Keys upsets Expert Sabalenka to win the Australian Open 2025
Keys has finally won her first Grand Slam, ending a wait of over 15 years. She overcame all odds to defeat Aryna Sabalenka in the final. The match lasted over two hours, requiring three sets for Keys to overcome the world No. 1. With this victory, Keys became the first player since 2009 to defeat both the world No. 1 and No. 2 in the same tournament.
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Aryna Sabalenka was hunting for a fourth Grand Slam and third consecutive Australian Open. This is her second defeat in a Grand Slam final. Keys, on the other hand, now has a 50% record in Grand Slam finals.
Keys takes early momentum
Madison Keys knew that she had to play her best tennis against a very hard hitter. The American was ready for the challenge. She made a perfect start in the first set. Keys was good on the first serve and experienced an 86% success rate. Her opponent struggled a bit and only completed 57% of her first serves. Aryna also made four double faults in the set.
Both players managed to break each other in the opening set. Keys broke three times, while Sabalenka broke only once. This allowed the Americans to take the first set with ease. She won 6-3 and had the upper hand in the final.
Aryna Sabalenka returns to best
It was a very disappointing first set by the 26-year-old. She struggled to put her foot in the game. However, the second set was completely different from the first one. This time she was the better serving player. Sabalenka’s 1st serve percentage was 81 in the second set. Keys saw a massive decrease in her serve percentage. She only made 59% successful serves.
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Aryna was able to convert two out of the six break points she earned. The Bulgarian also saved three break points and that allowed her to take the set 6-2.
The decider
The match went to a third set. It was a good match from a neutral point of view. Sabalenka came back from a set down and this was her moment to create history. However, Keys was not going down easily. She was fully focused on winning her first Grand Slam.
Both players held their serve from the very first game. The first-serve percentage dropped to 60% for both players. Madison Keys was better at winning points from her first serve. She won 17 out of the possible 20 points.
Keys won the semi-final in three sets. The third set went into a tiebreaker. The final was also heading towards a tie-breaker. However, Keys had other plans. Sabalenka was serving at 5-6. Keys managed to earn a break point and that was the first one of the third set. Sabalenka saved the first match point but was unable to save the second one. Keys took the set and match 7-5 to lift her first major tournament.
