Amanda Anisimova Sets The Record Straight After ‘Clickbait’ USA Politics Question Gets Her Into Trouble At Australian Open

Amanda Anisimova found herself at the centre of a media controversy at the 2026 Australian Open, not for stellar performance on court, but for how she handled a politically charged question off it. The major began on January 18 and will finish on February 1 at Melbourne Park.

Anisimova is now in a good place at the Australian Open, having reached the quarterfinal. She advanced after defeating Wang Xiyu in the fourth round by recording an impressive 7-6(4), 6-4 win. She opened her campaign against Katerina Siniakova, and during the post-match press conference of her opening round, a journalist asked her views on how it felt to play under the American flag amid the current political climate in the US.

The world No. 4 responded firmly to this question, stating that she was always proud of representing her country, and these external issues were not relevant to her tournament. This exchange quickly spread online, and in the press conference after the fourth round, she addressed the situation, stating that she wasn’t interested in engaging with what she saw as irrelevant political bait. (3:35 onwards)

“I feel like the internet is, you know, it’s tough and um it comes with the job, which is something that I’ve learned to get used to and there are definitely days where it bothers me a little bit and I tell myself it’s okay to get upset or frustrated because at the end of the at the end of the day, I’m human. I mean it can be pretty difficult, but it’s not worth so much of my energy and time, and that’s something that I’ve learned to get used to,” said Amanda Anisimova.

She added:

“I mean, like in my other press conference, the fact that I didn’t want to answer a question that was obviously intended for just like a headline and clickbait, that was my right. And, it had nothing to do with my political views or anything like that. So, the fact that people assume that they know like my stance on certain important topics is just wrong and it’s not factual. But yeah, that’s it’s tough, but I’ve learned to get used to it and yeah, I felt like my tweet was just not worth it and like I just didn’t want to give my energy.”

Amanda Anisimova Made Her Feelings Known About Reaching The Australian Open Quarterfinals

Amanda Anisimova is now all set to meet Jessica Pegula in the quarterfinal of the Australian Open. In the aforementioned press conference, she was asked about her thoughts on reaching the quarterfinals for the first time. Revealing that she has been enjoying every round here, she said: (0:09 onwards)