Madison Keys has beaten world number two Iga Swiatek to reach her first Grand Slam final in over seven years.
Keys made history by reaching the Australian Open final, after losing her last four major semi-finals.
The American has received a lot of support since, with Keys getting messages from Coco Gauff and other players on both the ATP and WTA Tours.
Aryna Sabalenka, who beat Paula Badosa in the other semi-final, steps in the way of Keys and her first major title.
Madison Keys states what is unique about Aryna Sabalenka
Keys is now looking ahead to her match with Sabalenka, who is seeking history after reaching her third consecutive Australian Open final.
When previewing the final against the world number one in her post-match press conference, Keys spoke about what impresses her about Sabalenka.
“I think what’s really impressive is her mentality,” said Keys. “I think her ability to kind of always go for it, no matter what the score is, is really impressive.
“I mean, she plays such fearless tennis. She has the ability to play so well that way. I think it’s very unique. I think a lot of people, no matter what, even if it was a tight point, you kind of expect them to play a little bit more conservative or back down a little bit, and you know she’s not going to do that.
“I think not only is that impressive on her side, but I think it puts a little bit more pressure on her opponents where you know you’re always going to have to try to win the point because she’s never going to just play passive and give you an easy point.”
Madison Keys compares her game style to Aryna Sabalenka
Keys and Sabalenka have played on five previous occasions, with the American only winning one match in their head-to-head that came on grass courts.
Included in those five previous meetings is the 2023 US Open semi-final, where Keys was up a break in both the second and third sets before losing in a deciding set tie-break.
| Year | Tournament | Result |
| 2018 | Cincinnati Open (QF) | Sabalenka beat Keys, 6-3 6-4 |
| 2021 | Berlin Open (R16) | Keys beat Sabalenka, 6-4 1-6 7-5 |
| 2023 | Wimbledon (QF) | Sabalenka beat Keys, 6-2 6-4 |
| 2023 | US Open (SF) | Sabalenka beat Keys, 0-6 7-6(1) 7-6(5) |
| 2024 | China Open (R16) | Sabalenka beat Keys, 6-4 6-3 |
Both Sabalenka and Keys have powerful games, hitting a combined 68 winners in their respective semi-finals.
This is something that Keys was asked about, as she admitted to trying to take parts of Sabalenka’s game.
“Definitely. I have always been impressed with how she’s been able to do that,” said Keys. “The one thing I really wanted to try to be better at was not playing more passive in big points and really, honestly, just trying to emulate the way she trusts her game and the way she goes after it.
“I think if you’re able to do that and you miss and you lose, but it’s on your terms, it’s a little bit easier to swallow than if you’re kind of playing a little bit passive and things don’t go the way that you want them to anyways.”
Keys will look to win her first Grand Slam title against Sabalenka when the women’s singles Australian Open final takes place on Saturday January 25.
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