Vamanda Anisimova Has Found Success In The Pros At 17

Amanda Anisimova has found success in the pros at 17. Just wait until she realizes her full potential

- Nina Pantic

Tall and blonde; born in Russia with a game honed in Florida; a Nike dress-wearing teenager with the powerful groundstrokes and mental toughness of a veteran champion. It is a young Maria Sharapova and the present-day Amanda Anisimova.

The similarities between the 17-year-old and her idol don’t stop there. Anisimova is also represented by IMG, grew up training at a prestigious tennis academy, and has been coached on and off by her father.

“I have always looked up to her and was watching her when I was little,” Anisimova has said about Sharapova. “She’s a great person to look up to.”

There are some key differences. Born in New Jersey to Russian parents, who moved Amanda and her older sister to Florida for better tennis opportunities, Anisimova represents the United States. She trained at Nick Saviano’s academy, not Nick Bollettieri’s. At 5’11”, she’s three inches shorter than Sharapova. And unless Anisimova, who turns 18 in August, wins Wimbledon this summer, she’s not on the same track as Sharapova was at 17.