What can be worse than losing to the same opponent who you thrashed two months ago with a double bagel on grass? For Iga Swiatek, perhaps it’s not the outcome from her latest encounter with Amanda Anisimova that’s causing panic but something else. Talk about struggling with your body that compromises your remaining season. For the six-time slam queen, the concluding phase of 2025 appears to be an out-of-body experience. Especially after her glorious run at Wimbledon and then Cincinnati. Moving forward, however, clouds of uncertainty are now knocking on the door.

As if the defeat against Anisimova wasn’t enough to make her feel dejected, Swiatek just spilled the beans on another worrying situation. Seems like an unwanted setback marred her US Open run. Following her shocking exit from New York, the Pole took to her Instagram account while extending praise for her opponent’s remarkable performance. “Thank you, New York 🗽and congratulations @amandaanisimova – you played amazing. Good luck for the rest of the tournament.👏🏼”

But what came next was a bummer for her fans. Swiatek revealed that the US Open campaign was “challenging for me and for my team”. How? She mentioned “Playing matches without practicing on days off” while revealing her “foot issue”. Now that’s not good news given the fact there are still many events left this season for her to compete. Most importantly, the WTA Finals in Riyadh in November. Further, the Pole underlined how she pushed herself “through a lot” and “made it to the quarterfinals with a lot on our plate, and I’m pretty proud of what I did in these circumstances.”

Showing resilience despite a disappointing end to her US Open campaign, she wrote, “I’ll be back next year with a lot of determination.💪🏼” while noting that she needs “time to get some rest, take care of the body and grind more in Asia. See you soon!”

While she’s trying to skip what happened on Wednesday night, Swiatek couldn’t help but express her raw thoughts on the massive debacle against Anisimova. So what did she actually think of her performance?

Iga Swiatek reacts to unexpected defeat against Amanda Anisimova

About 53 days ago, she demolished the 24-year-old American in just 57 minutes during the Wimbledon final on grass. Without letting Anisimova even breathe for a second, the Pole bested her with a double bagel scoreline. In sports, however, not every chapter has the exact same ending. It became evident from the result of their second meeting on Wednesday, but on hard court this time.

Anisimova proved to be simply unplayable for Swiatek. Perhaps the six-time slam champion also realized it later. “I think I didn’t serve the best throughout the whole tournament, but I think because (Anisimova) returned so well, you could see the bigger difference,” she admitted during the press conference. “I’m aware I couldn’t win today’s match playing like that, serving like that, and with Amanda being so aggressive on the returns. So I kind of get it.”

But was there anything she could do to avert this loss? Probably not. “I kind of have to let it go and just focus on the next one,” she concluded. It will be intriguing to see how the former World No.1 bounces back from this. Meanwhile, her avid fans will hope that she recovers from her foot injury sooner than later and steps back on the court. How long will it take, though? Only time will tell.

Don’t forget to follow our live US Open blog to get real-time updates on all the action from Flushing Meadows. While we await the much anticipated semi-finals clash between Anisimova and Osaka, we caught up with some of your favorite stars. Here is what Mirra Andreeva had to say: