The grass-court crown is up for grabs, and as the gates of the ‘All England Club’ prepare to open, the hunt for America’s next Wimbledon queen intensifies. It’s been a long wait since Serena Williams’s 2016 triumph, but with back-to-back GS wins already this year, the stars seem to be aligning. While Madison Keys and Coco Gauff stand tall among the favorites, former WTA pro Coco Vandeweghe isn’t placing her bet there. Instead, she’s backing a dark horse to carry the American flag to glory. And to be honest, Vandeweghe’s pick just might shock us all.
Keys has a reasonably good 25-10 win-loss record on Wimbledon grass and has reached the quarterfinals twice, in 2015 and 2023. But her 2024 campaign ended in heartbreak, falling to Jasmine Paolini in the 4th round after injury derailed her momentum. Fast forward to now, the 2025 Australian Open champion’s grass court form seems to be shaky. She lost her semifinal round to eventual champion Tatjana Maria at the HSBC championship, before being ousted by Markéta Vondroušová in R32 in Berlin.
Meanwhile, Coco Gauff has reached the R16 at Wimbledon three times: 2019, 2021, and most recently in 2024, but has yet to break through that barrier. Her latest outing on grass didn’t inspire much confidence either, as she suffered a shocking R16 exit at the Berlin Championships, adding another setback to her grass-court record.
And as Wimbledon draws near, former WTA pro CoCo Vandeweghe is switching gears. She’s ditching the Aussie Open queen and throwing her full support behind a bold new American face, 23-year-old Amanda Anisimova.
In a recent discussion on Tennis Channel, former pro Coco Vandeweghe made waves with a bold prediction. While Andy Roddick placed his faith in Madison Keys to lift the Wimbledon crown, Coco took a sharp turn, bypassing the AO champion for a rising force in American tennis, Amanda Anisimova. “Maddie Keys has definitely been the more consistent player at Wimbledon than all these other women combined. But I’m going to go with Amanda Anisimova. I think she’s got the best chance out there,” she declared.
HSBC Tennis Championships, Ladies Finals Queens Club, London, UK – 15 Jun 2025 Amanda Anisimova USA in action during the Final against Tatjiana Maria GER in the 2025 HSBC Championships at Queens Club London Queens Club London GBR, UK NEWSPAPERS OUT Copyright: xMarkxGreenwoodx
Vandeweghe didn’t stop at mere preference as she broke down the strategy behind her pick. She pointed out that Keys’ game has undergone a major shift, something that might backfire on grass this year. “Just because of what Andy’s been talking about is that ball flight. That ball flight is just so flat from Anisimova, and I think the problem that Keys is going to face here this year, more than any other year, is that she’s changed her game a lot more,” Coco explained.
The former pro went further, zeroing in on Keys’ service game, which could prove to be a double-edged sword. “She’s gone to the quick serve more consistently. She’s gone more into the heaviness of that forehand. And sometimes if you’re not confident in that, that ball can sit up, and these women are just way too good returning and can rifle it back. So that’s where I’m kind of faltering on Keys, and I’m leaning more towards Anisimova,” she continued.
To be honest, while Madison Keys and French Open champion Coco Gauff continue to carry the weight of American hopes, Vandeweghe’s reasoning holds merit. Anisimova has quietly built an impressive 2025 campaign, racking up 25 wins in 37 matches and capturing her maiden WTA 1000 title at the Qatar Open. Even last week, she surged to her 6th career final at Queen’s Club, only to fall to the surprising Tatjana Maria. Yet the fire didn’t fade; she rebounded quickly, marching into the Berlin QF with statement wins over Magdalena Frech and Bianca Andreescu.
Though she eventually bowed out to 20th seed Liudmila Samsonova, Anisimova’s pre-Wimbledon form is loud and clear; she’s ready.
But with that rise comes the pressure. The 23-year-old, who moved from Russia to the US with her parents in pursuit of a tennis dream, recently opened up about the intensity of expectation.
Amanda Anisimova opens up about her career-saving break
In the cutthroat world of professional tennis, rest is considered a luxury. The myth is loud and relentless; if you stop, even for a moment, you’re done. In a sport defined by razor-thin margins, the grind never stops. Train, compete, win, repeat. Because if you don’t, someone else will, and once your name fades from the draw, it may never return again.
Amanda Anisimova knows that myth all too well. A former teenage sensation, she found herself suffocating beneath the crushing weight of it. 2 years ago, in the darkest stretch of her young career, the pressure became unbearable. Depression gripped her, the tour felt impossible to endure, and her soul begged for stillness. “I had done that my whole life – pushing through everything – because I never took any breaks,” Anisimova shared. “I felt like it was just unfair for me to keep pushing and pushing as if I’m not a human being.”
Back in 2019, at only 17, the American stormed into the French Open SF and nearly stole the show. But in hindsight, that teenage wonder didn’t yet grasp the magnitude of what she’d achieved. “I was obviously very young, and I didn’t have to deal with the highs and lows of the sport so much,” she admitted. The lows came soon, in 2022. “I was just struggling with the lifestyle and just dealing with a lot of stress from it, and it was affecting me a lot on the court,” she said, per The Guardian. Despite that, she continued playing. That, too, for months. Until she finally realized she couldn’t.
Tennis – 2025 WTA, Tennis Damen HSBC Championships – Women s Final — Amanda Anisimova USA vs Tatjana Maria GER – The Queens Club – Sunday 15th June 2025. An exasperated Amanda Anisimova USA after a long rally of lobs and returns Colorsport/Daniel Bearham PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxUK csp_ten_quW_db_15062025_
“I know not many people are able to take a break from their career or their life. So, of course, I’m very grateful that I had the opportunity to do that,” she reflected. “If I wasn’t going to be ready to come back, or if my body wasn’t going to be able to handle it, I knew that I would have to figure out something else to do. But I don’t think pushing through it was an option for me at that point.” To unwind, the tennis star went on vacations she had never gone on before. Spent more time with close ones and even went to study for one semester at Florida’s Nova Southeastern University, in person. She also took up painting and donated her art to charitable efforts before finally finding her way back to the sport towards the end of 2023.
Now 23 and battle-tested, Anisimova returns to Wimbledon as a 2022 quarterfinalist with something stronger than hype and perspective. The break didn’t break her. It rebuilt her. As the All England Club beckons, one question stirs the grass: how far will Amanda Anisimova go this time? What are your thoughts?
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