American tennis star Madison Keys has defeated top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus at the 2025 Australian Open to win her first Grand Slam. Keys, ranked No. 19, came in as a heavy underdog but won the match 6-3, 2-6, 7-5, ESPN reported.
The 29-year-old star also became the second-oldest first-time women’s winner at the Australian Open. China’s Li Na, who won the tournament at age 31 in 2014, is still the oldest first-time winner. Additionally, “she is the first women’s singles player to defeat the world’s top two players at a Grand Slam since Svetlana Kuznetsova at Roland Garros in 2009, and the first to do so at the Australian Open since Serena Williams in 2005,” per Getty Images.
“I just kept telling myself, ‘Be brave, go for it, just kind of lay it all out on the line.’ At that point, no matter what happens, if I do that, then I can be proud of myself. It just made it a little bit easier,” Keys told reporters after her victory, per ESPN.
Keys started fast in her match at the Australian Open as Sabalenka struggled with her serve. The American star took the first set 6-3 in 35 minutes. Sabalenka came out with more energy in the second set and won it 6-2 to force a decider. The two women went back and forth in the third set, but it was Keys who prevailed in the end and celebrated with a scream as she secured her first Grand Slam title.
Keys proved her resilience throughout the tournament, earning five three-set wins. The 29-year-old superstar defeated four top-10 seeds on her way to the championship.
“I really felt like going into each match that if I could just try to go out, play how I wanted to play, I was really just going to give myself the opportunity to try to win the match,” Keys said. “I felt like not stressing about things that I couldn’t control. I just felt like I was able to play a little bit more free.”
Despite some ups and downs, Keys is proud to say that she stayed confident throughout the tournament.
“I think there was a confidence in maybe not playing matches amazingly from start to finish and having some dips here and there, but being able to end on a really high note each time and figure out how to get back in matches or how to close out a match really well,” Keys said. “I just slowly started continuing to build the confidence.”
