Wimbledon 2025: Amanda Anisimova beats Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to reach semi-finals for first time

Amanda Anisimova breathed a sigh of relief after she survived an unexpected and surprising fightback from Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to secure a 6-1, 7-6(9) victory on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, and reach the Wimbledon semi-finals for the first time. She will next face world number one Aryna Sabalenka for a place in the final.

This victory also matches the best performance for the American at a Grand Slam. The only other time she reached the semi-finals came in the 2019 French Open, where she lost to Ashleigh Barty. Anisimova initially dominated the match, leading 6-1, 5-2 as the American 13th seed bamboozled Pavlyuchenkova with a mixture of blazing backhands, ferocious forehands, and nifty footwork.

But just as the match seemed all done and dusted, Pavlyuchenkova staged a shocking comeback, winning three games on the trot to make it 5-5 in the second set. The Russian, 34, saved two match points in the process in the 10th game, including hitting a gutsy drop-shot winner that completely caught Anisimova by surprise.


With the world number 50 suddenly believing that she could turn the match around, Anisimova looked like the one on the verge of tears, mouthing to her support group "One more point" as the Russian kept earning set points in the tiebreak.

Anisimova somehow saved all five set points against her before finally sealing victory when Pavlyuchenkova netted the ball on the American's fourth match point.

The quarter-final victory gave Anisimova entry into the semi-finals, one step closer to the title. This marks the farthest she has advanced at Wimbledon so far during her career. She previously made it to the quarter-finals back in 2022, where she lost to Simona Halep.

If Anisimova wants to reach a new career high at a Grand Slam, she has a daunting task ahead, as she is required to go past the No. 1-ranked women's player, Aryna Sabalenka, who came back to defeat Laura Siegemund on Tuesday, July 8, 2025.