(Video) Madison Keys delivers miss of the season in her Australian Open semifinal against Iga Swiatek

Aryna Sabalenka awaits the winner between Iga Swiatek and Madison Keys in the Australian Open final on Saturday.

(Video) Madison Keys delivers miss of the season in her Australian Open semifinal against Iga Swiatek

Madison Keys (via X)

American tennis star Madison Keys is aiming to join legends Serena Williams and Venus Williams as she competes for a spot in the Australian Open final. She faces second seed Iga Swiatek, who is also chasing her first Australian Open title.

Keys will need to minimize critical errors, like the one she made in the 10th game of the first set. In that game, she produced what could be called the miss of the season while attempting a smash from a bounce near the net.

YouTube video

The positive takeaway for Keys is that she managed to see the humor in the situation. She eventually held serve to level the set at 5-5. However, the momentum shifted, and she was unable to hold serve a second time, losing the set while trying to stay in it.

FS Video

Awaiting the winner of this high-stakes semifinal is World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. Earlier in the day, Sabalenka defeated Paula Badosa in commanding fashion to secure her spot in the final.

Madison Keys matches Serena Williams’ feat at the Australian Open

Madison Keys was the first to take the court on Wednesday and secured her spot in the Australian Open semifinals. She defeated 28th seed Elina Svitolina in a hard-fought match, winning 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. This is Keys’ third Australian Open semifinal and her seventh Grand Slam semifinal overall.

Madison Keys
Madison Keys (via X)

Later that day, Ben Shelton joined Keys in the semifinals after a four-set win over Lorenzo Sonego. Shelton faced challenges after losing a two-set lead but fought back to win 6-4, 7-5, 4-6, 7-6(4). This marks his second Grand Slam semifinal, matching his run at the 2023 US Open.

Shelton is the first American man to reach the Australian Open semifinals since Tommy Paul in 2023. Interestingly, Paul had beaten Shelton in the quarterfinals that year. Before Paul, Andy Roddick was the last American man to make the semifinals in Melbourne, achieving it in 2009.

With Keys and Shelton both in the semifinals, it’s the first time since 2009 that the U.S. has a man and a woman in the Australian Open’s last four. Sixteen years ago, Roddick and Serena Williams accomplished the same feat, making this a special moment for American tennis.