Amanda Anisimova is preparing to break new ground at Melbourne Park.
Three times, the American has advanced as far as the round of 16 at the year’s first Grand Slam. Three times, she has been denied by heralded foes.
In 2019, Anisimova’s run was thwarted by Petra Kvitova, who finished as tournament runner-up. In 2022 and 2024, it was eventual champions Ash Barty and Aryna Sabalenka respectively.
But at Australian Open 2026, the 24-year-old is among a handful of tournament favourites, and she’s aiming to capitalise on being seeded fourth at a major for the first time.
“I'm super excited to be back,” she said on Friday.
Anisimova, a keen artist, contested the Brisbane International after a short but productive pre-season that left her mentally refreshed.
“I made sure to not take my time at home for granted,” she said.
“Every single day I really tried to appreciate just the time that I had.”
The Miami resident arrived down under at a career-high ranking of world No.3, courtesy of a remarkable 2025 season. In addition to earning her first pieces of Grand Slam silverware as a finalist at Wimbledon and the US Open, Anisimova captured her first two WTA 1000 titles in Doha and Beijing – and unlocked a new level of self-belief.
“I'm coming off of a great year, a lot of confidence,” she said.
“I had a lot of great experiences last year – I played a lot of matches, learned a lot about myself and things that I want to improve.
“Hopefully I can do even more this year and push myself harder.”
After suffering a harrowing 6-0 6-0 defeat to Iga Swiatek in the Wimbledon final, Anisimova showed her mettle by exacting revenge against the six-time major champion at the US Open roughly two months later.
In the pressure-cooker settings of the semifinal and final in Flushing Meadows against Naomi Osaka and Sabalenka respectively, Anisimova was anything but overawed by the occasion.
“Being in those positions for the first time, I think the second time around is always going to be a little easier,” she said.
“At least I have been in those spots … I kind of know what to expect.”
Anisimova begins her AO 2026 campaign with a first-time meeting with Swiss world No. 86 Simona Waltert, who is making her AO women’s singles main draw debut. Should she survive that encounter, Katerina Siniakova and AO 2020 champion Sofia Kenin, the 27th seed, could await in the second and third rounds respectively.
MORE: AO 2026 women's singles draw
The fourth seed’s projected fourth-round opponent is 13th seed Linda Noskova, while her slated quarterfinal adversary is countrywoman and sixth seed Jessica Pegula. Anisimova may then need to slay top seed and two-time AO champion Sabalenka and chase that victory with one in the final over either second seed Swiatek or third seed Coco Gauff to lay claim to the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup.
Like any professional player, she’s wary of counting chickens before they hatch.
“It's a new Grand Slam,” she said.
“I'm just really taking it one match at a time … everyone is going to be very difficult to face here, but I'm looking forward to it.
“Going into this year, I'm just thinking about how I can get that extra edge [and] improve as an athlete.
“There are expectations, but I use them as motivation.”