– How long will this last? – asked Eurosport commentator Marek Furjan when Madison Keys, after a poor start in the Australian Open semi-finals, started showing fantastic Tennis. Iga Świątek then allowed herself to be completely pushed into a corner. She got out of it later, but she still stumbled and that’s why she still has to wait for her first final in Melbourne.
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The artificial intelligence had no doubts. Świątek’s nerves, Keys’ surprising mistakes
– These tournaments are long. Even if you start amazingly, something can happen within two weeks – said Świątek after advancing to the semi-finals, and – as it turned out – she performed well.
At that time, it could be assumed that it was the usual caution of the Pole, who lost only 14 games on the way to the semi-final. The artificial intelligence did not particularly care about this caution, giving the second-ranked player in the world ranking just before the start of the semi-finals as much as 80 percent chance of victory over Keys, 14th in the WTA ranking. It was enough to listen to the American herself when she described the style of her next opponent the day before.
– Has a lot of natural spin on both sides, serves well, returns well, moves incredibly well. This very good movement is what mainly makes her so difficult to defeat. If you miss the right place even slightly, she has enough time to recover and the situation becomes neutral again – described the 2017 US Open finalist.
And the Pole, who had taken less than six hours to win her five previous matches in Melbourne, told journalists about her approach. – Sometimes you have to be ruthless on the court. “Ruthless” usually means something negative too, but for me it’s just focusing on yourself and keeping that attitude regardless of the outcome. This is what I base my strength and regularity on, she concluded.
-And that’s how she played in the first set of Thursday’s semifinal. True, she started nervously, which is why she lost her first two service games, but she also played wisely and ran in her own style to each ball, which allowed her to stay afloat. Keys, on the other hand, hid her greatest asset – her service often let her down. In addition, she made surprisingly simple mistakes, e.g. she sent the ball far out of bounds, even though she was not under pressure at the time. But what surprised me the most was when she didn’t use the so-called exhibitions. After her successful serve, the Pole barely reached the ball, which flew high under the roof of the central court. Such an action usually ends with a point, but the American put the ball into the net and then smiled.
Trans Keys, the great helplessness of Świątek. Polish women’s expressive glances and the war of nerves
Back then, it was hard to imagine that the athlete who had triumphed in Adelaide before the AO would soon show a completely different face. You could say that she started doing it when she was against the wall – at 2:5 in the opening set. Then she led to a draw, but then Świątek stepped in. The fans of the latter could rub their eyes in amazement at what happened to her in the second part. It’s true that Keys caught the wind and everything was going well for her, but that doesn’t explain the fact that nothing was going well for the Pole for some time.
The second racket in the world could feel the same as it did three years ago. It was then that, for the first and only time until now, she reached the semi-finals in Melbourne, and her rival, Danielle Collins, played as inspired. The American later said she fell into a trance. Now her compatriot Keys has fallen into a trance, but it must also be clearly noted that Świątek has been passively watching this for some time. When Furjan asked how long Keys’ great streak would last, his partner Dawid Celt pointed out that, above all, there was no resistance from the Pole.
The runner-up in the world ranking took up the challenge, although she still suffered at times. Her looks after mistakes were very telling. Frustrated, she often commented emotionally, directing her words towards her coaching staff.
The decisive game was a war of attrition. Both players then showed off their game and mental endurance, and the fans covered their mouths in surprise after subsequent impressive moves. And sometimes also because of bad luck. Like when the ball rolled on the tape after the Polish woman’s serve and went out, which meant a double service fault and a draw 6:6. Keys, for whom it was the third consecutive three-set match in this tournament, again interspersed great moves with mistakes. She was more resilient at the key moment and she will play in Saturday’s final against Aryna Sabalenka. Świątek will still be in pain after missing the match ball when the score was 6-5 in the third set.
