The Keys to an Australian Open Grand Slam Title - Can Madison take down the Barty Party?
Written by Ben McCure and Will Faulkner
Ash Barty and Madison Keys will tonight face off for a spot in the Australian Open Women’s final, in what will be one of the most entertaining contests of the tournament so far.
On one side of the court sits Australian World #1 Ash Barty, who hasn’t dropped a set all tournament and has looked a class above everyone she’s played.
Barty’s backhand slice has become a popular topic of conversation because of the trouble it has caused her opponents, and is something Madison Keys will have to nullify.
If successful tonight, she would be the first Australian to reach the Australian Open women’s final since 1980.
On the other side of the net, Keys herself also enters the clash in some serious form, coming off a 10-match winning streak that includes an ATP title win in Adelaide.
She plays aggressive tennis and hits the ball hard, which could present problems for the Australian. There is no doubt it will be Barty’s first real test of the tournament.
For Keys, she will be making her first Australian Open semi-final appearance since 2015.
Her route to the last four has taken out three seeded players (#11 Sofia Kenin, #8 Paula Badosa and #4 Barbora Krejčíková), with eyes on Barty to become her fourth seeded scalp for the tournament.
Both players are confident in their own games and given the quality of tennis they have been playing, it promises to be an enthralling battle.
Barty and Keys have locked horns on three occasions before, with a 2-1 record in favour of the former.
This will however be their first meeting since the French Open back in 2019.
The world number one is favourite heading into the match, and although you can expect Keys to push Barty, the 25-year-old has been on another level lately and should be too good for the American.