A thriller at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne saw American Madison Keys upset the no. 1-ranked women’s singles player Aryna Sabalenka to win the Australian Open on Saturday.
After shaking hands with the victor, Sabalenka vented her emotions on her racket.
Sabalenka, seeking to become the first player since Martina Hingis to win three straight Australian Opens, fell to Keys, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5, in the match, giving her opponent her first ever Grand Slam title .
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Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus reacts after the women’s singles final against Madison Keys of the United States at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake)
Sabalenka shook Key’s hand at the net, followed by the chair umpire, but she was seen slamming her racket and throwing it to the bench when the nice stuff was over.
Sabalenka then covered her face with a towel before storming into the dressing room.
The competitive heat that doesn’t go your way in the end can be hard to swallow at the moment, and Sabalenka said as much during her post-match press conference.
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“There was definitely a bit of frustration because I was so close to achieving something crazy,” she told The New York Post. “When you’re out there, you’re fighting, but it seems like everything (isn’t) going the way you really want (it) to go.”
Sabalenka added that she “just needed to throw away the negative feelings at the end,” and she did so, literally, with her Wilson racket. She said she had to do it “so I could give a speech (and) not stand there and be disrespectful.”
“I was just trying to let go and be a good person,” Sabalenka said.
Getting the raw emotions out seemed to work as Sabalenka was seen joking with her team after the loss.
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia: Aryna Sabalenka interviews after her match against Paula Badosa of Spain in the women’s singles semi-finals at the 2025 Australian Open at Melbourne Park. (Mike Frey-Imagn Photos)
“As always, it’s your fault guys,” she said, laughing. “I don’t want to see you next week. I really hate you. No thanks for everything you do for me and blah, blah, blah.”
However, Sabalenka returned to a serious note about Keys.
“I think we did our best,” Sabalenka said. “Just Madison played unbelievable. I just couldn’t do anything in this match. Next time I play Madison, I’ll bring better tennis.”
As for Keys, she also showed love to Sabalenka, saying it was “amazing playing” on her part. She also noted, at age 29, that she never thought she would win a Grand Slam despite coming close in the past.
“From a pretty young age, I felt that if I never won a Grand Slam, then I wouldn’t have lived up to what people thought I should have been. It was quite a heavy burden to carry around,” Keys said .
Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus reacts during the women’s singles final against Madison Keys of the United States at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
“So I finally got to the point where I was proud of myself and proud of my career, with or without a Grand Slam. I finally got to the point where I was OK if it didn’t happen. I didn’t need for that, to feel that I had a good career or that I deserved to be talked about as a great tennis player.
