Australian Open semi-finals
Favorite Świątek misses the final
Updated on January 23, 2025 – 2:42 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
In the second semi-final in Melbourne, Madison Keys pulled off a surprise and prevailed against the Polish world number two. In the final she will now face the defending champions.
She had to fight for a long time in a thrilling match – and in the end she actually achieved the sensation: Madison Keys is in the women’s final of the Australian Open. The American prevailed in the semifinals against the favored world number two Iga Świątek 5:7, 6:1, 7:6 (10:8).
In the final on Saturday, Keys will now face world number one and defending champion Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus), who previously won 6:4, 6:2 against Paula Badosa (Spain) on Thursday. Sabalenka had already triumphed at the Australian Open in the past two years.
“I’m in the final,” said Keys after her victory in the high-class duel with Świątek, in which she successfully fended off a match point.
“I’m sure she hates me for the next few hours, the whole day. That’s okay, I can handle it,” said Sabalenka after the victory over her very good friend Badosa: “If she sees that: I promise that we go shopping and I’ll pay for whatever she wants.”
At the end of the interview on the pitch, she said with a smile: “I’ll set a limit because she can be crazy.”
In the final on Saturday, Sabalenka can triumph in Melbourne for the third time after 2023 and 2024. The last time the Swiss Martina Hingis achieved this was from 1997 to 1999.
Sabalenka earned her 20th win in a row at the Australian Open with her usual powerful baseline game and great quality on her own serve. Her opponent and friend Badosa, who was in the top four at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time, was only able to keep up with the high pace at the beginning. After 86 minutes, Sabalenka converted her first match point. Afterwards, the friends hugged each other warmly at the net.
The duel should not harm the friendship between Sabalenka and Badosa. “Whatever happens on the court: we remain friends after our matches,” said Sabalenka.