Not even a tooth extraction and a bum foot could keep Anisimova from winning Beijing

A wisdom tooth was extracted just ahead of her flight to China -- and then the real adversity began to descend on Amanda Anisimova.

Reaching the final at the US Open had taken a lot out of her, and after a few extra days off, Anisimova felt less than 100 percent when she took the court at the China Open. She won her first match easily, but a growing pain in her foot and calf left her wondering.

“I think it was obvious in one of the matches where I was in pain,” Anisimova said. “I was just hurting all day when I was walking. Those were the hardest moments because you’re trying to have a conversation with yourself and figure out what’s the best decision to make.”

The decision to play on paid off handsomely Sunday with the title in Beijing.

A few years ago, those circumstances might have paralyzed her. That was why she stepped away from the game for a significant break. Now, at the age of 24, Anisimova has developed a mental strength that might rival her down-the-line backhand.

She survived a 24-point tiebreak against Zhang Shuai in the third round and produced a memorable comeback against Karolina Muchova in the fourth. Top 10 wins against Jasmine Paolini and Coco Gauff (in 58 minutes) sent her into the final against Linda Noskova.

Anisimova won the first set 6-0, but Noskova came back to take the second set and was serving at 3-2 in the third. Anisimova, rapidly evolving into a superstar, rallied to win the last four games of the match. That’s a beautiful set of bookends.

In her eighth season at the Hologic WTA Tour level, Anisimova has collected her first two WTA 1000 titles, back in February in Doha and now, more than seven months later, Beijing. Reaching the finals at Wimbledon and the US Open were also career breakthroughs. She’s ranked No. 4 in the world and beaten each of the three players ranked ahead of her in the past three months.

More importantly, in this physically demanding game, she’s become a true professional.

“I think your mind can play tricks on you,” Anisimova said. “Tell yourself you can’t keep going, if there’s certain pains you’re having. I think the mental game is so important for an athlete. I’m still constantly learning and trying to get better in that department.”

If you haven’t been following closely, Anisimova’s 2025 numbers are top-shelf:

• Since the grass swing began in June, only Iga Swiatek (27) has more than Anisimova’s 26 match-wins.
• She’s one of only three women to hit more than 1,500 winners this year. Aryna Sabalenka (1,772) is first, followed by Elena Rybakina (1,557) and Anisimova (1,542). She had 187 in Beijing, second only to Clara Tauson (196) in a WTA 1000.
• Anisimova is the first and youngest American to capture multiple Tier 1/WTA-1000 titles in a season since Serena Williams (2002, 2015).

“We as athletes don’t feel great day in, day out,” Anisimova said. “I think that’s just part of the learning process. With each match, I’ve been surprising myself and trying to learn how to work with physical pain, pushing myself in tough matches.

“I’m just really happy that I was able to stick it through and also trust myself and my team, who informed me about my body. Yeah, just trusting and believing in them and myself.”

Afterward, Anisimova answered reporters’ questions:

Can you take us through what's it like to go through New York, get your tooth out, win in Beijing.

Anisimova: Yeah, it’s been quite a few weeks for me here, for sure. I feel like I’ve learned a lot about myself. I think I can take a lot of positives and look at it as a lot of progress for me just figuring out ways to face certain challenges and push myself in moments when it feels like I can’t go any further. I feel like in that sense I learned that I’m stronger than I think. I was not expecting to get my wisdom teeth out. I was told that I didn't have to remove them. I was just surprised for me (smiling). Yeah, I'm just glad that's over.

How does this week in Beijing compare to what you were able to do in Doha? How different are those two runs or how similar are they?

Anisimova: I think they actually have certain similarities and obviously differences. In Doha, I was just there with my tennis coach and not my full team. In that sense it was a bit different and very unexpected there. Super special week obviously. I'm just really happy that I was able to share this moment with my full team here. Yeah, it's been awesome. I think this week, I was riding on a lot of confidence because I’ve had a great year so far. 

I think when you won the championship point, you celebrated with your full team. I noticed your coach [Hendrik Vleeshouwers] is the most emotional guy. He almost cried. Did he really cry?

Anisimova: You should tell him that because he says he’s not very emotional. Yeah, we would say otherwise. I’m sure he’s really happy, as well as everyone else on my team. I mean, it’s a huge win for all of us. I think we’re just excited to keep going strong.

You mentioned you like pandas so much. Is there any particular reason or any similarities between you and the panda?

Anisimova: Just that it rhymes with my name, like Amanda panda. That was a nickname my best friend, Priscilla, gave me when we first met. It’s a funny inside joke. I think she was the first one that got me a panda here. I just kept receiving them. I love the animal. It’s super cute. Hopefully I can keep getting more. I’m sure I’m going to reach a limit soon. I definitely will be carrying a bag full of pandas on the way back, that's for sure.

Linda Noskova said in her press conference that when you’re playing like that, sometimes it’s too good. What are you thinking when you hear people raving about your game?

Anisimova: I feel like now I’m really able to take it like a compliment. I feel like I’m playing to my full potential. I’m doing all the right things and working really hard as opposed to a few years ago when I felt like I wasn’t competing or performing to my full potential. I used to put those messages or opinions aside and not really take that in. For sure now, it’s really nice to hear other people say that.