Where will Amanda Anisimova start her 2026 tennis schedule after breakthrough year?

Amanda Anisimova was one of the best stories of the 2025 season with the US star becoming a top five player, a bonafide contender for Grand Slams and multiple WTA 1000 winner. But where does her 2026 start?

Anisimova technically will play again before 2026 as she plays exhibitions in Miami and New Jersey next weekend so fans will get to see her one last time. But in terms of her 2026 plans, nothing is massively set in stone to actually start her season.

She will not play United Cup with the main WTA star role going to Coco Gauff who will partner Taylor Fritz in Australia. But while that's the case, she has previously played in Auckland and Hobart in the weeks leading up to the Australian Open.

Albeit the Auckland of it all likely would've been confirmed by now with Elina Svitolina and Emma Navarro being top seeds at the ASB Classic in the opening week;. She could feasibly play in Brisbane or Adelaide in the weeks that follow with Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina starting their seasons there.

Or she could wait for Hobart International which is played between Jan 12-17 the week before the Australian Open. Or feasibly she could just take a Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka type move for some events and not play at all before the main event. In the past she has picked and choosed not wanting to massively head into anything too quickly and this strategy has paid off as she has always given herself time to breathe and take time away. Something that previously blighted the American and saw her take a mental health break from the sport.

Post Australian Open which takes place between Jan 18 - Feb 1, she will likely play Qatar and Dubai given they are both WTA 1000's and Swiatek and Sabalenka know through fines and ranking cuts that playing the mandatories is in the best interest. The same can be said for Anisimova's ranking as she is defending champion in Qatar. She won the title defeating Jelena Ostapenko in the Latvian's usually mid season run of being one of the best in the world for a short time.

Dubai is less so in regards to defending points as she was beaten by McCartney Kessler last year in the first round and has never made it past the second round of the tournament. While when it comes to Indian Wells and Miami that as of right now would be her next tournaments after the February double header, she also defends very little.

She was beaten in the first round by Belinda Bencic in 2025 who had just won Abu Dhabi so was in great form. While in Miami, the American reached the fourth round. After falling to Raducanu this year, she will hope to add what would be a first Quarter-Final in the event. Charleston at the end of March (30th - April 5) is then likely her next landing spot. She started her clay court season there this year losing to Sofia Kenin in the last four. Then it is onto the clay triple bill in Madrid during mid April, Rome during early May and French Open from May 24 - June 7..

She lost early in all three especially Madrid and Rome where she lost in the first round against Peyton Stearns and Veronika Kudermetova. In Paris, she lost in a tight two-set battle with Aryna Sabalenka but it will mainly be Wimbledon where the points are defended.

She lost in the final of Queen's, last eight in Berlin and then the final at Wimbledon. These events of course don't include sign ups late on but if she plays the bare minimum she should be at all these events realistically again.