By Ian Ransom
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Madison Keys blasted her way into the Australian Open semi-finals for a third time with characteristic aggression after overhauling Elina Svitolina 3-6 6-3 6-4 on Wednesday.
Riding a 10-match winning streak, Keys will meet the winner of second seed Iga Swiatek and eighth seed Emma Navarro as the American continues her bid for a first Grand Slam title.
“To be here 10 years later in the semi-finals again, I’m really proud of myself and really excited to play another semi- final here in Melbourne,” said Keys, who reached the last four in 2015 and 2022.
“I kind of just had to start playing a little bit more aggressive and try to get to the net a bit quicker.
“She was controlling a lot of the points and making me run so I felt like I needed to try and get on the advantage a little bit quicker and luckily I was able to do that.
“I think I played a little bit smarter for sure. Probably a little bit less fearless.”
The 29-year-old from Rock Island, Illinois had lost the last two of her three Grand Slam match-ups with Svitolina, most recently in the fourth round of the 2019 U.S. Open.
And she appeared set for another setback as the counter-punching Ukrainian took full advantage of Keys’ early waywardness on a cool and breezy morning at Rod Laver Arena.
Keys dropped serve in the eighth game with an unforced error and then gifted the set with another error as Gael Monfils nodded approval at his wife Svitolina from the player’s box.
Keys raised her game, though, pressuring Svitolina on serve to earn a break point in the fourth game of the second set.
But Svitolina saved it with a brilliant reflex volley that left the American smiling ruefully.
Two games later, Svitolina finally buckled on serve as Keys found her range with a forehand winner.
Keys had two set points at 5-3 but blew one with a wild forehand into the tramlines before closing it out with a big serve.
She kept up the firepower, raising two break points at 2-2 in the third set with a forehand down the line before taking Svitolina’s serve with a ferocious backhand return.
Keys marched on in a barrage of power hitting, claiming the win on the first match point when a harried Svitolina thumped a backhand well past the baseline.
(Reporting by Ian Ransom in Melbourne; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
