Amanda Anisimova’s first tournament run of her 2026 season ended in the third round after suffering a defeat to Marta Kostyuk at the Brisbane International.
The American, seeded second at the tournament, lost in straight sets to Kostyuk, 6-4, 6-3.
Ansimova recorded her best season in professional tennis last year, during which she clinched two WTA 1000 titles, while also making Grand Slam finals at Wimbledon and the US Open.
She had enjoyed a positive start to 2026, having reached a career-high ranking of third in the world.
It was not to be for Anisimova in Brisbane, however, who Kostyuk had high praise for after triumphing.
Marta Kostyuk reacts after beating Amanda Anisimova in Brisbane
In her on-court interview, the Ukrainian said: “It sounds like a new year!
“I practiced with Amanda like a week ago and she absolutely destroyed me in practice so I was coming into this match super ready.
“But obviously she’s an unbelievable player, and she had an amazing season last year, and I didn’t have the best season last year.
Who is your dark horse for the 2026 Australian Open?
“I’m very happy to start like this, and I’m so happy because it’s my first time playing on centre court here.
“I played you many years, but I never got a chance to play here, but thank you so much.
“I was incredibly happy to come out on court and see a full stadium, it’s an incredible feeling always as a tennis player because this is what we’re playing for.”
Marta Kostyuk said Amanda Ansimova is ‘such a hard hitter’
When asked if it was the best match she had ever played, Kostyuk responded: “I think I played really, really good, and you know, we did an amazing preparation with my team.
“And I feel, you know, everything that we’ve done is kicking in and it’s just the first week of the year so, you know, always happy to get the results so quick.
Who is your favorite player on the WTA Tour right now?
“And, yeah, I mean, it was a great match, and I feel like, also, tactically, I played really good. Amanda is such a hard hitter.
“It’s really difficult to create something in the point, but very happy I managed to do that today, and yeah, it was a good match.”
Kostyuk is the 16th seed at the Brisbane International this year, and is currently ranked 26th in the world.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
