The match looked to be over before it even started. Amanda Anisimova, riding high after a victory over world number one Aryna Sabalenka, was due for a letdown — but not of this magnitude.
Anisimova was feeling good — until she wasn’t. The American felt the pressure from the very beginning, committing unforced error after unforced error — 28 in total. She never looked comfortable, as Iga Swiatek relentlessly applied pressure.
The steady, composed play from the Polish star forced Anisimova to go for risky shots, but the nerves and the moment proved simply too much.
After dropping the first set 6-0, a bounce-back was desperately needed. Clearly, Swiatek was not going to let up, and Anisimova quickly lost the confidence she had going into the match. Swiatek looked like a player on a mission to win her first major title. The American simply didn’t have the game to match her. Anisimova won only 26% of her first-serve points, and at one point, Swiatek won 13 points in a row. Anisimova never even had a chance to break serve in the match. It really was a total collapse on her part.
Swiatek became the first player since Dorothea Chambers defeated Dora Boothby 6-0, 6-0 in 1911 to win a Wimbledon final without dropping a game.
If those names don’t ring a bell, it’s because that happened over a century ago! Swiatek put on a performance for the ages — one that will certainly be talked about for a long time. While Swiatek deserves all the praise, it certainly hurts for Anisimova.
The dominance from start to finish was impressive, to say the least. Swiatek did just about everything right. She coasted to her first Wimbledon championship — hopefully the first of many. The 24-year-old showed that her game can thrive on any surface.
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