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The American Madison Keys destroyed all predictions at the Australian Open. It was not enough for her to overcome a match point in the semi-finals against the No. 2, the Polish Iga Swiatek. She completed her masterpiece by overthrowing the two-time champion and world No. 1, the Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, 6-3, 2-6 and 7-5 in 2h.02′.
At 29 years old, eight after losing the final of the 2017 US Open to her compatriot Sloane Stephens, she experienced her moment of glory in world tennis.
Recently married to former player Bjorn Fratangelo, since the party in November everything has been happiness for pupil and coach. They have won 13 of their 14 games, they have won the last eleven.
She was able to beat the one who was called to be queen for the third consecutive time. Sabalenka was left without a hat trick, as she destroyed her racket once she completed her defeat.
Madison Keys stronger in the end
Keys coped well with the agony of a final full of emotions. Sabalenka was far from being the player who overwhelmed Badosa. Strangely, in her fourth Grand Slam final, she seemed more nervous than ever.
Keys laughed and cried because she did not expect a better gift at Melbourne Park, adorned with her return to the world top-10: on Monday she will rise from fourteenth to seventh position. She has worked on it with great dedication and enthusiasm, believing in herself. Only with faith and tennis could Sabalenka be dethroned, who had 20 consecutive victories in Grand Slam and at the Australian Open, who was knocked out after eleven consecutive victories on the court.
Keys’ performance was unexpected, overcoming the reaction in the second set of a rival without the inspiration of other days, too anxious. The world turned upside down, the champion of four Grand Slams suffered more than the one who is now making her debut, taking over from Sofia Kenin, the previous American winner in this Open, in 2020 at the expense of Garbiñe Muguruza.
Historic first Grand Slam
At 29 years of age, the tennis player from Illinois (United States) became the fourth oldest player to win her first Grand Slam title, behind the Italian Flavia Pennetta (US Open at 33 years old), the British Ann Jones ( Wimbledon at 30 years old) and the transalpine Francesca Schiavone (Roland Garros at 29 years old).
This was Keys’ tenth title in his professional history, having previously lifted the trophies at Eastbourne in 2014 and 2023, Birmingham 2016, Stanford 2017, Charleston and Cincinnati 2019, Adelaide II in 2022, Strasbourg 2024 and also Adelaide in early this year, a contest that preceded this great achievement in his career.
Before her conquest, 15 other North American tennis players had managed to win the Oceanic Grand Slam: Dorothy Bundi (1938), Doris Hart (1949), Louise Brough (1950), Maureen Connolly (1953), Shirley Fry (1957), Nancy Richey (1967), Billie Jean King (1968), Barbara Jordan (1979), Martina Navratilova (1981, 1983 and 1985), Christ Evert (1982 and 1984), Monica Seles (1996), Lindsay Davenport (2000), Jennifer Capriati (2001 and 2002), Serena Williams (2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2015 and 2017) and Sofia Kenin (2020).
The greatest exponent of the Australian Open continues to be the local Margaret Smith, who won 11 titles from 1060 to 1973.
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