"I don’t think anyone expected her to beat Serena Williams, she’s an amazing player and I think she did an amazing job" - Amanda Anisimova on Simona Halep's 2019 Wimbledon triumph

Amanda Anisimova is having an excellent season so far. She defeated Harmony Tan in straight sets in the fourth round to reach her maiden Wimbledon quarterfinal. The American has reached the second week of all Majors this year and will face Simona Halep for a place in the last four of SW19.

Speaking at her post-match press conference, Anisimova was asked about Halep's win at Wimbledon back in 2019. The 20-year-old said that no one expected her to beat Serena Williams and that she's an amazing player who is very tough to play on grasscourt.

"Her final against Serena, I don’t think anyone expected her to beat Serena so I think it was just a very magical moment for her and she’s an amazing player and she’ll fight till the very end so I think she did an amazing job and that was a very special tournament for her so I really enjoyed watching that match and she’s a very tough player to play on grass," Amanda Anisimova said.

The duo squared off in the quarterfinals of the Bad Homburg Open last week, with the Romanian winning in straight sets. Anisimova reiterated the challenge of playing Halep on grass and said that she had a minor wrist injury during their match in Bad Homburg. She added that she was looking forward to their match on Wednesday and that both players would "put up a really good fight."

"She is really tough to play on grass for sure, last week she was playing very well, it was a tough match for me, I kind of felt my wrist a bit in that match so I wasn’t really playing to the full of my abilities but I know that this will be a really tough match coming up but I’m looking forward to it, I’m sure that we’ll both put up a really good fight," she added.

Amanda Anisimova reached the semifinals of the French Open in 2019 at the age of 17 and will be looking to reach her second Major semifinal at Wimbledon.

---

"I never really took a break or stopped, I kept pushing myself and knowing that the hard work will eventually pay off" - Amanda Anisimova on overcoming obstacles

Amanda Anisimova at the Championships - Wimbledon 2022

After her breakthrough run at the French Open in 2019, Amanda Anisimova struggled with her form for nearly two years, with her ranking tumbling outside the top-50. The American was asked about the obstacles she's had to face, and Anisimova spoke about the impact COVID-19 and injuries have had on her.

"There have been a lot of things especially how last year started like with Covid and then injury coming into Dubai, just like falling down the stairs, just like freak stuff just constantly happening but I mean it came of off just knowing what if feels like to get to a semifinal of a grand slam and knowing how much it means to me and that’s what kept me going and practicing every single day," Anisimova said.

She added that she never took a break and pushed herself despite being dissatisfied with her progress and results, with her hard work paying off this year.

"I never really took a break or stopped and I just kept pushing myself even though it was just like constant dissatisfaction kind of, just like losing constantly on tournaments but I’m just happy with the way I kept pushing myself and knowing that the hard work will eventually pay off even though it took quite a long time I think that I could rest last year quite a bit and then it really started showing this year," she said.

Amanda Anisimova won her second WTA title (and her first on hardcourt) this year in the Melbourne Summer Set against Veronika Kudermetova in straight sets and is close to breaking into the top-20 for the first time in her career.