Amanda Anisimova set foot in the final of a WTA 1000 level tournament for the first time in her career at the 2024 Canadian Open, Toronto.
The American achieved the feat after defeating compatriot and world number 15 Emma Navarro 6-3, 2-6, 6-2 in the Canadian Open semi-finals. Ranked 132nd in the world, she is now the lowest-ranked finalist at the tournament in the last 40 seasons.
The World No. 132’s win over Navarro was her fourth win over a top-20 player at the Toronto tournament this year, having also defeated World No. 3 Aryna Sabalenka; World No. 12 Anna Kalinskaya; and World No. 10 Daria Kasatkina.
READ ALSO : Andrey Rublev Defeats Rain, Matteo Arnaldi to Reach Montreal Final
“It’s a big achievement for me and something I’ve been working really hard for,” Anisimova said. “I’m just really happy, honestly, with my week here and I’m quite surprised with how well I’ve done so far.
“I’m still motivated to get more and I hope that I can really play well in the final.”
The World No. 132 held a career-high ranking of No. 19 in 2019 after reaching her first Grand Slam semi-final at the French Open when she was just 17. Last season, he sat out for mental health reasons and didn’t play competitively for eight months. He started this season ranked outside the top 300. Regardless of the outcome of the final, he will leave Canada back in the top 50.
“I knew that when I stepped away, I really wanted to come back and I didn’t want to end my career like that,” Amanda Anisimova said. “There’s still a lot of things I want to accomplish and I didn’t want to end it at this young age, because I’ve sacrificed a lot and given a lot to the sport. So, yeah, I knew that I still had a lot of time, that I wanted to play.”
Anisimova will face compatriot and defending champion Jessica Pegula, who leads their head-to-head record 2-0.
The third seed returned to the final with a 6-4, 6-3 win over 14th seed Diana Shnaider.
“Getting the chance to defend a title is something that always happens, so I feel really happy that I put myself in a position to do it,” Pegula said.
