Vincent Thian / AP Photo

The 2025 Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the tennis season, concluded on Jan. 26 in Melbourne, capping two weeks of fantastic tennis with a pair of historic milestones. In the men’s singles bracket, world No. 1 Jannik Sinner became the first Italian man to win three Grand Slam titles after defeating Alexander Zverev of Germany. In the women’s singles bracket, American Madison Keys captured her first ever Grand Slam title by defeating world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Sinner successfully defended his 2024 Australian Open title with a 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 victory over the second-ranked Zverev. It was Sinner’s third consecutive Grand Slam title on a hard court, following his U.S. Open title in September and his 2024 title in Melbourne. The Italian battled through cramps in his semifinal match against American Ben Shelton but showed little sign of physical discomfort during the Championship match. He won 21 out of 23 sets over the course of his seven matches in the tournament and breezed through Zverev in two hours and 42 minutes to lift the trophy.

Zverev was the more well-rested of the two after 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic pulled out of the semifinal match after just one set due to a hamstring injury. Djokovic drew boos from the crowd at Rod Laver Arena when he turned to shake hands with Zverev after losing the first set tiebreak, ending the match prematurely. Djokovic suffered the injury in his quarterfinal victory over Carlos Alcaraz. He took an injury timeout while trailing 5-4 in the first set of the quarterfinal, prompting ESPN’s John McEnroe, who won seven Grand Slam titles in his career, to suggest on the broadcast that Djokovic was faking the injury as a tactic. Djokovic responded to McEnroe’s criticism after quitting the semifinal against Zverev by posting a picture of his MRI on X, showing the damage to his hamstring and taking a jab at critics like McEnroe for considering themselves “injury experts.” While McEnroe’s take may have been controversial, Djokovic has a history of being called out by fellow players, such as Roger Federer and Andy Roddick, for using phony or exaggerated injuries and medical timeouts as match tactics.

Aryna Sabalenka, the women’s world No. 1, was seeking a third consecutive Australian Open title, something that hadn’t been done since Martina Hingis accomplished the feat in 1999. But it was underdog American Madison Keys, the No. 19 seed, who ripped the title away from Sabalenka with a 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 victory. When Keys hit one final forehand winner to clinch the title, it represented the culmination of a career-long pursuit for the American.

The 29-year-old Keys was playing in her second Grand Slam final, after making the finals of the U.S. Open back in 2017, where she was soundly defeated by Sloane Stephens. Keys hadn’t been back to a Grand Slam final since then.

In the time since that 2017 US Open final, Keys struggled with her mental game. She acknowledged self-doubt about whether her career would be considered unsuccessful if she didn’t win a Slam. In her post-match press conference, Keys said that going to therapy helped her improve her mental approach, both on and off the court. In the months leading up to the Australian Open, Keys also tweaked a few tactical elements of her game. First, she changed from a Wilson racket, the brand she used her entire career, to a Yonex one. She then changed the material of her racket strings, and finally, adjusted her serve motion. Those changes paid off for Keys, who, at age 29, became the oldest first-time champion in women’s singles at the Australian Open. 

Sabalenka and Keys had met five times before this final, with Sabalenka winning all but one of those previous encounters, including a 2023 U.S. Open semifinal, in which Keys was one game from victory before Sabalenka stormed back to win. But it wasn’t just Keys’ performance against the world No. 1 in the final that was impressive — it was the path she took to get there. Her run to the final in Melbourne included wins against four players ranked in the top 30, including No. 10 Danielle Collins, No. 6 Elena Rybakina and No. 2 Iga Swiatek, who she beat in a thrilling third set match tiebreak in the semifinal. Keys is the first female player to beat the top two seeds back to back in the semifinal and final since Venus Williams in 2005. With the victory, Keys moved into the top ten in the women’s rankings, matching her career high of No. 7 in the world. 

In Melbourne, Keys accomplished something she once doubted would ever happen. Her long journey to the top highlights the importance of adaptability, both in game tactics and mindset. Her triumph is a testament to both physical and mental resilience, and with this breakthrough victory, she carries significant momentum into what could be the most successful season of her career.