Amanda Anisimova addresses mental health journey after upsetting Aryna

Amanda Anisimova says taking a break to address her mental health was absolutely something she needed since she felt “very burnt out” and restarting herself was the key to rediscovering the joy for the game. 

On Saturday in Toronto, 22-year-old Anisimova achieved a milestone after upsetting Aryna Sabalenka 6-4 6-2 to reach her first WTA 1000 semifinal. 

But just 12 months ago, 2019 French Open semifinalist Anisimova was deliberately out of action after she previously in 2023 May announced that she was taking an indefinite break from tennis. At the time, Anisimova – a former world No. 21 – said she could no longer continue playing in her current state. After not playing for seven months, the American felt ready to make a comeback at the start of the 2024 season.

“Yeah, I think that after the break I felt very refreshed and just had a different kind of head space, like more clarity. I just was very burnt out before I took the break, so coming back I was enjoying it a lot more, and the training and all the process, I had like a different perspective for it. Yeah, I think that I just gained a different perspective when it comes to traveling and the training process,” Anisimova explained after beating Sabalenka when what did the break do to her.

“As I said. I’m just really happy to be back, and I think taking the break really just helped me, because I honestly never took a break that was longer than like two weeks in my life, so I think I just needed that as a human being to just rest for once and just let my body recover.”

Anisimova credits Naomi Osaka for pushing for mental health conversations

When Osaka revealed during the 2021 French Open that she was battling depression and anxiety for years, she was a four-time Grand Slam champion and one of the best and top-ranked players in the world. At the time, it was a huge thing and the Japanese taking a break to address her mental state made the…