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Well, hello and welcome to the Tennis Podcast on day 14 of the Australian Open, the day when we have seen Madison Keyes defeat two-time defending champion Irina Sabalenka 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 to win her maiden Grand Slam title at the age of 29, seven and a half years on from her first Grand Slam final. I'm Catherine Whittaker. I'm with David Law and Matt Roberts. We're in interview room.
17 or something and we've just come from the madison keys winners press conference and we are all happy happy happy excited excited excited happy happy for madison keys about madison keys david she's my new favorite player wow i mean it isn't I feel similarly. I feel absolutely uplifted for her. I'm really thrilled for her. But it is interesting that she's just a player that has not really felt particularly relevant at the top of the game for some time. I mean, she's...
She'll get results occasionally, and she's reached quarterfinals in the past, but I never thought she would win a Grand Slam in recent years. I always used to. Ten years ago, she was the player I was probably most excited about when she won the Eastbourne title. I commentated on that in the early days of BT Sports coverage, and she was 19. She beat Angelique Kerber. I was so excited about young Madison Keys.
It just kind of didn't happen for her. And in the press conference we've just had, she's explained kind of how and why and how difficult her life has been to get to this point. And, you know, it makes me all the more happy for her that she has got this moment. She said in the press conference in response to a question from Ben Rothenberg, she said...
She thinks the first time she heard somebody describe her as a future Grand Slam champion was when she was about 11 years old. She's just about to turn 30. That's almost two decades of having something expected of you that you're not delivering on. Two decades for it finally to happen. It's just an extraordinary story, I think, Matt.
It is extraordinary, and it had gone the other way. I said on this podcast a few days ago that I considered Madison Keys to be one of those players who I had kind of resigned myself to think will never win a Grand Sam title. I categorized that match between her and Alina Svitolina as a match between probably the two best players who won't ever win a Grand Sam title, and I felt...
you know, reasonably sure that that would remain the case this week because to do it, she would likely have to go through Igor Sviontek and Irina Sabalenka. Like, who does that? Who's going to do that? And yet Madison Keyes has just done it. And how? Like...
It wasn't always the most sustained brilliant tennis today in the final, like comparing it to the final of two years ago of Rabatkinner and Sabalenko. I think that was a higher level for longer throughout. But the compelling nature of this one was...
So great. And I just get such a buzz when a grand slam final is like that. And for someone to win their first grand slam title in those circumstances, beating the two best players in the world back to back like that is just absolutely remarkable. I'm so pleased to be wrong and so happy for Madison Keyes. It's a 12 match winning streak now.
going back three weeks to her title in Adelaide. She, at this tournament, has beaten Elena Rabatkinner, Igor Shontek and Irina Sabalenka. You know, OK, I know Rabatkinner is in and out, but those are the three players with the highest peaks in...
Not on the WTA Tour. You know, they're the big three. She beat all three of them, all in three sets. And over the last three weeks, she's also beaten Jessica Bagula, Yelena Rostopenko, Daria Kazakina, Beatrice Hadadjmaier, Ludmilla Samsonova, Alina Svitolina, Danielle Collins. Like, who does that? Like, it's an absolutely crazy, crazy run. And what she's always lacked is consistency.
She will have a big win. She'll show you her power. And in isolation, when she hits the tennis ball, I don't think there's anything else really quite like it today since Serena Williams stopped playing. I remember even 10 years ago when I think she played Serena Williams here. And her ground strokes were measured as faster, but they were less reliable. And that's been the case all the way through her career. But she's found a consistency to go with the power. And what struck me tonight...
Above all else, obviously the closing moments, yes, but the opening moments were really important given what she'd undergone seven years ago when she was in the final of the US Open and she lost 6-3, 6-11. She just said, I never felt comfortable. I was always nervous. She's not pretending that she wasn't nervous tonight, but she just didn't look nervous. It was all...
automatically coming out the middle of her racket from ball one. And, I mean, the sound that it makes is different. You know, you coined the line about a carrot snapping sound years ago here on the podcast. And that has always been the barometer to me for whether somebody hits the ball cleanly, how it sounds like that. And she's got that. And it's just the most wonderful...
The feeling to be in the stadium, I'm usually in a commentary box for these finals, which is a privilege in itself, but to be in the stadium and hear the reaction of people around you when she catches one is pretty breathtaking. And by contrast, Irina Sabalenka made a slow start, a very patchy start, which she has been doing in her last few matches. The difference is, you know, going back to what we said about that Paola Bedosa match in the semifinals, we worried when it was...
when it was two all, and Sabalenka hadn't played well, and Bedossa had, and you thought, hmm, you needed to make a dent there, you needed to have a lead that Sabalenka is going to start chasing down. And that just isn't how this match played out, but there would have been a lot of people worrying that that was how this match played out, you know.
OK, but what happens when Irina Sabalenka finds it? OK, it wasn't Sabalenka's best match tonight, but I don't think it's really possible to play your best for either of them against that type of opposition. The level of risk being taken just is always going to lead to...
A match with very high highs and very low lows. The numbers on this match are crazy. Same number of winners, 29. Very similar numbers of unforced errors. A little bit more than that in the low 30s for both. Same first serve percentage, 69 and 70%. I thought Madison Key's serve in particular was incredible tonight. It was there when she needed it. Absolutely. Oh, yeah. That was a defining element of the whole match, wasn't it?
Keys won 92 points and Sabalenka 91. It was an awesome final. Absolutely awesome. It had everything. Two hours and two minutes. They both played quickly. It really moved on at a lick, said Matt. When was that, set number three, when we were all speculating whether there was opportunity to nip out for some snacks. We decided, no, there wasn't because we'd missed too much because the drama was just happening so quick. It was just...
It was just everything you want. Yeah. And just to go back through the match a little bit more, like the San Belenco serve, this tournament has been a little bit more vulnerable. than previous tournaments we've seen from her she'd been broken 16 times before the final and she got broken three times in that opening set by keys and keys's return was was lethal like she was just on it hitting big returns if they weren't winners they were deep and they were powerful
And like you said, Keys had a brilliant serving day, particularly in that first set. She was up at 86% first serves in for the first set. She made a streak of nine in a row at one point. It was just really, really good serving from Keys, coupled with not great serving from Sabalenka. And Keys was composed because she did lose one of her breaks and she lost the set point. But I never felt like it was going to...
tailspin out of control like she just had her game under control in in that first set in particular you know it wasn't always in that first set like there were barely any rallies like it really was moving at at such a pace but there was enough great ball striking to just take your breath away that you that personally I found myself really enthralled by it even even with the lack of rallies which I usually love I thought Sabalenka made a
Great adjustment in the second set. She used a lot of drop shots. She used a lot of slice generally. She took some pace off the ball. Kieser did drop off a bit and Sabalenka started getting into her service games. And, you know, honestly, at that point, I was pretty confident that Sabalenka was going to go on and win this match after she'd won that second set. I didn't think it would be a blowout, but I thought Sabalenka would...
would have enough to win this, given that she'd got herself into the match. But the way Madison Keyes played the big moments in the third set was absolutely extraordinary. She said, didn't she, that she wanted to have no regrets. You know, she wanted to go out and play on her terms. And my goodness, she did that because Sabalenka didn't have...
huge chances, but she had a lot of mini chances. She had 15-30 at 1-all, she had 30-all at 3-all, and she had 15-30 at 5-all, all on the Madison Keys serve. And in every single moment, Madison Keys stepped up and either hit a big serve, a big ground stroke, just played it on her terms, and there was nothing Sabalenka could really do in those moments. Like, Madison Keys went out and...
won that third set from you know under pressure from Sabalenka who was cruising through her own service games at this point all the pressure was on Keyes and she just stood up and delivered and it made me think that even if she ended up losing this match she'd have been able to be satisfied with it you know but the fact that she ended up winning it just obviously makes it all the more special the point I'd actually singled out from Madison Keyes
One of those pressure moments that you just described was actually the 30-all, 5-all point. That was the one. The forehand, pretty much half volley, up the line, off a full-pelt Sabalenka cross-court return. If ever a point or a shot can sum up a match and a performance and a title run, it is that one. I'm quite sure it's all over the internet, or if it's not already, it's going to be. Clip that thing up.
totally sums up for me what I saw today and against Igor Svantec a couple of days ago from Madison Keys. And she was very clear in the way she talked about it that she was kind of taking the lead of Sabalenka. She wasn't going to let Sabalenka have the say in these important moments.
My word, did she deliver on that promise. And as you say, she would have been able to look herself in the mirror tonight knowing she'd done the right things. And as much as I remembered the US Open semifinal they had, I didn't remember the score and saw it while we were watching this match today. And Keyes won the first set of that sixth love. And then she lost the next two 7-6, 7-6.
Like you, I wasn't expecting a blowout in the final set, but that is a lot of mental baggage to be carrying around because the first set ended up much closer, I think 6-3, but she was 5-1 up in that set, and it was a similar feel. So what a mental achievement that is, aside from anything else, to overcome that. Yeah, and look, I think we're going to talk a lot about Madison Keyes' mentality
the work she's done mentally, because that was a huge topic of discussion in the press conference just now and was fascinating and moving, I thought. But just to stay on the match for a moment longer, Sablenka was asked in her press conference today whether she had any regrets, and she kind of said, not really, like maybe the start of the match when I didn't play well. But in terms of the...
the big points down the stretch, she kind of feels like it was taken out of her hands by Madison Keyes, and I totally understand why she feels that way. My only question mark on that front is, Matt, the tactics you described her doing in the second set that were really effective, why did she row back on those a little in the third set? Because bringing Madison Keyes into the net, if you're able to, I realise it's not...
If Keyes is getting the first strike in, there's nothing you can do. But Keyes is a bad volleyer. She's an incredible player. Hide in her eyes, won't we? But she cannot volley. Anything kind of in front of the baseline is a bit of a disaster. We're coming off the frame. Yeah. I was watching going, get her to the net.
by any means, Arena. I realise that's not necessarily her, well, it's not her game, but she does have it in her locker. Matt's not going for this theory. No, I think it's, I'm scrambling my brain trying to think of an answer because I don't know. Like, I think it was effective in that second set, wasn't it? As I said, there were a lot of drop shots. I can only think that because of the adjustments Keyes made that it meant that Sabalenka...
didn't have the opportunities to go for it. I think it was an effective tactic, but it's also not Sabalenka's plan A, is it? Yeah, I wonder whether that's it. I wonder whether it's a little bit of ego, of thinking, yeah, OK, I've got myself back into the match playing this way. Now I'm going to take you apart.
with my power, because that's who I am. I wonder whether there is a bit of that. A bit of the, you want power? I'll show you power. Yeah, that was Serena, wasn't it, when she played Sabalenka? And they are, they're similar characters in that way. Sabalenka told you, David, in answer to your question, after a bit of musing, that having faced Serena Williams here and Elena Rabackina here, that tonight, Madison Keyes' ball was as big as she's ever faced. Yeah.
And it comes across, really. She's the only ball striker out there now, I think, that you actually think that Sabalenka maybe can't handle in the way... Usually she's the aggressor, but Keyes did take it out of her hands. I mean, there were several moments, and I think there is an element where she goes for broke.
keys she's taken wide and she just ends a point it doesn't it's she's either going to lose it or win it but it's going to end and there's nothing anybody can do about it and i i just live for those those fleeting moments and because of the way what i loved is is that she when she's struggling in that second set she holds that last service game so that
Sabalenka not only has to serve it out, but Keyes gets to serve first in the decider. And I think that's a big contributing factor to why she won. Scoreboard pressure, not that I think Sabalenka was feeling that scoreboard pressure, but I think that Keyes was released by it.
I think she had three real goes at it. When she got to 3-all and went at 4-3, I thought, OK, she can swing. And that didn't quite work out. And then eventually it happened for her. I'm not so sure. I would definitely have made Sabalenka a favourite in a tiebreak. But she had her chance. And when it came, I mean, what was it, two match points. The first one was taken out of her hands. The second one...
Again, I kind of feel like you've got to do it now. And you could see the urgency in her as well because she stayed with her. She hit one big shot. That came back. And then when she finally got the ball, you know, that was not an easy putaway. That is an absolutely on-the-money dynamite forehand winner. And if ever you were going to hit a shot to win a championship, the way that place erupted, I will never forget it.
If you told me two weeks ago that I was going to feel the way I have felt tonight about Madison Keyes winning the Australian Open, I really wouldn't have believed you. I feel really emotional about it. I feel really swept up in Madison Keyes as a player and a person. I think it's an incredibly powerful journey she's been on and the way she talks about it is incredible.
Just a quick moment, because one of the things that we're not allowed to do in the press room, we're not allowed to applaud, we're not allowed to cheer. I mean, you know, inside you're feeling all sorts of things. But there was a chap in front of Catherine and me who was doing all the emotions for everybody. In the press seats in the stadium. Just the guy in front of us, yeah, who was the row in front of the press seats. So he wasn't a journalist. He was feeling his feelings. He sure was. He was living Madison Keyes.
Yeah, he was sort of... And the match, wasn't he? He was just living the match. He was very fair in his sport. He was enjoying Irina Sabalenka's good work as well. I think he made friends with the woman two seats down from him who was also on her own. They had a hug after the match. It was all just vibes. Hugging strangers at a sporting event is one of the great...
joys of life, I would say. Well, I read that Sabalenka was smashing her racket. Didn't she do well, by the way? I thought she was epic. Because she, not necessarily with the racket smash, although personally in those circumstances, I don't really have a problem with it. I think it's entirely appropriate, really. To go from that and, you know, sitting there on the court with her head in the towel while Madison Keyes is experiencing the most pure...
There was such pure joy about it. It was utterly infectious. Sabalenka's there just devastated and furious. And then she goes off court to compose herself. And I don't know what she did while she was off court. And I'm glad we weren't shown whatever she was doing on cameras because there are cameras everywhere here.
Goodness me, she composed herself masterfully. She came back on. She gave an incredible speech, I thought, a real lightness of touch. It was generous. It was fun. And yet we'd seen moments before how much this was her thing. And I think she just had a great sense of the moment there because she said in her press conference that...
She knew it was Madison Keyes's moment and she wanted to be absolutely as respectful as she possibly could to Madison Keyes. But to do that, she needed to take a moment for herself to, you know, let those emotions out, go off court, come back and be ready for the speech. I just thought she handled the whole thing brilliantly. And I love I kind of love the racket smash. Like she was she was really.
gracious at the net with Madison Keyes she didn't do anything to take away Madison Keyes's joy and moment then of course she's pissed off she wanted to win this title like it's a totally natural reaction and then she was absolutely brilliant in the in the speech funny warm um yeah just she always does really good speeches I think
Irina Sabalenka. She always has a good rapport with her opponent, I think, as well. Yeah, I thought Sabalenka carried herself really well in those moments. I know people will come for the racket smash, but they can get in the bin. Obviously, Irina Sabalenka is such a fierce and ruthless competitor.
Losing a Grand Slam final is always going to be devastating for her. But I do feel particularly sorry for players, champions that are going for a streak, a streak achievement and fail to get it because she can't go for that next year. She needs to win another two Australian Opens in a row to be back in this situation again.
That's really annoying, isn't it? That's just annoying. Yeah, and I think it's particularly annoying for somebody like Irina Savalenka, who is the embodiment, the personification of a champion in every single way. She loves it. She loves being the one.
She wants to be a megastar and a champion to win it all, you know, and to get these streaks going and to have everybody talking about her in the same sort of breath as all the greats, I think. That's who she is in her mind and who she's showing herself to be with so many of her performances.
Yeah, and now she's kind of back to square one in that regard. I wouldn't mind to bet that she'll put another run of some other kind together. You know, you could imagine her reeling off several Grand Slam titles in the future. And I don't think it will dim her hunger or enthusiasm. I kind of think it will amplify it. But yeah, it's a real blow. I mean, she was so upset. It's hard to imagine anything dimming her.
hunger or enthusiasm, I think she'll just keep coming, won't she? She just loves it. Yeah, I don't think she, for the time being anyway, long may it continue, like every element of professional tennis and being a champion and all of it just seems to totally suit her. And that is, that's pretty exceptional, actually. It makes me think of Andy Murray saying in his final Wimbledon press conference, there's not a thing about this sport.
that I will miss. And I remember being really shocked hearing that from Andy Murray, but I'm not, I wouldn't be shocked to hear that from Marina Sabalenka because I really think, you know, for her, this is, you know, no downsides. She just loves it all. And actually, like...
just thinking about the rankings now, she's got probably a bit of a run as the world number one. You know, there was a chance that she could have been overtaken here by Igor Sviontek. But if you think last year, Sviontek had an incredible run between the Australian Open and Roland Garros. I think she's got way more points to defend over this period. I'm not exactly sure what it is, but it does feel like, OK, she's lost this final. It does feel like Irina Sabalenka has...
has kind of still cemented herself as the world number one, as the player to beat. And I think, you know, I remember last year we had a big conversation after she'd won the title here thinking, what's next? You know, that was her second Australian Open. And I think we said getting a slam somewhere else. And she did that in New York. And now it feels like trying to win one of the non-hardcore majors. You know, that's, I think she's capable. I really do. You know, I think she's a...
On the right day at Roland Garros, with the sun beating down, I think she'd be a real big threat to Svantec there. And I think on grass it's just a lot more open and her game can be dangerous on that surface too. So, of course, as you said, she wanted to win the three in a row and she's got to build that back up again and start that. But, I don't know, I still think this was...
This was in some ways, you know, a positive tournament for Sabalenka, even if she fell a little bit short at the end. It took that performance from Madison Keys to beat her, you know. And you mentioning there sort of the conversation that we had after Sabalenka won a second title here last year and what does it mean? What will she go on to do? It's reminded me that we're sort of obligated to have that conversation about Madison Keys now, aren't we? That's what you do when somebody...
wins a big title, what does it mean? What will they do? And yet it just doesn't feel appropriate. No, it doesn't. It somehow doesn't. Although I do think she could be a contender out of the Grand Slams, absolutely. In terms of her game, now that she knows she can do it, and now that she seems so much more comfortable in her own skin, I think, and in her own head about everything.
Her game works really well on grass, and it will work really well at the US Open. She's reached the final there before, so who knows? Look, I agree totally with every word you've just said. I guess what I'm saying is it doesn't matter. I do agree with you, yeah. It doesn't matter. And in a way, it didn't matter today. I mean, in another way, it mattered more than anything. She wanted it desperately, but what she's just told us in...
impressed about the journey that she's been on with therapy. And she was very clear that it was therapy and not sports psychology that she's been having over the last year or so. And that's not to do down sports psychology. That's obviously a great thing. And there's a real place for it. But I think within sport, within tennis, that's the sort of acceptable face of mental health work, isn't it? It's sort of the scientific end of...
mental health work the sort of the strong end of it you know yes I've got a sports psychologist but it's that's it's got the word sport in it so it's not you know it's not going to therapy and talking about our feelings Madison Keyes was very clear that the difference for her was I started going to see a therapist and talking about more than my performance on the court I worked on myself and being happy
with me regardless of of what was going on the court and that in turn is has ended up helping helping her results and her state of mind but she she said I just needed to feel okay that that was what that was you know she was asked was there a turning point in terms of your results or a particular low point that US Open semi-final maybe that that prompted you to to turn to therapy and she just said I
Basically, I just can't keep feeling like this. On the tennis court, off the tennis court. And that was what made her try something different. And the way she talked about it, I found quite overwhelming, really. It was incredibly powerful. She was totally open to talking about it. She wasn't pushy about it. She was just... Honest. Honest. And, you know, she said, everybody should be in therapy.
It was an incredible line, wasn't it? You know, nobody in the history of time has said, God, that therapy really, really screwed me over. Like, life is hard for everybody. And, yeah, I thought it was incredibly, incredibly powerful from Madison Keys. And helpful, I think. I would imagine there are some other players who might listen to that and have heard that and have it de-stigmatised as a result.
of what she said. And she does say the WTA have a therapist available at most tournaments, which is really great to hear. I'd like to know more about that, actually. You might get in touch with the WTA to find out a little more. But that's really, really great to hear. I think it was really big, the way she talked about that today. Yeah. She said she got to a place where she no longer...
needed a Grand Slam title didn't she she said she said from such a young age she'd felt that if she never won one she would have not lived up to the hype and that was kind of a heavy burden on her and she said yeah through therapy she got to a point where she was just as you said feeling better feeling okay in life and also proud of her career even if she didn't win a Grand Slam title like she wasn't a failure
And letting go of that internal talk gave her the ability to win it. And it does feel like she, you know, like letting go is what she does on court, right? She lets go of sort of, just lets go of the racket, doesn't she? And the ball just flies. And, yeah, it's so important, I think.
what she said in that press conference there. I think a lot of athletes, a lot of people, I think there was a lot of probably journalists in that press conference hearing that and it was probably useful for them as well. It was great. Minor gripe.
Well, actually, I'd just like to lodge my quarterly complaint about, well, no, it only happens three times a year because Wimbledon don't do it, but Grand Slams building stages for ceremonies. Not necessary. Takes too long. Air gets sucked out of the building. What are we doing? Unnecessary faff. Get rid of it. Second of all, the Australian Open. There's obviously a big...
push from this tournament to big up the role of coaches you've had the the on-court coaching boxes this tournament which we've talked about I think we're all in varying degrees of agreement that there's merit in the idea but it has not been it's been executed quite weirdly this year I don't know if that's a sort of easing in process we'll we'll find out next year I guess but another aspect of that
we seem to discover tonight. We're watching the ceremony and I was like, who's that guy in the hat standing there on the stage? And it turned out to be Madison Keys' coach and husband, Bon Frontangelo, who, you know, has obviously played a huge role in Madison Keys' life and her results and her journey and all the rest of it and deserves heaps of praise for that. But they awarded him a trophy on the stage just before...
Madison Keyes was given her trophy and it just didn't hit. No. No. No. I think that that's something to do backstage, to be honest, about an hour later. Matt's got a theory which I'm buying into big time. Yeah, my theory is they came up with the idea, hoping that coach Andy Murray would win her. Australian Open coaching trophy and therefore get an Australian Open trophy and it didn't come off but they'd already bought a couple of trophies so they had to commit to the bit
I am so all in on that theory. I'm deciding that that is absolutely what happened. Someone on the barge informed me that they did this in Adelaide, I think, as well. I think it might be a Tennis Australia thing, and they are very keen, as you say, to push the coaches. So Bjorn Frantangelo's got all the trophies. It's nice that they want to celebrate coaches. On one hand, I do like that. I think that the coach...
profession can be unsung at times. But I just don't think on the court like that is the place to be doing it. I think he, I don't know whether he was asked to give a speech or something, but he definitely turned it down if he was. Because I think he realised that it would have been awkward if he spoke in between Sambulanka and Madison Keys. So he walked away from the mic and he just sort of awkwardly sort of loitered at the back. But I think he actually handled it.
Well, in terms of getting the trophy and then sort of getting out of there and knowing that it was Madison's moment. If Sabalenka had won, would they have given two trophies to both Anton Dubrov and Jason Stacey? I was wondering the same. It's not like player and caddy in golf. It's not clear cut like that. Do the physios get a trophy? It's a slippery slope we're on. Do the omelette chefs get a trophy?
Where will it end, guys? And look, I do think, as you said, he has played an important role. There's a great line in Matt Futterman's write-up of Madison Keyes' win here in The Athletic where he's got a quote from Bjorn Fratangelo during the Rabatkinner match.
where it was one set all and keys went over to him and he said to madison keys if you lose this match playing the way you play we go home and that's it 30 hours we're home but if you lose this match playing how you've lost the second set you're gonna be a little bit bummed about it for a while and that's that's kind of what madison keys has been saying all along you know like she wants to
play her way play on her terms and just that little bit of reinforcement there in that match I think really helped and he's also been you know instrumental in Keyes's tweaks with her serve Keyes is going for the Yonex racket you know like little obviously Keyes mainly had to be the one who was open to it and she spoke so well in her press conference the other night about how you know
She's not been stubborn, you know, she's been open to change in the last year or so to try and get even better. And I think, you know, he's just given her some little sort of gentle nudges and she's implemented it. And yeah, it's wild. Like, I remember being so excited about this WTA Tour season, like coming into it, like thinking, well, we've got Sviontek, we've got Sabalenka, Goff.
Rabatkin, Paulini, Jung. We've got young players like Andreva and Schneider. And isn't it just like the most WTA tour thing that a name that I hadn't even thought about has won the first Grand Slam of the year and it'd be so compelling and so thrilling and just fill you with so much joy. There's just so many players who are capable and Madison Keys is...
And not a player that we haven't thought about because she's come from nowhere to do this. What was she, 11th seed, 12th seed? And she won a title the week before. But almost because she's always there, that's there or thereabouts. That's the very reason why we've always overlooked her, really, in recent years. We know who Madison Keyes is. We know what she does.
And she has shown that you can not reinvent yourself, but you can change your story. And she did. You make me tear up again, David. Honestly, the last thing I wrote in my notes was that's one of the most exhilarating feelings that I've had inside a tennis court when she hit that forehand winner. Because it wasn't just...
The moment, it was the crowd, and it was knowing what, I guess a bit like with Goran and people like that, that you think time has passed for them to actually feel something like that. And I'm really happy for her that she'd already sort of reached a point in her life and her therapy journey that she was okay with that, that she could handle life and be happy and proud of herself, even if she didn't win a Grand Slam.
What a lovely thing that she also gets to. She's rewritten her story. It's incredible. In the words of Madison Keyes, I am going to cry. So that's it for part one. I'll regroup and we'll go again in part two. Ready for a career change? One way you can truly be yourself, gain valuable training and shine with your customer service skills? Then listen up.
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Lexus awarded Best Reliability in the 2023 What Car Awards. Welcome back to part two, where we're going to talk about a few other results from the day and titles that were won today. Some talent spotting to be done by Matt for Henri Bernay, the young Swiss single-hander.
has won the Junior Boys title and Makana Sanobe has won the Junior Girls title. So those are names to look out for in the future. The Quad Wheelchair singles title was won by Sam Schroeder over Niels Vink, 7675. An absolute thriller, this one. That is Sam Schroeder's fourth consecutive Australian Open singles title, which puts him in the company of only four other players.
So that's some pretty excellent company. And it also means that Sam Schroeder regains the top spot in the rankings from Niels Vink. So there was an awful lot on the line in that quad wheelchair singles final today. The women's wheelchair singles title went to Yui Kamiji 6-2, 6-2 over Anique Van Cout. This was...
Another match between the top two seeds. Just incidentally, if you're wondering where Dida de Root is, she is sidelined with a hip injury. She's had to have surgery. So Yui Kamiji winning her ninth Grand Slam singles title, her third Australian Open, but her first since 2020. This was really big for Yui Kamiji. And these two, Kamiji and Vankoot, this was their 70th meeting today.
Yeah, they're both in their 20s. It's wild. I think Bancoot's in her 20s, certainly Comigi is. Anyway, the men's wheelchair singles title was won by Alfie Hewitt, 6'4", 6'4", over to Kito Oda. That's his second Australian Open singles title. His last one was 2023. And David, you watched this and spoke to Alfie. Yeah, they've got a fantastic rivalry going now. I think that this was their 19th meeting.
Oda's won 10, Alfie's won 9 now. But it was a really dominated rivalry by Oda coming into this match. He'd won the last five that they'd played. He'd won the last three in the third set. So he kept on breaking Alfie's heart. And we remember the Paralympic Games final when he took off the wheel of his chair and they both collapsed to the ground in tears and 7-5 in the third. And Alfie had served for that.
that gold medal in front of 15,000 people and caught Philippe Chatrier. Well, he came out and he said, I said, did you change your tactics? And he says, absolutely. Basically, I threw the kitchen sink at him from ball one. And he went into a sort of 6-4, 5-3 lead, 5-2 lead, I think, actually. Then he got his serve broken and he just had to kind of hold it together to get over the line. But, I mean, Chiquito Oda is only...
18 years of age, which is astonishing. He's already won a handful of Grand Sam titles, Olympic gold. That was the 10th Grand Sam singles title in the wheelchair game for Alfie. And I was chuffed for him, really. He's a really good guy. And, yeah, he liked getting that little bit of revenge for the Paralympic final. It's interesting for him, you know, not getting that...
That Paralympic gold, keeping up the motivation, it's a long way until the next Olympic cycle, isn't it? And he's up for it. Yeah, well, that's interesting, isn't it? Because when you've got, a bit like Novak Djokovic, I suppose, when you've got one thing missing from your trophy cabinet that you covet so desperately, yeah, three years, three and a half years must feel like a blooming long time. I think in a way he views it as a bit of helpful motivation because if he had have won it...
What else is there? Because he'd just won Wimbledon this year as well, which is all lovely, but you've got to find a way to go again, haven't you? So, listen, he'd rather won it. But, yeah, he won't be short of motivation. And that's it for the juniors and the wheelchair tournaments tomorrow. It is only the women's doubles final and the men's singles final. Join us in part three and we'll talk about them.
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Welcome back to part three of the tennis podcast on day 14 of 15 of the 2025 Australian Open. In just a moment, we'll look ahead to the men's singles final. But first, a word from our sponsor, because of course, the tennis podcast throughout this Australian Open has been brought to you by Steve Fogel's International Tennis Tours. And they are your gateway to premium tennis events worldwide.
Oh, David. Steve Fuggles are world leading experts in luxury tennis travel. They take care of everything, give you the tennis holiday of a lifetime, real bucket list stuff. And they can do that for pretty much any tennis tournament in the world. Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Wimbledon, US Open, Labour Cup. That's in San Francisco this year. So really something for everybody. And for us, look, Melbourne has been absolutely incredible.
We are already thinking about the next time that we can rerun the fun in Paris. And in the springtime, what could be better? I had a steak sandwich for dinner yesterday from one of the food outlets here on site. And it had a garlic butter in it. And it tasted like Paris. I closed my eyes. You know, it was something just...
Tastes like a place. It's a very evocative thing, isn't it? Taste and smell. And I felt like I was in both Paris and Melbourne at the same time. What a heady concoction. I don't think Sea Fergals can do that for you, but they can take you to either Paris or Melbourne, both of which are great. They take care of everything, accommodation, transfers, awesome tickets to watch the tennis, hospitality. And if you message us on Instagram while you're there, we'll do our best to come out and say hello to you.
as well also david's very easy to spot so just just keep your eyes peeled yeah we have met a lot of people this year who've said
I'd seen David walking around. Yeah. We have a special discount available for pod listeners who want to go to Roland Garros with Steve Fergles. Just use the code LEGACY, L-E-G-A-C-Y, and that will unlock 5% off your packages. The code is valid until the end of February. So just head to tours4tennis.com forward slash podcast tours, the number for tennis.com forward slash podcast to check it all out. And we'll hopefully see.
some of you in Paris. Now, the men's singles final tomorrow. It follows on from the women's doubles final, which should be really fun. It's the top seeds, Katarina Siniarkova and Taylor Townsend against the third seed, Shea Suwei and Yelena Ostapenko. I think we'll try and watch some of that because that sounds super fun. Then there's some pre-final entertainment. Are we excited, excited, excited about that?
I can't say I'm that excited, no. Today's pre-final entertainment pertains to the Tina Turner musical, David. Oh, well, I'm going to see that, so that's excellent news. I did see some of that, yes, I enjoyed that. Well, maybe it would have been a spoiler for you then. Yeah, well, I saw some, I saw a little bit, and I enjoyed it. When are you going to see it? Whenever my wife's bought the tickets, can't remember. Fun. Lovely stuff. Okay, well...
David will let you know how the pre-final entertainment is tomorrow. Then it is the men's singles final, Yannick Sinner against Alexander Zverev, the top two seeds. I should correct something I said yesterday, by the way, talking about how the...
The final's going to be in the sun, in the heat. It's obviously a night session final. I had a brain cramp. Sorry about that. What do we think is going to happen? It's a good job it's not being played on Monday, I'm telling you, because it's 40 degrees here on Monday for one day only. No, I mean, listen, this should be ideal conditions, really, shouldn't it? Because it's going to be about 27 in the daytime, so it'll cool down a bit in the evening.
They both like night sessions. I think Zverev talked the other day about how he loves playing here at night. And they've had some matches that he's won. He's won four out of the six. But I don't think he's played...
this Yannick Sinner. He certainly hasn't played this Yannick Sinner at a Grand Slam. When they played at the US Open in those brutally humid conditions, Sinner was nothing like this player yet. He hadn't got the authority about him. I think he is going to come out to the court and show us why he's ranked number one in the world.
in this final and as the top seed. And I think he wins in three or four sets. And I think he needs to, because if it goes long, I think that would favour Zverev. I think if they go into a fifth set, Sin is going to have to show something he's never shown before, that he can go deep and dark and win. I don't think he'll need to. Matt?
Yeah, I think my prediction will probably be Sinner in four. I remember, you know, the end of last season, Alexander Zverev was talking a lot about how he was reflecting on his game and he'd realised that part of the reason he'd lost Grandstand Finals was that Sinner and Alcaraz...
go for it in in big moments and you know remember he was practicing after all of his matches at the back end of last year even after he'd beaten them bear to win the paris title he went out to practice he was he was you know trying to win the titles during that run but he was also working on his game and and he was talking a big game he was talking a big game about how you know he he realized that he needed to go after his forehand for example in these big finals well now's his time to show it
because I thought he was pretty passive on big points against Djokovic in that first set. I thought he was pretty passive against Tommy Paul. I've not seen a new Zverev yet in this tournament. He's got to the final, but it's not been a different version of himself. And I think he's going to, even to take it to five sets where he then gets that physical advantage we expect, I think to get there, he's going to have to do something.
in the first three or four sets so that Sinner doesn't win three of them. Because I think Sinner will go after the ball. He will step up in big moments, we expect. He's shown that over the last year. So I think that's a big element of this final. Obviously, Zverev's serve is always a big element. He'll want his percentage up in the...
In the 70s, pushing 80 on his first serve, anything lower, and you expect Sinner will take advantage. I think for Sinner, we might see some drop shots. That's a shot he's worked on. It's been effective for Alcaraz against Verev. I would expect a little bit of that from Sinner at times, just to try and disrupt the rhythm. And ultimately, I am going with Sinner.
His record speaks for itself, really, in terms of why we would pick him. But there is that. It does feel like he's playing Zverev and he's playing the clock a little bit, which is an anxious situation to be in, I think. What's the stat again? It's zero wins and six losses when a match has gone three hours 50, which is right in the ballpark for...
what this will probably be if it goes to a fifth set. You would expect long rallies. You know, it was an hour and 20, wasn't it, the other day, Zverev Djokovic's first set. OK, it might not be quite like that. I think Sinner maybe plays a bit quicker than Djokovic. But Zverev will be trying to make it like that. Right, exactly. That will be part of his tactic, I'm sure. I'm sure, you know, as you said, as you reported on the other day, David, rehiring Jez Green. He's backing himself physically. So Sinner needs to outplay him.
And I think he can, but... Yeah, it's going to be stressful, I think. Yeah, I... Sorry, Matt. I think you said that Alexander Zverev attributed his Grand Slam final losses to not going for it more. I thought he'd said it was umpires that had cost him those Grand Slams. He did say that, and then he had a rare moment of self-awareness.
OK, just checking. I think I will go Sinner in four, but it's a big call for me because I currently lead the predictions competition, which I can't gloat about too much because A, it probably won't be the case at the end of tomorrow and B, my fantasy team is just such a catastrophe that I'm in a...
I'm very much in a glass house. But as the leader, you are forcing the others to make... You know, if you lay down Sinner in four, which is probably the most popular pick, I don't know, but maybe. Reggie, for example, who's chasing you, says he's having to do a traitorous thing. Face off with Reggie. He's doing a traitorous thing and making a Zverev to win pick. Tell him to let me have it, because...
I am somebody that had Madison Keys available to me for my last Fantasy League pick. And I left her on the shelf, folks. Who did you choose? You didn't just leave her on the shelf. You actively said, not Madison Keys. Yeah. And who did you choose instead? That's why my team is called Buyer's Remorse. I regretted all of it instantly. I want to know your picks. No, no, let's go into details, David. Was it Matt? Was it Anna Callenskaya? I think it was Anna Callenskaya. Yeah.
She got injured before the first round. Okay. We have a mascot for this episode. Let's talk about cats instead. This cat is called Boko. I hope I'm pronouncing that right. Would you say Boko, Matt? Could be Boko, couldn't it? I was going to say, isn't that bonus content? Boko is bonus content. Oh. And that's with a C. This is with a K. So I'm going Boko. But Heather, please let us know if I'm doing Boko a disservice because...
Look at this face. He deserves the world. Boko and his brother Barmy were born in our backyard in the summer of 2023. Barmy. I love it. They took up residence in the garden, then in the garage and finally moved into the house with their mama at the start of 2024. Boko loves belly rubs, tree climbing and observing the world with Buddha like serenity from the top of the kitty perch. And that is exactly what.
I'm looking at him do in this absolutely incredible photo that is that's good cat thank you Heather Boko is incredible and he'll be going in our newsletter and on our Instagram he looks like he might have a the top of his ear missing
which was the case for one of my childhood cats because he used to get in the odd scrape to peanut. It's absolutely adorable. Hello to Phoebe, my mascot. As I've said, Phoebe, predictions, potential glory, fantasy league disgrace. I giveth and I taketh away. Maisie, you and I decided to play it safe today and we went with Sabalenka in two.
Matt, hello to Carrie's lovely little friend-to-be for you. Hello, and the predictions are a disaster. You're competing for first place. David and I are competing not to be last. There's someone with about... 11 points. Not any more. Oh, great. Oh, no. OK. Hello to our top folks and executive producers. Greg, Chris and Jeff, we salute you. And Matt, we have some shout outs. We have Sarah H in Sydney. Mysterious. Hi, Sarah. And this is a Christmas present from partner Sean.
Aww. And Sean says, Sarah thinks she's a perfect combo of all three of you. Same age and love of the 90s as David. Yay! Catherine's love of dogs and my love of a great stat. Wow. Sarah sounds awesome. Yeah. I got to hang out with a dog today. It's been a good day. It's been a great day. Sarah H, that's like...
I don't know if this is the most millennial thing ever, but there were about eight Sarahs in my class at school. So everybody had to, all the Sarahs had to say Sarah H, Sarah P, Sarah T, Sarah Sue. That was a full surname, but it was only one syllable. I met Sarah Sue. Yeah. She's fun. Yes, she has all the stories about young Catherine. Sarah H, thank you very much.
We've also got Jonathan Spees. Hello, Jonathan. Hi, Jonathan. Jonathan is in Dripping Springs, Texas. Hello from Dripping Springs Racquet Club. Wow, that is a cool name, isn't it? Dripping Springs. Do you think they're hot springs? I don't know. Jonathan, like Jonathan Stark, the blonde bombshell tennis player from the 90s that I've mentioned once before.
I got emails about that. I was delighted. You two didn't know who the hell he was, but they did. No, I thought that was a character from Game of Thrones. Genuinely. Also, I've got one for the last shout-out as well. Sarah Clark. We always say Sarah Clark, don't we? No, is this Black Rod? Yes, this is a woman who worked 32 Wimbledons.
And we're now going to have to explain who Black Rod is. Yes, I'm going to do that. She served as Black Rod, which... Please explain who Black Rod is before we get cancelled, David. An official in the parliaments of several countries of the Commonwealth of Nations. The title is often shortened to Black Rod. She carries the mace thing at the opening of Parliament. Yes.
It's a position. It's a pageantry-type position. I'm sure there are other duties, but in terms of the front-facing stuff, you dress up in a lot of nonsense, carry a mace into Parliament, and I think bang the mace? Something like that. Anyway, she went 32 Wimbledons in the press centre, and she was excellent. And then did the mace banging. Yeah. Thank you, Sarah.
Thank you. I feel like Jonathan's got a bit lost in the black rod of it all. Sorry about that. Thank you, Jonathan. Jonathan from Dripping Springs? Yeah, well, I mean, come on. That's an amazing place to come from. I'd be really proud to say I came from there. I have to say I come from Solihull. Thank you, Jonathan. And finally, we have Etienne Aduya. Oh, great name. Hi, Etienne. We know Etienne. Guest edited a show last year.
Yes. I love the name Etienne. How do you spell Etienne? E-T-I-E-N-N-E. Like Etienne de Villiers, the former CEO of the ATP. Yeah. He's done well there, Matt. From, let's see, about 2006, he was the chief executive officer of the ATP. And he also was a big high up in Disney for many years too.
Check me out. Unbelievable work, David. Etienne, thanks for being a friend of the pod. If you'd like to become a friend of the pod and mine David's brain, then the link to do that is in our show notes. Folks, it's been an awesome day here at Melbourne Park. We have one more to go and we will be back tomorrow at the end of it. Thank you, as always, for listening. We'll speak to you tomorrow.
Ready for a career change? One where you can truly be yourself, gain valuable training, and shine with your customer service skills? Then listen up. Sage is a leader in accountancy tech for busy businesses, founded right here in Newcastle. We've got Geordie Spirit with global reach. With opportunities to grow your career, challenge yourself, and learn from the best, isn't it time that you will achieve an extraordinary outcome for our customers? Come and unleash your potential as a customer support expert at Sage.
We all know time is money. At Wealthify, we help you make the most of both with our easy to use app and team of investment experts managing everything for you. And when you deposit or transfer to a Wealthify Stocks and Shares ISA, you could earn between 50 and 500 pounds cash back.
That's why the smart money's with Wealthify. Get started today. Download our app or go to Wealthify.com. Wealthify is authorized and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Minimum investments apply. Registration closes 30th of June. TNCs apply. Capital at risk.