Less than two months on from the Wimbledon showpiece, Anisimova - with an impressive combination of mental strength and powerful tennis - fought her way into the final of her home Grand Slam.
The American held her nerve in the semi-final against four-time major winner Naomi Osaka 6-7(4), 7-6(3), 6-3, and is now aiming to crown her young career with a victory over top seed and defending champion Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday evening.
Targeting success on home soil
"I don't know how I did it," an overwhelmed Anisimova said after her victory.
"It means the world to me. I'm still trying to understand it. It's definitely a dream for me to be in the US Open final."
A daughter of Russian emigrants, Anisimova was born around an hour's drive from the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Centre in New York in 2001, and quickly developed a soft spot for tennis.
By the time she reached the semi-finals of the French Open at the age of 17, she had become world famous and the great hope of US tennis. This was followed by a million-dollar deal with Nike - and many difficult moments.
Starting from scratch
Anisimova was particularly affected by the untimely death of her father at the age of 52 following a heart attack. Two years ago, burnt out, she withdrew from the Tour and took a month-long break from tennis.
When she returned at the start of the 2024 season, Anisimova was ranked 442nd in the rankings - and was effectively starting all over again.
After steady progress, her major breakthrough came earlier in the summer when she reached the final at Wimbledon. The outcome, however, was extremely painful.
The end result was 6-0, 6-0 against Iga Swiatek, making it one of the most one-sided finals in Grand Slam history.
Anisimova was understandably upset on court during the ceremony, which makes her subsequent run to the final in New York all the more impressive.
Bouncing back
In the quarter-finals, she successfully took revenge on Swiatek before defying the odds against Osaka and shaking off her nervousness in time.
"I've really worked on myself to be able to deal with moments like that and to believe in myself," said Anisimova.
Her new mental strength could be the decisive piece of the puzzle on the way to the big goal. The only thing standing in her way is defending champion Sabalenka - one last mammoth task before a maiden major?
