Bill Simons
HERE COMES THE MADISON: Newlywed Madison Keys marched across Laver Arena to get back to where she belongs – a Grand Slam final. The American veteran, who married her longtime coach Bjorn Fratangelo in November, downed the best baker in Melbourne – Iga Swiatek. To reach the final, the Pole cooked up six bagels (6-0) and breadsticks (6-1). She humbled No. 8 seed Emma Navarro in the quarterfinals and went into the semifinal having lost only 14 games.
To state the obvious, she was on a roll. She downed Madison 7-5 in an error-strewn first set. But Keys, who’s in the 16th year of her resilient career, has long sought to avenge the daunting loss she suffered to Sloane Stephens in the 2017 US Open final.
Since then, the Floridian has made many deep runs in majors, reaching the quarters at least five times. In the fourth round at last year’s Wimbledon, she was on the brink of victory over Jasmine Paolini, but literally pulled up lame. Tears flowed.
Tonight you could feel her resolve. After eight years in the WTA wilderness, she was determined to get back into a Slam final. Maddy shrugged off her first-set loss, called on her imposing power and found her rhythm to dominate the second set 6-1.
But Swiatek, ever the intense topspin warrior, scrambled, hit angled winners, and in the third set was up 6-5, 40-30, with a match point in hand. But Keys stiffened, and forced a tiebreak. Once again, she was on the brink of another heartbreaking shortfall. But after falling far behind in the decisive tiebreak, she scored four of the final five points to prevail 5-7, 6-1, 7-6(8).
With her second career win over Iga, at last the appealing veteran is again into a Slam final. Saturday she’ll face two-time defending champ Aryna Sabalenka, who downed Paula Badosa 6-4, 6-2. The Belarusian has a 4-1 head-to-head-over Madison.
Keys offered an understated view on her win against Iga, saying it had an “extra dramatic finish.” After the win of her life, she confided, “I felt like I blacked out out there at some point and was out there running around.”
For her part, Swiatek, who’s never reach a Melbourne final, said, “Madison was kind of brave.”
Most brides are.
AM I A MAN DREAMING I AM A FEATHER OR A FEATHER DREAMING I AM A MAN? Roger Federer was famous for his feathery movement. During Alexander Zverev’s quarterfinal match, a feather descended from the Melbourne sky and almost brushed the German’s ball. Sascha wasn’t pleased.
This brings to mind one of our favorite tales. When the late tennis philosopher Torben Ulrich was asked to reflect on a butterfly that had fluttered by him during a Forest Hills match, he replied, “Was I then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or am I now a butterfly dreaming that I am a man?”
SOMETIMES YOU GIVE ME WINGS: What’s more notable, that the Russian veteran, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, who reached the quarterfinals, has 14 letters in her last name, or that she came up with this lovely, mind-bending tennis commentary: “Tennis, you are my emotions. Sometimes you are cruel, sometimes you give me wings.”
THREE’S COMPANY: Before her match with Iga Swiatek, Emma Navarro was reminded that five years ago, in her only previous meeting with the Pole, she’d won just two games. The fun-loving Emma joked, “Well, I’ll get three when we play. [this time]” She got thumped 6-1, 6-2, but at least she met her goal.
BROADCASTING BLUES: In his press conference, Ben Shelton called out unprofessional broadcasters. For starters, infamous Channel 9 broadcaster Tony Jones had mocked Djokovic fans with a deeply disrespectful chant: “Novak’s overrated. Novak’s a has-been. Novak – kick him out!”
Then after Learner Tien had scored a thrilling upset of Daniil Medvedev, an interviewer made a series of awkward off-topic statements: “Nineteen-year-olds are not meant to be that good.” Then he added that he once lived in Newport Beach, and said, “I know where you live.”
After Shelton, who’s just 22, beat Gael Monfils, interviewer Roger Rasheed, who was a tennis coach, tried to make an on-court joke. Referring to Monfils, Rasheed said, “He’s almost your Dad.” Ben and Gael are both Black. Shelton asked Rasheed: “Was that a Black joke?” Rasheed replied, “I’m not sure.”
After Shelton’s win over Lorenzo Sonego, the interviewer said fans would be cheering against him in the semis. Ouch.
Alexander Zverev also complained about the awkwardness of one of his on-court interviews.
Shelton concluded his press conference by saying that on-court conversations should “be helping us grow our sport and help these athletes, who just won matches on the biggest stage enjoy one of their biggest moments. I feel like there’s just been a lot of negativity.”
GIVING NEW MEANING TO THE PHRASE POD CAST: Last year in Melbourne there was the much needed innovation to allow fans to go to their seats after each game. This year, players’ support teams sit in seats that are right by the court. The high-profile area is called “the coaching pod.” And throughout the AO, we’ve seen an interesting cast of characters: intense coaches, pretty ladies, Andy Murray and a famous husband who’s good at tennis (Gael Monfils).
NET NEWS: Who knew that tennis nets could make so much news? First the company that manufactures the electronic device that calls let cords went out of business. And there wasn’t another outfit that could fill the void.
So instead of suffering the embarrassment of going old school and just having a person sit by the net and call let cords, as was the tradition for decades, the Aussie Open is having the chair umpire call let cords – not a great solution.
Then Daniil Medvedev smashed one of those little cameras that are attached to the net with his racket, an ill-conceived move that set him back $70,000. Finally, after being blasted by a Jannik Sinner serve, the net in the Italian’s match came unhinged and came out of its socket, resulting in a long delay in Sinner’s match against Holger Rune.
DEAL OF THE CENTURY: Novak Djokovic, who has a 8-4 record against Alexander Zverev, joked, “We have an agreement that as long as I’m playing, he’ll allow me to win.”
GOOD WARNING: A Laver Arena fan held a sign that read, “Welcome to Djokovic Arena. Many greats have fallen here.”
BARBARIC OBSERVATION: After Carlos Alcaraz lost his mental battle to Novak Djokovic, the Spaniard’s coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, quipped, “Novak gets locked in. It’s a barbarity.”
GOOD SPORT: German Tim Puetz literally dropped everything, including his racket, and helped a ballboy who had gotten really sick in the Melbourne sun.
BAD SPORT? Calling “not ups” when a ball bounces twice before a player gets to it is tough. The chair ump is supposed to make the call, but it’s rough. And a player who disagrees with the call has the almost impossible task of issuing a challenge.
During the Iga Swiatek-Emma Navarro quarterfinal there was a “not-up” debacle when the Pole didn’t reach a short Navarro shot. The ump should have noticed, but didn’t. Navarro should have challenged the non-call, but didn’t. It’s virtually impossible to do in the heat of the moment. And, worse yet, Swiatek, who in so many ways is an admirable champ, didn’t give the point to her foe and never copped to her error. And it’s fair to say that almost every player knows whether they have or have not reached a ball on one bounce. Not surprisingly, there was a torrent of criticism of the Pole.
GO FIGURE: Throughout much of his career Novak Djokovic has had to play in front of crowds that backed his foes. But the crowd at the Djokovic-Alcaraz quarterfinal was, to a large degree, behind the Serb…Carlos Alcaraz has two more years to win the Australian Open to become the youngest player to ever win a Career Slam.
25 IN 25: It would make sense if Djokovic surpassed Margaret Court to win his 25th Slam this year – 2025.
JUST WONDERING: Is Madison Keys the best active WTA player to never win a Slam?…What’s a better nickname for Emma Navarro, the queen of three-setters or the queen of chill?
GORAN’S GONE: After a brief, tumultuous trial, Elena Rybakina’s coach Goran Ivanisivic, has resigned. It’s hardly a shock. A few weeks ago Elena announced on social media that her controversial former coach, Stefano Vukov, who some suggested was abusive, would be coming back to also coach her.
TOMMY’S A TOP TENNER: It used to be that Sam Querrey, Mal Washington and Tommy Paul were the best American men to not reach the Top Ten. But, with his run to the quarterfinals, Paul will break into the Top Ten on Monday.
MUSINGS ON PAULA: Paula Badosa was outside the top 100 due to a back injury, and thought she might not play again. But she was the 2024 WTA Comeback Player of the Year, she’s the last Spaniard in the Aussie Open draw and she came up with one of the more whimsical comments this week. She said, “I used to be one of the best players in the world. I’m better than that.”
IT’S OKAY TO BE JUST OKAY: In a wonderful profile on the Tennis Channel, tennis-loving Ryan Day, the celebrated coach of the NCAA champion Ohio State football team, offered these inspirational words, which he often tells his team: “On your great days, be elite. On your average days, be great. On your bad days, be average.”
Ben Shelton echoed Day’s sentiments when he said that the prime thing he’s learned on the tour is that he does not have to be perfect. He doesn’t always have to blast huge serves and go all out and red line every forehand. He can play within himself and still win.
GREAT NAME: Madison Keys’s foundation is called Kindness Wins.
