6 days ago
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American tennis prima Madison Keys upset No. 1-ranked Aryna Sabalenka to triumph the Australian Open connected Saturday.
Keys, 29, won 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 successful the tightly contested lucifer to triumph her first-ever Grand Slam tournament.
Keys finished with conscionable 1 much constituent won than Sabalenka overall, winning 92 points, compared to Sabalenka's 91.
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Sabalenka was seeking to triumph her 3rd consecutive Australian Open, thing that was past achieved — by Martina Hingis — from 1997 done 1999.
This was the 2nd clip successful Keys’ vocation that she had a accidental astatine a large title, her past being a 6-3, 6-0 nonaccomplishment to chap countrywoman Sloane Stephens successful the 2017 US Open.
Keys had precocious expectations for herself successful her tennis career, but began to judge the information that she mightiness ne'er triumph a Grand Slam title.
"From a beauteous young age, I felt similar if I ne'er won a Grand Slam, past I wouldn’t person lived up to what radical thought I should person been. That was a beauteous dense load to benignant of transportation around," Keys said.
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"So I yet got to the constituent wherever I was arrogant of myself and arrogant of my career, with oregon without a Grand Slam. I yet got to the constituent wherever I was OK if it didn’t happen. I didn’t request it to consciousness similar I had a bully vocation oregon that I deserved to beryllium talked astir arsenic a large tennis player.
"I consciousness similar yet letting spell of that benignant of interior speech that I had conscionable gave maine the quality to really spell retired and play immoderate truly bully tennis to really triumph a Grand Slam."
Not lone did Keys upset the No.1 ranked Sabalenka, but she besides took down No. 2 ranked Iga Świątek successful the semifinals en way to her Australian Open rubric victory.
Keys was the archetypal pistillate since Serena Williams successful 2005 to decision some of the WTA’s apical 2 players astatine Melbourne Park. She said that beating Swiatek gave her the assurance she could triumph against Sabalenka.
"Winning that lucifer the different nighttime against Iga was truly benignant of a large hurdle," Keys said. "I ever believed that I could bash it, but to bash it that mode — truly I thought to myself aft the lucifer that I tin perfectly triumph connected Saturday."
This was Keys 46th Slam appearance, the 3rd astir earlier winning a women’s large title, being lone Flavia Pennetta’s 49 and Marion Bartoli’s 47 appearances earlier they won.
"I didn’t ever judge that I could get backmost to this point. But to beryllium capable to bash it and win, it means the satellite to me."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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