American tennis star Madison Keys defeated No. 1 ranked player Aryna Sabalenka to win the Australian Open on Saturday.
The 29-year-old Keys won a close match 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 to claim his first Grand Slam title.
Keys finished with just one point more than Sabalenka, scoring 92 points overall compared to Sabalenka's 91 points.
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Madison Keys of the United States receives the Daphne Ackhurst Memorial Cup from Evonne Goolagong-Coley after defeating Belarus's Aryna Sabalenka in the women's singles final of the Australian Open Tennis Championships on Saturday, January 25 in Melbourne, Australia. center) responds. 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Hang-guan)
Sabalenka was aiming for her third straight Australian Open title, the last time she did it against Martina Hingis from 1997 to 1999.
This is the second time in Keys' career that she has had a chance at a major title, the last time being at the 2017 U.S. Open, where she lost to compatriot Sloane Stephens 6-3, 6-0.
Although Keys had high expectations for her tennis career, she began to accept the fact that she might never win a Grand Slam title.
“From a very young age, I felt that if I didn't win a Grand Slam, I wasn't living up to what people thought I should be. That was a pretty heavy burden to carry,” Keys said. Ta. .
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Madison Keys of the United States reacts during the women's singles final against Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus at the Australian Open Tennis Championships on Saturday, January 25, 2025 in Melbourne, Australia. (AP Photo/Vincent Tian)
“So I finally got to the point where I could be proud of myself and my career, with or without a Grand Slam. I finally got to the point where I was okay even if the Grand Slam didn't happen. I didn't need that. “I didn't feel like I had a good career or that I deserved to be talked about as a great tennis player.”
“I feel like I've finally been able to let go of that inner story that gave me the ability to actually go out and play really good tennis and actually win a Grand Slam.”
Not only did Keys upset No. 1 Sabalenka, she also defeated No. 2 Iga Swientek in the semifinals on her way to the Australian Open title.
Keys became the first woman since Serena Williams in 2005 to defeat both of the top two WTA players at Melbourne Park. She said that defeating Swiatek gave her confidence that she could also defeat Sabalenka.
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The American speaks at a press conference after winning the Daphne Ackhurst Memorial Cup by defeating Belarus's Aryna Sabalenka in the women's singles final at the Australian Open Tennis Championships on Saturday, January 25, 2025 in Melbourne, Australia. Madison Keys. (AP Photo/Vincent Tian)
“It was a really big hurdle to win against Iga the other day,” Keys said. “I always believed I could do it, but to do that — I really thought after the game that we were going to win on Saturday.”
This will be Keys' 46th appearance in the tournament, the third-most appearances before winning a women's major title, behind Flavia Pennetta's 49 and Marion Bartoli's 47.
“I never believed for a long time that I would make it this far, but to be able to do it and win it means a lot to me.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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