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American tennis star Amanda Anisimova dismissed a tennis reporter’s question about how it felt to play in the United States with “everything that’s happened.”
Anisimova was among the American players to receive a similar question at the Australian Open this week. First, she was asked how it felt to “play under the American flag right now.”
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Amanda Anisimova of the United States reacts after defeating Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic in their second round match at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
“I was born in America. So I’m always proud to represent my country,” the New Jersey native said. “A lot of us are doing really well and it’s great to see a lot of great athletes on the women’s and men’s side. I feel like we’re all doing a great job of representing ourselves.”
The reporter later tried to clarify the issue, asking “in the context of the last year of everything that’s happened in the United States, does that complicate that feeling at all?”
“I don’t think that’s relevant,” she shot back.
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Amanda Anisimova of the United States is congratulated by Katerina Siniakova, right, of the Czech Republic after their second round match at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Anisimova’s response was a stark contrast from what Coco Gauff said during the tournament earlier this week.
Gauff was asked about her thoughts on the “state of America” a year into President Donald Trump’s second term.
“I hope going forward that we can have a lot more peace in our country and more kindness in the way we talk to each other about different topics and things like that,” she said via The Tennis Letter. “Obviously, I’ve been pretty vocal about how I felt. At this point, I feel kind of tired of talking about it, just because it’s hard to also be a black woman in this country and have to experience things, even online, and see marginalized communities being affected. And knowing that I can only donate and speak up. I’m trying my best to do that.
Amanda Anisimova of the United States reacts after defeating Simona Waltert of Switzerland in their first round match at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
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“But, yeah, I’m hoping that as time goes on that we can reach a state that we’re not in right now, and we keep moving forward. I posted the video of Martin Luther King, and it was kind of like saying, ‘We’ve got to keep moving forward,’ even though things may not be as calm as I’d like them to be right now.”
