FCI Staff Writer Sacramento 
fciwomenswrestling.com article, snapwire pexels.com photo credit
While most 17 year olds are hunched over writing answers on tests they barely studied for or look half bored as the teacher lectures them about virtually anything, there is one 17 year old that is traveling the world.
She is not remotely bored.
She is on television too.
She is the youngest player ranked in the top 100 by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and achieved a career-high ranking of No. 87 in the world in January 2019.
That was then and this is now. As of January 28, 2019, guess where she is ranked today?
Number 62 in the world.
Simply put, Amanda Anisimova from New Jersey, is living the teenage dream in a way that very few ever have.
Talk about dreaming big.
“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.”…Harriet Tubman
Entering the 2019 Australian Open tennis tournament, one of the big four, some were actually predicting that Amanda might surprise everyone and win it all.
That didn’t happen.
Instead Danielle Collins, another American who previously won two collegiate tennis national championships, blazed a trail and made it to the semi-finals. That was truly a shocker.
Amanda did serve notice though that she is a young force to be reckoned with by defeating two players ranked in the top 25 in the world, both in straight sets to propel herself to the round of 16 where she eventually succumbed to the more experienced Czech Republic star in Petra Kvitova who eventually battled Naomi Osaka of Japan in the finals.
Young and inspiring, we would like to know more about Amanda Anisimova from Jersey.
She has a stellar resume.
Amanda was the 2017 Junior US Open champion, and has reached one final on the WTA Tour at the 2018 Japan Women’s Open.
Ms. Anisimova began playing tennis at a very young age.
Born in New Jersey, her family moved to Florida to give their children better training opportunities. As a junior, Amanda was ranked as high as No. 2 in the world.
She won the US Open, as well as two other Grade A titles. She also became the first American finalist at the French Open girls’ singles tournament in 14 years.
On the pro tour, Amanda defeated a top 150 opponent before turning 15.
She won her first ITF pro circuit title less than a year later. She then rose to prominence at the Indian Wells Open by recording her first top 10 victory against Petra Kvitová while still 16 years old.
Her parents emigrated from Russia to the United States a few years before she was born to give their children better opportunities. They worked in the finance and banking industries, and neither of them played competitive tennis while growing up.
Our young star started playing tennis at the age of 2. She credits her sister as her inspiration for taking up the sport, saying, “When I was little she was playing tennis. I always saw her playing, and I wanted to do it too. That’s how I got into it and my parents got into it too.”
Her previous accomplishments were at the junior level and now it was time to go pro.
In her first tournament as a 17 year old, she qualified for the main draw and made it to her first career WTA final, dropping just one set overall and none in the main draw before the final. She defeated top seed and world No. 41 Zhang Shuai in the semifinals before finishing runner-up to second seed Hsieh Su-wei. With this performance, she also cracked the top 100 for the first time.
Here is another incredible statistic for a 17 year old and this figure is based upon her finances before her 2019 Australian Open run.
She has earned $366,641 year to date before the Australian Open.
For those of you who are 17 and under, what would be the first thing that you would purchase?
Here is a hint. Always buy your parents something they’ve always wanted first. They will most likely decline your offer but at least you’ll feel much better before you start going on your own personal spending spree.
That would be fun.
Amanda seems to have a lot of fun. You should check out her Twitter. It is enjoyable. https://twitter.com/anisimovaamanda?lang=en
The media is absolutely aware of her evolvement and they like what they see.
On January 18, 2019 the global news sources washingtonpost.com reported with a sense of humor, “A win at this tournament — the Australian Open, where she’s making her second Grand Slam appearance — would signal the arrival of one of the new faces of American tennis. Anisimova, 17, is the 87th-ranked player in the world — and she has upset two seeded players in her three Australian Open matches. Already in 2019 she has wins against three top-35 opponents.
Now she’s headed to the fourth round of the Australian Open, in line for at least a $260,000 payday. And when she returns home to Florida, she’ll still have a year to go on her provisional driver’s license.”
Well, now we know how much money she made to add to her previous total.
Another prominent source usatoday.com adds, “Amanda Anisimova arrived at the Australian Open having never in her life won a main draw Grand Slam match in two previous appearances at majors.
The 17-year-old from Miami now leaves Melbourne having rectified that situation in grand fashion, journeying all the way to the Australian Open fourth-round before being turned back by eighth-seeded Petra Kvitova 6-2, 6-1 on Sunday.”
What we also greatly admired about Amanda was how well she handled herself in interviews. She was being interviewed by the American and Australian press and handled it with the ease of someone who has been on the tour for decades.
Much can be learned from Amanda’s tennis rise.
If you are under 17 and reading this, Amanda’s story tells you the importance of thinking big and how if you are willing to put in the road work, so much in life is possible.
Most teens spend their youth pouring over tests and reading homework that they may or may not like.
Others, like Amanda Anisimova, with the help of their parents, follow the family plan, dream big, make the sacrifices needed, take risks, stay dedicated and travel the world.
~ ~ ~
https://www.norcaltennisczar.com/2017/07/rare-walkover-gives-anisimova-15-her.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Anisimova
https://www.wtatennis.com/players/player/326384/title/amanda-anisimova-0%20%20%20
https://twitter.com/anisimovaamanda?lang=en
https://www.brainyquote.com/topics/dreams
You must be logged in to post a comment.