Keys looks back on the Australian Open final: "When the last game started, I had a good feeling"

Madison Keys is the big winner of the Australian Open 2025. The American, now ranked 7th in the world, defied the odds with a string of outstanding performances.

After eliminating Danielle Collins, Elena Rybakina, Elina Svitolina and Iga Swiatek, Keys went on to dominate world number 1 and two-time title-holder Aryna Sabalenka to claim the title (6-3, 2-6, 7-5).

A few days after her first Grand Slam title, the 29-year-old was invited on CBS Mornings to reflect on her victory.

"This title that I've won gives me an incredible feeling, and I'm very happy to have managed to do it in this way.

When I was younger, I said to myself that I absolutely had to win one of these trophies to be proud of my career, because otherwise I'd experience it as a failure.

Accepting that I'd be happy if I had to end my career without a Grand Slam title has enabled me to play my tennis with less pressure.

During the final, in the middle of the third set, maybe at 3-2 or 4-3 for me, I said to myself: 'I'm really in this. I can actually win.

Then, when the last game started (at 6-5), I had a good feeling. Throughout the match, I kept telling myself that I had to be brave and play the way I wanted to play.

What you have to try and do is play as freely as possible, and enjoy yourself on the court. That's the key.

If you can go out on court and have fun, everything becomes a lot more enjoyable, and the tournament experience becomes a lot better," Keys elaborated.