Wimbledon star cries on court in emotional scenes after dropping to world No.442

Amanda Anisimova is back into the quarter-finals at Wimbledon again three years later - and shed some tears on Court 1 after beating Linda Noskova. Anisimova, the 13th seed, had dropped well down the world rankings to world No.442 after taking a break from tennis due to burnout and mental health concerns.

The American made a name for herself in 2019 when she reached the semi-finals of the French Open and followed that up by reaching the last eight of Wimbledon three years later. But she took a break in 2023 after enduring challenges that made it "unbearable" for her to be at tennis tournaments. Now, after beating Noskova 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 to reach the last eight at SW19, Queen's runner-up Anisimova will rise to a new career-high ranking of world No.8 after Wimbledon. And she was in tears on court afterwards.

She told Annabel Croft in her post-match interview: "It's amazing to be back here. Honestly coming back after last year, playing in qualies, I didn't expect to be in the quarter-finals here again. I'm so excited and proud of myself and I'm looking forward to another challenge.

"Yeah it was an incredibly tough match. Linda was really pushing me there. She's a really tough player to face. It was a huge battle. I wasn't sure if I was going to make it to the finish line at some points.

"I was just trying to enjoy every moment. It's my first time playing on this court so it was a great experience. I was trying to not look at them (her coaching team) to be honest because I was getting so stressed out. I was just trying to keep my composure, keep my nerves at bay.

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"It's something they try to instil in me and it's not easy at times like this. But they were a huge support. They told me to keep believing in myself. And yeah there were quite a few American supporters out there today!"

Anisimova now faces Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who dumped out the last British woman - Sonay Kartal - on Centre Court, in the quarters on Tuesday. The Russian also defeated four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka in round three.

Anisimova, 23, added: "She's a super experienced player, plays really well on the grass, it's also her second quarter-final I think. An unbelievable player and I'm sure it's going to be a really good battle out there. Hopefully all you guys can come out and support me again!"