Anisimova and Fritz through as Americans sparkle at Wimbledon

LONDON: Amanda Anisimova survived an almighty scare against compatriot Sofia Kenin on Thursday to join a wave of American women surging into the third round of Wimbledon, while Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe ensured the Stars and Stripes kept flying high in the men’s draw.

Twelve months after her 6-0, 6-0 humbling by Iga Swiatek in the title clash, Anisimova was on the verge of another painful defeat after being dragged to three sets by former Australian Open champion Kenin but she came through 6-2, 4-6, 7-6(10-3).

The sixth seed’s reward for a battling victory was a blockbuster Saturday showdown with another Grand Slam winner in Madison Keys, with the duo meeting as their country marks the 250th anniversary of its independence.

Anisimova admitted there were “really awful” moments in her match and she was bailed out by her serve, firing 20 aces.

“I never thought I’d say this but thank you to my serve. I’m not a good server at all but after today, I can say that I am,” a beaming Anisimova said on court.

“I’m really happy with my performance, especially with the end. Shout out to Sofia, she’s such a good opponent and a real fighter… I was down and told myself to keep fighting.

“I tried to bring myself back to the present moment. I try to remind myself – have fun, you’re playing at Wimbledon.”

Fritz emerging as genuine contender

Fritz had an enjoyable outing in his own all-American clash on Court Two and the 2025 semi-finalist, a genuine contender on grass with his huge serve and forehand, advanced with a 6-2, 6-2, 7-5 victory over Patrick Kypson.

The sixth seed joined US colleagues Marcos Giron and Zachary Svajda in advancing, with Michael Zheng, Tommy Paul and Jenson Brooksby all going through on Wednesday.

In all, 15 Americans have advanced to the third round of the singles draws, matching the 2000 total and marking the most since 16 reached that stage in 1995.

Giron, Svajda and Zheng face big tests in the next round when they play French Open champion Alexander Zverev, fifth seed Alex de Minaur and third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime respectively but Brooksby has the unenviable task of trying to topple Jannik Sinner.

Zverev continued his bid for a second straight Grand Slam trophy by beating unseeded Frenchman Valentin Royer 6-1 6-3 7-6(3) while Australian De Minaur dispatched another Frenchman in the tricky Adrian Mannarino with a 6-3 6-2 6-2 win.

Victories for Ashlyn Krueger and Emma Navarro meant eight American women advanced to the third round along with Iva Jovic, Jessica Pegula, Coco Gauff and Claire Liu.