FORMER Top 20 talent Amanda Anisimova will re-enter the Top 50 in the world after reaching the National Bank Open final with a fourth straight Top 20 victory in the semi-finals. She knocked off compatriot Emma Navarro in three sets, 6-3 2-6 6-2, to be the lowest ranked Canadian Open finalist in four decades.

Anisimova was ranked 132nd coming into the tournament, but went against odds with a nightmare draw to knock out Aryna Sabalenka, Daria Kasatkina and Anna Kalinskaya, with the trio and Navarro making it an incredible giant-killing run.

Having missed eight months last year after taking a mental health break and entering the year outside the Top 300, Anisimova has quickly bolted into the Top 50. On the live rankings, Anisimova is 49th, while a win in the final would see her rise to an incredible 36th in the world, a rise of 96 spots in one tournament.

“I knew that when I stepped away that I really wanted to come back and I didn’t want to finish my career on that note,” Anisimova said post-match. “There was still a lot that I wanted to achieve, and just not finish at such a young age, because I had sacrificed so much and given so much to the sport. So, yeah, I knew that I still had many years that I wanted to play.”

Anisimova is no stranger to big matches in her younger years, reaching a Roland Garros semi-final as a teenager, and a Wimbledon quarter final 12 months later. While challenges have seen her take a step back from her tennis, she is back and ready to ascend the mountain once again.

“This is a huge accomplishment for me, and something I’ve been working really hard towards,” Anisimova said. “I’m just super happy, honestly, with my week here, and I’m pretty surprised with how well I’ve been able to do so far.

“I’m still hungry for more, and I hope that I can really do well tomorrow.”

Anisimova out-hit Navarro with 28 winners to 10 in the match, also serving four aces to two and winning 73 and 58 per cent of her first and second serve points. She looked good to win in straight sets when 2-1 up following a break, only for her opponent to string five consecutive games together and level the score. Anisimova got back on top in the decider however, gaining and early break and then once again late in the set to secure the three set win.

In the other semi-final, world number six Jessica Pegula defeated rising Russian young gun Diana Shnaider in straight sets. The third seed won 6-4 6-3 over the world number 24 to reach the decider and create an all-American decider in Toronto.