spot it’s not easy and so many people dream of competing on this incredible court, It’s been such a privilege to compete here and to be in the final is just indescribable.”
You can see her comments in the video below beginning at the 2:08 mark.
Why Did Amanda Anisimova Step Away From Tennis?