CNN
—
Madison Keys won her first ever grand slam title on Saturday, stunning two-time defending champion and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-3 2-6 7-5 in a thrilling Australian Open women’s final.
The 29-year-old American initially enjoyed one of those golden days when every part of her game came together perfectly – her serve was immaculate, her returns aggressive and her groundstrokes as powerful as the notoriously powerful Sabalenka – as she raced into an early one-set lead.
But in the second set – as Sabalenka displayed all the qualities that have made her the most dominant hard-court player on the women’s tour – Keys’ easy, languid rhythm deserted her and all the momentum seemed to swing back towards the Belarusian.
Keys has come close to a grand slam title before, reaching the 2017 US Open final and four major semifinals. But none of that pressure seemed to affect her in the final set as she held her nerve, finally broke Sabalenka at 7-5, raised her arms to the sky in celebration before running over to her team, embracing her coach and husband Bjorn Fratangelo.
A former prodigy who seemed destined for grand slam success early in her career, Keys had never quite reached the heights she was expected to reach, until now. She suffered a devastating and comprehensive 6-3 6-0 loss to Sloane Stephens in the 2017 US Open final before somehow losing to Sabalenka in the 2023 US Open semifinal despite being a set and a break up.
“I have wanted this for so long and I have been in one other grand slam final. It did not go my way and I didn’t know if I was every going to be able to get back to this position to try to win a trophy again,” she said in her on-court interview afterwards, her voice cracking with emotion. “And my team believed in me every step of the way so thank you so much.
“Last year was so tough with some really bad injuries and I didn’t know if I was going to be able to do it again and to be here and to have this trophy and to also be able to do it with my husband who is kind of dazed and confused over there, I love you all so much and I cannot wait for more.”
This year, something seemed different for Keys. She came into this final on the back of an incredible run through this tournament, sweeping past higher ranked players like Elena Rybakina, Danielle Collins and world No. 2 Iga Świątek, and became the first woman since Serena Williams in 2005 to defeat the world No. 1 and No. 2 seeds at the Australian Open.
And Keys continued that momentum in the final, opening with a ferocity that blew Sabalenka off the court as she raced to a 5-1 lead. Though Sabalenka seemed uncharacteristically rattled, conceding two double faults and a break in her first service game, it was Keys’ outstanding tennis that forced the world No. 1 into so many errors.
She missed just three first serves in the first set and every shot she attempted seemed to find its target – even a backhand slice that looked to be heading into the net ghosted over it, leaving Sabalenka marooned on the baseline, only able to grimace as the ball landed well out of her reach.
Keys then wrapped up the first set 6-3, and Sabalenka left the court immediately to reset and try to kickstart her comeback.
As Sabalenka’s serve became more accurate in the second set, giving her more of a foothold in the match, shots that Keys had made in the first set floated long or became tangled up in the net and she hit as many unforced errors in the first four games of the second set as she had done in the entirety of the first.
Sabalenka broke Keys twice, took control of the second set, and suddenly the scores were level.
With the pressure building, Keys served first in the third set and set the tone early, winning every point in her first service game. Sabalenka matched her stride-for-stride, however, and the score remained locked on serve at 5-5. Not since 2012 had a women’s grand slam final been so close in the third set.
It seemed as if the match was heading for a deciding tiebreak but Keys found an extra burst of energy, produced two forehand winners to hold serve and make it 6-5, before breaking Sabalenka with another winner to make it 7-5 and secure the win.
Sabalenka, who had been seeking to become the first woman for 26 years to win three consecutive Australian Open titles, was left stunned and smashed her racket on the floor in frustration before recovering to congratulate Keys and joke around with her team during the trophy ceremony afterwards.
“As always, that’s your fault guys!” she joked. “I don’t want to see you for the next week – I really hate you! Thank you so much for everything and blah, blah blah.
“I think we did our best, just Madison was doing incredible and I couldn’t do anything in this match. Next time I play Madison I will bring better tennis. Of course, sending love to my team. I love you even though we lost.”
This story has been updated with additional information.
