'Unbelievably cool' breakthrough for Madison Keys with Australian Open glory in final, 'devastating' for Aryna Sabalenka

Madison Keys defeated two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in three sets to win her first Grand Slam title in Melbourne. But the American had to work hard for her 6-3 2-6 7-5 victory, the win coming in just over two hours. There were chances for both players, but Keys won it with some “brave” tennis in the final few games, according to the Eurosport experts.

'She stepped up and dominated' - Robson and Courier react to Keys triumph in final

Video credit: TNT Sports

Madison Keys finally got her hands on a Grand Slam trophy, winning the Australian Open eight years after reaching her last major final.

The American beat world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-3 2-6 7-5 in a high-quality match that regularly had the fans on their feet at the end of awe-inspiring rallies. Sabalenka was chasing a third-straight Australian Open title, but she came up just short, bamboozled by some crashing shots from her opponent.

Keys set the tone from word go by breaking Sabalenka’s opening service game, showing no signs of the nerves that plagued her in her maiden Slam final all the way back in 2017.

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She backed that break up with a solid hold too, before breaking Sabalenka’s serve again as the two-time defending champion started to tighten up, with double faults sneaking back into her game.

"There is no let-up," noted Naomi Cavaday on Eurosport commentary, as Sabalenka continued to get caught flat-footed behind the baseline by the power and precision of her opponent’s shots.

The two had last met at a Grand Slam in New York in 2023, Keys winning the opening set that day 6-0 before going on to lose two tie-breaks to Sabalenka.

Watch memorable moment Keys wins first Grand Slam as Sabalenka smashes racquet

Video credit: TNT Sports

Keys did not get the bagel this time around, but the manner in which she took the opening set 6-3 certainly made the crowd sit up and take note. The big question was whether Sabalenka could claw her way back into the final.

The answer was a resounding yes. The defending champion raised her level to take the second set, with the momentum very much in her corner.

Sabalenka lost the opening set two years ago in her first Australian Open final, roaring back to take it in three over Elena Rybakina - but she could not repeat that trick in 2025, Keys playing some "unbelievable" tennis in the final set, according to the experts.

"The win over [Iga] Swiatek in the final-set breaker and this one, there were moments at the end of the match she stepped up and dominated and those are moments that would have escaped her in her past life," said Eurosport's Jim Courier afterwards.

"My goodness was she dominant when she needed to be, she believed this time would be different and it was.

"This match was absolutely won in the most dramatic and emphatic way by Madison Keys, and Sabalenka played amazing tennis, she has nothing to hang her head over."

Keys finally escapes pressure of being 'next Serena Williams' - Expert reaction

Video credit: TNT Sports

Keys suffered a hamstring tear at Wimbledon last year, missing the Olympics in Paris as a result. It was the latest in a long line of injuries - all of which made her nerveless performance on the grandest of stages all the more impressive to watch.

"All the stuff she’s been through off the court in the last six months from Wimbledon onwards has been so tough for her, so to now lift the trophy in what was a topsy-turvy match… 18 months ago she wouldn’t have won and just to think back to that final eight years ago in the US Open, and how different tonight was. I could not be prouder of the performance she put on," Laura Robson said of her friend, having watched the match courtside.

"To finish it the way she did, by winning it rather than waiting for errors was huge for her."

Keys stuns Sabalenka to claim maiden Grand Slam title - Australian Open highlights

Video credit: TNT Sports

Keys was serving first in the final set, holding for a 5-4 lead and then 6-5. That gave her the freedom to swing on her returns, with two winners in the final game sealing the title for the American.

"It is unbelievably cool to see someone at that age and the journey she has been through. People talked about her being the next Serena Williams and she hadn’t quite done it all the way," Mats Wilander added.

"She won this match, it wasn’t that Sabalenka lost it. In the beginning, she was playing unbelievably well, then Sabalenka came back and then at the end, she won it with winners.

"She’s had a lot of injuries in her career and just the pressure of being the one that’s supposed to win, I can’t imagine what that was like."

"How brave she played at the end, she played brave at the beginning, but it was a totally different final to the one she played against Sloane Stephens," was Barbara Schett’s take.

"What a day this is, what an amazing last six months. It couldn’t be any better."

But while there was nothing buy joy for Keys and her camp, the same could not be said for Sabalenka. She smashed her racquet in frustration when she reached her chair at the end of the match, before leaving court quickly at the end of the presentation.

"Obviously, it is devastating, she was so close to the three-peat, didn’t quite get it," said Courier.

"Those moments are fleeting, but she didn’t play poorly… I was glad in the player gym when the team took her racquets away as they were in danger of not lasting, [she] might have cracked a few more!"

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