Anisimova overpowers Noskova to win first China Open title

No. 3 seed Amanda Anisimova claimed her first China Open title by defeating No. 26 Linda Noskova 6-0, 2-6, 6-2 in the final on Sunday, Oct. 5. The victory punctuated Anisimova’s breakout season, where she made back-to-back Grand Slam finals at Wimbledon and the US Open and captured her first WTA 1000 title at the Qatar Total Open in February.

“I've had an incredible two weeks here. Super excited. Happy to have gotten the title here. It's super special,” Anisimova said in a post-match press conference. “I'm really looking forward to coming back next year. This place really holds special memories for me now.” 

The victory ended Anisimova’s 0-3 skid in WTA finals this season and gave the 24-year-old her fourth career title and second of the year. She is the second American in a row to win the China Open, following Coco Gauff’s title run last year.

Anisimova appeared poised for another quick finish following her 59-minute semifinal win over defending champion Gauff. She cruised through the first set in just 23 minutes, breaking Noskova’s serve three times at deuce while limiting unforced errors to take it 6-0. 

Noskova answered in the second set, breaking serve in the opening game after a string of groundstroke errors from the American. Two double faults landed the 20-year-old from Czechia behind 0-30 in the next game, but she won four straight points to hold serve and take a 2-0 lead. As Anisimova continued her string of errors, Noskova broke again and closed out the set to force a decider. 

Anisimova saved a break point in the opening game of the third set, pushing it to deuce before holding serve when Noskova’s forehand sailed wide. She let out an emphatic yell after that point. Up 3-2, Anisimova took control, breaking serve in just five points with a few unforced errors from Noskova contributing. She saved another break point in the next game with an ace, then broke serve again in five points to win the match, immediately falling to her knees in celebration. 

Anisimova did not have an easy path to the final. Coming off a tough loss in the U.S. Open final, she entered the tournament not feeling her best after having her wisdom teeth taken out the day before her flight to Beijing. She also dealt with foot and calf pain throughout the event and said she thought about withdrawing mid-tournament. 

But she didn’t and instead defeated three Top 15 opponents in Beijing, solidifying her position as World No. 4. Ranked No. 43 this time last year, Anisimova broke out this season and qualified for the WTA Finals for the first time in her career following her China Open semifinals win. 

Meanwhile, Noskova has moved up in the world rankings to No. 17 after her first career WTA 1000 final appearance. She had nothing but praise for Anisimova after their match. 

“Today was definitely the toughest out of all my matches throughout these two weeks,” she said. “Obviously Amanda is an amazing player. She has been playing just too strong throughout this whole season.”

Anisimova next plays in another WTA 1000 event in Wuhan this week as the Asian swing continues. 

—Reporting by Coby Spratte and Dane Vogel