(CNN)As her down-the-line backhand flew past Simona Halep, 17-year-old Amanda Anisimova dropped her racquet to the side, put her hands on her face, and simply said, “What!” Just like that, a star was born. American Anisimova reached the French Open semifinals after knocking out defending champion and world No. 3 Halep 6-2 6-4 in Paris in one hour, eight minutes. With the win, Anisimova is the youngest American woman to make a major semifinal since Venus Williams was runner-up at the 1997 US Open and is the youngest American woman in the semis at Roland Garros since Jennifer Capriati in 1990. Visit CNN.com/sport for more news, features and videos Read More She’s also yet to drop a set in this tournament. “I can’t believe it,” Anisimova said on court after the win. “I’ve been working so hard, but I didn’t think it would pay off like this. This is honestly more than anything I could ask for.” Amazing Amanda!https://t.co/gVXdWyx95u#RG19 pic.twitter.com/CuRnIFQRmk— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 6, 2019 Anisimova was born in New Jersey on August 31, 2001, less than two weeks before the September 11 terror attacks. Her parents, Olga and Konstantin, had moved to the US from Moscow in 1998 with…