Madison Keys probably played the match of her life on Thursday against Iga Swiatek at the Rod Laver Arena. With a scintillating victory over the former World No.1, she has entered in her first-ever Australian Open final. Keys was on another level in the SF encounter against the Pole, holding nerves at crunch moments. Result? She knocked the five-time major winner out in a super tie-break contest, with a final score line of 5-7, 6-1, 7-6(8). Her enigmatic performance has now garnered her a huge round of applause from a former ATP legend.

Coco Gauff’s ex-coach and ESPN analyst Brad Gilbert took to X to celebrate Keys’ historic win over Swiatek. Highlighting the significance of this victory, he wrote, “Amazing effort from Madison Ave fighting back late ⏰ in 3rd set to take out Iga in super breaker, she is the 4th American 🇺🇸 in the final here in last 6 years Kenin. Brady Collins, lots of great drama in final set and crowd was absolutely 👍 💯 rocking”

The 29-year-old has mostly remained on the receiving end of many Majors. Back in 2022, she couldn’t move past the semifinal stage of the AO down under. On other occasions, she lost in the QF stages of the French Open and the Wimbledon. At the US Open, she even made it to the title clash in 2017 – but was unfortunate. However, the revamped version of Madison Keys has been on full display this season. She’s gone from strength to strength in her ‘Happy Slam’ journey. But it’s still far from over. She has to lift that trophy and it won’t be an easy task for her on Saturday.

The former World No.7 will now face Aryna Sabalenka – the AO queen of the last two seasons. The Belarusian will look to win the Major down under for a third straight time. On the other hand, Keys will eye her first slam. But there’s time for that clash at the Rod Laver Arena. Now’s the moment to celebrate and let the emotions flow. Keys was short of words the moment she won the tie-break against Swiatek. What did she say after the win?

Madison Keys reacts to her nail-biting win over Iga Swiatek in Australian Open semifinal

After the match, Madison Keys explained what it felt like out there in the middle of the court, especially with the final set leading into a super tie-break battle and winning eventually. “Yeah. I’m still trying to catch up to everything that’s happening. I’m in the finals. Wooohooo!” she said, as reported by The Tennis Letter on X. On the courtside camera’s lens, her three-word reaction, “Oh my god” pretty much sums up her feelings.

“It was so up and down, and there were so many big points and break point chances that neither one of us got,” she said in a post-match interview, reported by WTA’s official website on Thursday.

Keys, who registered her 11th straight win in 2025, further added, “I feel like I blacked out at some point and I was just out there running around. Just to be able to stay in it, keep fighting, and then a 10-point tiebreak for an extra-dramatic finish.” After clinching the Adelaide International trophy two weeks ago, she’s got the chance to win her second title of this season. And it’s just the first month!

On her struggles in the initial phases of the SF, where she couldn’t keep control, she said, “Even though I lost the first set, I felt like I was playing some better tennis at the end of it” and then “To be able to kind of run with that second set and really just settle, that was really nice.”

It will be intriguing to see if Aryna Sabalenka will be able to pull off a three-peat on Saturday. If she wins, she will be the first WTA player to clinch three back-to-back Australian Open titles after 26 years. Last time, the milestone was achieved by Martina Hingis, between 1997 and 1999. Madison Keys, in the meantime, will look to shatter her dreams. Who will succeed at the Rod Laver Arena? Only time will tell.