The clay court expert has found her footing on grass. World No. 4 Iga Swiatek needed only 57 minutes to claim her first Wimbledon singles title, dominating world No. 12 Amanda Anisimova, 6-0, 6-0, on Saturday.
Both players had only one previous grass court final on their resumes, where they both came out as runners-up: Swiatek lost to American Jessica Pegula two weeks ago at Bad Homburg, and Anisimova was defeated by German Tatjana Maria last month at Queen’s Club. The Wimbledon final was a first for both players, and it was also their first meeting since playing as juniors.
That’s about where the similarities end.
Despite some critics pointing to a recent slump in her performance, Swiatek boasts a commanding 6-0 Grand Slam finals record, touting four Roland Garros titles, one US Open championship—and now, a Wimbledon victory. She’s the eighth woman ever to win a major title on all three surfaces, and just nabbed her 100th major match win. The 24-year-old is the first Wimbledon singles champion from Poland in the Open era, as well as the first woman since 1911 to win the final without dropping a single game.
For Anisimova, Wimbledon was a Cinderella story. After taking a hiatus from tennis to focus on mental health in 2023, the American tennis sensation fought tooth and nail this fortnight to reach her first career Grand Slam final. American women have appeared in the last four consecutive major finals, and Anisimova was hoping to become the first American woman to win Wimbledon since Serena Williams in 2016.
After upsetting world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals, many fans thought Anisimova might take it all the way. But from the jump, she couldn’t hit her stride, winning only nine points in the opener. Her typical powerhouse backhand kept finding the net, and her moves were tense and uneasy.
Anisimova became visibly frustrated in the second set, letting out shrieks of anger and appearing surrendered in the last two games. She ended the match with a total of 28 unforced errors and five double faults, while Swiatek blew through the match with power, consistency and control.
A backhand winner sealed the deal, and Swiatek collapsed onto her newly mastered surface, before popping up to embrace Anisimova on Centre Court.
During the trophy presentation, Anisimova approached the microphone in tears and took a moment to collect herself, before praising her competitor and thanking the crowd.
“Thank you to everyone who’s supported me since my first round match here,” Anisimova said. “It’s been an incredible fortnight for me, even though I ran out of gas a bit today.”
Swiatek took the beginning of her on-court remarks to recognize Anisimova’s efforts and hoped they would meet again in many more finals. With a smile posted on the Wimbledon champion’s face, her eyes held a bit of disbelief.
“Honestly, I didn’t even dream [of this], because for me, it was just, like, way too far, you know?” Swiatek said, lightly laughing. “I feel like I’m already an experienced player after winning the Slams before, but I never really expected this one.”
Swiatek admitted that she came into the final feeling some pressure, especially considering grass has long been considered her weakest surface. But now, she can let the scoreboard do the talking.
