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Sabalenka Brutally Honest About Anisimova After Wimbledon Loss
Main photo credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images

Amanda Anisimova reached her first Grand Slam final by beating Aryna Sabalenka 6-4 4-6 6-4 at Wimbledon. The thrilling contest was also not without controversy. Sabalenka did not hide her annoyance with Anisimova during two separate incidents of the match, and the Belarusian spoke openly about one of those moments in a press conference afterward.

What Caused Sabalenka to Become Frustrated With Anisimova?

During the second set, Anisimova hit a backhand winner, something she did numerous times during the match. However, the American celebrated before the point had bounced a second time, which is illegal by the rules. Although Sabalenka immediately looked up to the umpire Damien Dumusois, the French official did not penalize the 23-year-old. He spoke to her during the changeover, which Anisimova did not like, arguing that Sabalenka should not complain because she grunts loudly throughout the match.

Sabalenka became agitated again in the third set. Anisimova went 5-2 up after winning a point that included her getting a flick off the net that disrupted the world No. 1’s next shot. Rather than apologize, as usually happens after such moments, Anisimova celebrated moving to within one game of the final. Sabalenka could be seen asking Anisimova why she did not say sorry for the good fortune off the net as both players walked to their chairs.

Sabalenka’s Response in Post-Match Press Conference

When asked about Anisimova celebrating early in the second set, Sabalenka said she was more irritated by the 2019 French Open semifinalist’s words to the umpire about her grunting. The two-time Australian Open champion broke Anisimova in her next service game and admitted the incident impacted the rest of the second set.
“I was just trying to chase the ball. She was already celebrating it. I was like ‘I mean, that’s a bit too early.’ She kind of pi--ed me off like saying ‘That’s what she does all the time.’ But I was grateful and thankful that she said that because I was like, it actually helped me to keep fighting. I was like ok, now I’m gonna show you the tennis. I came back because I got really angry in that moment. Probably in the 3rd set I should’ve remembered and probably it would’ve helped. But it is what it is.”

Ultimately, that was not enough to stop Sabalenka from slipping to defeat. It was her third Grand Slam loss to an American this year, after she fell in the Australian Open final to Madison Keys and the French Open final to Coco Gauff.

This article first appeared on Last Word On Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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