Australian Open 2025 LIVE: Latest results and set-by-set updates as fans hit out at Iga Swiatek for using ‘dirty tactics’ in tense three-set thriller against Madison Keys

Fans have been left divided online after an odd moment unfolded before the third set.

Madison Keys had just claimed a huge 6-1 victory in the second set against Swiatek and was eager to get underway in the third set to keep her momentum going.

The American was stood on the baseline and looked ready to serve. But Swiatek was not ready to play.

According to the Channel 9 commentator, time had been called, but ‘Sweet Caroline’ could still be heard playing over the speakers.

Swiatek, meanwhile continued to bizarrely bat pretend balls on the tramline, keeping her opponent waiting.

After another call from the umpire she would then finally step to the baseline.

Keys had not been impressed and hit back at Swiatek by launching a booming Ace right down the middle of the court.

But some on social media have hit out at her antics.

One went as far as calling Swiatek’s act ‘dirty tactics’. Another said that ‘the umpire should have given her a warning’.

That was a totally encompassing match.

And Keys perhaps has summed up everyone’s emotions perfectly.

She signed the TV camera ‘Oh my god’ with a smiley face.

Madison Keys left absolutely everything out there on the court and didn’t realise that Iga Swiatek actually had a match point in the third set.

During her on-court interview Keys double-checked with the interviewer over the moment which had come at 5-6 in the third set.

Did she have a match point? I feel like I blacked out at one point. I was out there running around. A 10 point tiebreaker for an extra dramatic finish.

Reflecting on the epic match, Keys revealed that she felt like she was fighting to stay in the game at points.

I felt like I was fighting to stay in it. To be able to be standing here and say I’m in the finals is amazing and I’m so excited to be in it.

Even though I lost the first set, I feel like I was playing some better tennis at the end of it. Being able to settle in the second set was nice. The third set was so up and down.

It just became who could get that final point and who could be a little better than the other one. I’m happy it was me.

That was one of the best matches we’ve seen on this court all week.

Madison Keys fought back to go 8-8 and produced a huge Ace to secure a match point.

A rally followed before Swiatek sprayed a ball beyond Keys’ baseline and the US star clinched victory.

It’s the second Grand Slam final she has reached in her career!

‘I’m in the finals, woooo!’ she said after the win.

Iga Swiatek has gone ahead in this tiebreak but Keys is fighting back. She’s brought the tiebreak to 4-5 after going 2-4 down, but has just struck a shot straight into the net to give the Polish tennis star another two-point lead.

Keys breaks back as Swiatek double faults!

That is absolutely astonishing. We go to a tiebreak! And this match certainly deserved it.

This is an absolute classic. It’ll be the first to 10 points for this final exchange.

Could there be another twist to this match?

At 30-40 Swiatek was serving for the win but she can’t convert the point!

She’s made a few errors tonight and at a crucial moment in the match, she smashes the ball into the net.

This third set has been a real tussle between Swiatek and Keys.

Both have saved breakpoints with Keys taking a 4-3 lead in the final set.

This could go right down to the wire, but neither has looked like breaking just yet.

After the match Aryna Sabalenka revealed how she was going to try to win back her friend Paula Badosa, by taking her on a shopping trip.

Sabalenka said she would buy the world No 12 whatever she wanted, and Badosa has hit back at the world No 1 revealing what she wants her close friend to buy her…

Something really expensive then. It’s going to be something really expensive because now I think she doubled the prize money. So I think she won’t have a problem for that. I will think about it (smiling).

Paula Badosa has revealed what Aryna Sabalenka said to her during that heartwarming moment backstage earlier.

After suffering defeat, Badosa slumped on the floor of the player’s gym and looked dejected.

But her friend Sabalenka soon arrived and appeared to share a few words with the Spaniard.

The pair were seen laughing and smiling following the conversation.

But when pressed on what the conversation was about, Badosa joked:

That it was really unfair for me that she played this level today (smiling). I was expecting, of course, a good level, but maybe not that much.

But no, she came, like, to say that she played three semifinals before she won a title. She was very proud of my improvement lately, especially with all I’ve been through.

So, yeah, we were just joking around. I’m really happy that, look, if I have to lose against somebody, of course I want to lose against world No 1 and against Aryna, and I wish her the best.

Reflecting on her defeat, Paula Badosa believes we can already hand Aryna Sabalenka the Australian Open title.

Despite taking an early lead in the first set, Sabalenka turned the screw and produced a dominant straight-sets victory against her good friend, demonstrating why she is the world No 1 right now.

I was playing good. I mean, the first set was really tight, a good level. Then in the second set she started to be very, very aggressive. Everything was working. Everything she was doing today, touching today, could become gold.

I have nothing to say. I mean, of course credits to her, congratulations to her. She played the best match not even of the week. From the last months, for sure.

If she plays like this, I mean, we can already give her the trophy.

This match has been a real rollercoaster ride with Madison Keys bouncing back after losing the opening set 5-7 to secure a huge 6-1 set against the five-time Grand Slam champion.

What a set of tennis that was from Keys and a huge response too.

Keys has only reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open twice in her career, with the 29-year-old last making the semis at Melbourne Park back in 2022 where she was beaten by Ashley Barty.

A weird moment has just unfolded where Iga Swiatek has held Keys up from serving by running around the court furiously practising her swing. Keys was stood on the baseline for a good few minutes before Swiatek had indicated she was ready to receive serve.

She responded by sending a booming ace down the middle of the service box.

Maybe there was a little bit of annoyance from Keys at how long she had to wait there – but she sweeps through that first game to go 1-0 in the final set.

Sabalenka and Badosa shared a funny moment on the court earlier tonight after the Spanish tennis star appeared to trip up on the court.

Thankfully she did not injure herself after the slip but Sabalenka, who is one of her close friends, appeared to tease her about the moment.

As she prepared to serve again, she stopped to make sure her bestie was OK before making a gesture with her hands.

Badosa saw the funny side and repeated the gesture laughing and dropping her head down in embarrassment.

Check out the moment below…

The American is bounding in confidence here! She’s gone 5-0 up and is just one game away from pulling level with Swiatek.

Despite hitting back to fend off Keys’ advances in the opening set, Swiatek has faded in this second exchange and seems to be struggling with her distances.

Swiatke has struck six unforced errors in this second set and has been seen fuming to her coaches in the corner of the court.

This has been a rollercoaster of a match. Can Keys serve out to go level?

Well, after Keys roared her way back to 5-5, Swiatek produced a moment of brilliance herself.

She held service to love to go 5-6 up before breaking Keys to win the set.

Swiatek hasn’t dropped a set so far during the tournament and she is continuing to play some excellent tennis but Keys is fighting hard and wins an early break in the opening game of the second set.

During the first set, Keys had a big chance to smash the ball back down into Swiatek’s court but instead pumped it into her own net!

She saw the funny side and let out a smile after making the error!

What a remarkable performance from Madison Keys. She is bounding in confidence after staging an epic comeback against Iga Swiatek having gone 5-2 down.

Swiatek held a set point at 5-3, but the American saved, smashing her way back to break the Polish star before holding at 5-5.

But she can’t close out the first set!

Maddison Keys holds service and saves a set point to delay Iga Swiatek’s advances.

The Polish star has rocketed to a 5-3 lead in this one and is playing brilliantly here but a resilient Keys is hitting back!

Sabalenka and Badosa shared a smile and a hug backstage.

The World No 1 revealed though how hard it is to put their friendship aside to compete on the court.

It’s tough to do but we agreed on that and I don’t know, I think we’re doing it pretty well. I hope she’s still my friend, I’m sure she’ll hate me for the next hour or day or two. I’m OK with that, I can handle that, and then after that we’ll be back to being friends and going out shopping together.

Paula Badosa cut a devastated figure in the player’s gym after that match.

But slumped on the floor, her good friend Aryna Sabalenka has just come up to her and given her a huge hug. It was a touching moment with Sabalenka and Badosa both smiling and laughing!

It looks like they’re both friends again after that gripping semi-final encounter.

Aryna Sabalenka doubled back on a funny moment there as she appeared to make an expletive in her post-match interview.

After clinching victory against her good friend Paula Badosa, Sabalenka promised her good friend that she would take her out shopping.

And in a bid to say sorry for securing a huge straight sets victory that gained her a berth in the final of the Australian Open Sabalenka said: ‘I promise, Paula, we will go shopping and I’ll pay for whatever s*** you want.’

‘Whatever you want, without the previous word I said,’ Sabalenka corrected herself.

A funny post-match interview now from Aryna Sabalenka who spoke about her friend Paula Badosa admitting that she was very happy to see her friend back to her best on the court.

Somehow I was able to turn around the game in that crucial game. A super tough match against a friend and super happy to see her on her highest level. It was a tough match and super happy to be through.

She also lifted the lid on how the pair put their friendship aside when they come head-to-head on the court, Sabalenka said:

I don’t know. I think after a couple of finals against each other we spoke and we decided to put it aside. No matter what happens on the court we’re going to be friends after the matches. I hope she’s still my friend. I’m sure she’ll hate me for the next hour, day or two. But after that I hope we’re back to friends and go out shopping.

I promise Paula we’ll go out shopping and I promise I’ll pay for whatever s*** you want.

Sabalenka now has the chance to win her third Grand Slam title. Should she do so she’ll join an illustrious list of names to have also won three Australian Open slams that includes Margaret Court, Evonne Goolagong, Steffi Graf, Monica Seles and Martina Hingis.

I have goosebumps. I’m so proud of myself and my team that we were able to put ourselves in such a situation. It’s a privilege. If I am able to put myself in history it will mean the world to me.

I’m going to go out and give everything I have in the finals.

Paula Badosa just could not fend off Aryna Sabalenka’s advances there.

It was a clinical display from the world No 1, with Badosa playing some brilliant tennis tonight forcing Sabalenka to come back in the first set after going 2-0 down.

It is great to see Badosa back on the court after her injury woe but Sabalenka ultimately clinched victory 6-4 6-2 against her good friend.

Paula Badosa has completed an awe-inspiring comeback after suffering a stress fracture in her back in 2023.

Agonisingly, the injury had left her doubting whether she should hang up her tennis racket, with the Spaniard, admitting that she needed to take cortisone injections to keep playing.

She opened up on the ordeal earlier this week during a press conference.

Well, it was a stress fracture in my L4/L5 that wasn’t recovering well. Then the facet joints that were inflamed all the time. Every time I was doing exercises, I had to stop because it wasn’t responding well.

When I thought about stopping was when I was doing the injections because they told me I had to do max three a year, and I was already on my second one. It was the fourth month of the year. I was quite playing like in the limit with that also.

So I think especially it was in the clay court season. It was pretty bad for me and also the back was still hurting. So in that moment I really didn’t know what to do.

Yeah, I think also especially after in my home tournament in Madrid it was very tough for me. A mix of back, mentally, and everything. That moment I was thinking maybe I’m not made for being back again. Yeah, I was doubting a lot.

But the 27-year-old revealed that the tough ordeal had given her a new perspective on playing tennis.

I think at the end, I’m more mature. I’m really proud of what we went through with all my team and how I (fought) through all that, especially mentally.

Thankfully she’s not injured and sees the funny side of her earlier slip!

Her good mate Sabalenka also had a little chuckle!

Despite the funny moment, things aren’t quite going Badosa’s way here. Sabalenka is roaring her way to victory in this semi-final having broken her opponent twice in the second set now to take a 4-1 lead.

Can the Spaniard hit back?

That looked worrying at first but the Spaniard is OK!

She appeared to trip over and fall face-first to the ground as she attempted to return a shot from Sabalenka.

Her racket went flying as she fell there but the good news is that Badosa held her thumb up to signal that she was OK.

She even was able to laugh about it afterwards with her good friend, Sabalenka, who will no doubt give her some stick after the match for the trip!

A clinical display from the Serbian. She bounces back after going 2-0 down to beat her good friend Badosa and clinch the first set.

Badosa just couldn’t hold against her good friend as Sabalenka switched up her game, utilising her immense power as well as some cute drop shots, spin and brilliant court awareness.

She’s now one set away from a three-peat.

Tyra Banks is embracing a surprising new life in Australia and the 51-year-old is looking to make a big telly comeback Down Under.

Currently living in Sydney, Banks has called in today to check out the tennis at Melbourne Park but admitted she had embraced the Aussie way of life as she plots her next career step.

‘I think I’m going to go back to do some TV,’ she teased. ‘I might even do stuff here—morning shows, hosting, something. When I do, it’s going to feel like home.’

Check out the full interview below!

Ahead of tonight’s match, Tyra Banks stopped for a quick photo shoot in the tunnel at the Rod Laver Arena.

She’s out on court watching as Sabalenka takes a commanding 5-3 lead in this match.

The American actress, who has featured in shows including the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Gossip Girl and Coyote Ugly has also recently revealed plans to make a comeback to screens Down Under!

The Belarusian takes the lead at 3-2!

Paula Badosa gallantly saved three breakpoints there but just couldn’t hold out against the Belarusian, hitting a shot into the net to concede an advantage before placing a return in between the tramlines to concede the break.

Aryna Sabalenka, meanwhile, seems to have found her groove after a slow start in this match.

She played some incredibly powerful groundstrokes in that last game and Badosa struggled to temper the ball.

Meanwhile, it’s raining in Melbourne. It’s been a little chilly here so I am surprised the roof wasn’t shut before this match kicked off but in any event, we’re just having a little break in play while the ballkids mop up the droplets on the court and it looks like we’ll be getting back underway pretty quickly here.

Meanwhile, Sabalenka got audiences laughing earlier this week after the defending champion danced on court after her first-round victory against Sloane Stephens.

Check out the funny moment below…

Aryna Sabalenka pulls the first set back to 2-2 and her service game is looking much better now after being broken early on.

Badosa, meanwhile, spoke earlier this week about how the pair would approach playing together, considering that they are such good friends.

We deal with it pretty normal. Plenty of times we had messages before the match. It’s pretty chill. We know how to separate things very well.

We spoke about it so many times. We admire, respect each other. It’s going to be a battle inside the court, of course, but outside, it’s super normal.

She’s right, this match is shaping up to be a huge tussle between the pair!

A massive break and she’s bounding with confidence here.

She races to a 40-15 lead before breaking the Belarusian.

And the Spaniard gives a huge fist bump to the air. She’s been solid at the start of this match.

But she cannot hold serve. The Belarusian hits back with a break of her own, capitalising on a few errors from her good pal Badosa.

While it may be an awkward one for the pair, considering their strong friendship, playing against each other is not something that will be new for Aryna Sabalenka and Paula Badosa.

The pair have played each other seven times during their careers, with Sabalenka winning five of those matches.

Their most recent match came in the round of 32 at Roland Garros, with Sabalenka securing victory against Badosa before the Belarusian was knocked out at the quarter-finals.

But it’s Badosa who takes the lead, holding service in the first game, while saving a break point against the world No 1.

Only a slight head nod between Aryna Sabalenka and Paula Badosa as they stand in the tunnel, ready to step out onto court.

But both look absolutely in the zone here, despite being best friends.

The first women’s semi-final is less than 10 minutes away!

Aryna Sabalenka and Paula Badosa have long been close friends. And tonight will not be the first time they will have gone head-to-head on the tennis court.

The pair are set to go up against each other in about 10 minutes time at the Rod Laver Arena and I’ve just seen Badosa and her boyfriend Stefanos Tsitsipas backstage at Melbourne Park sharing a quick hug.

Sabalenka and Badosa, though, first formed a bond after facing each other for the first time back at the 2021 Cincinnati Masters.

And even amid their rivalry, the pair have gone on to brand themselves ‘soulmates’ with the duo regularly being spotted away from the court together attending events and going out for dinner.

Sabalenka has even expressed her gratitude to have a friend like Badosa on the tennis circuit.

‘It is very difficult. It doesn’t happen very often that you can find your soulmate on the circuit because we compete against each other. But we had this deal: on the court we are opponents, we can shout whatever we want, but off the court we are friends again,’ Aryna Sabalenka said (via puntodebreak).

Read more about their friendship here!

So we have got a jam-packed evening coming for you tonight with the women’s semi-finals set to get underway at around 7:30pm AEDT (8:30am GMT).

Defending Australian Open Aryna Sabalenka and her close friend Paula Badosa will go head-to-head in a huge match that will see their friendship tested.

After that, American star Madison Keys will look to secure her passage to the women’s singles final. But in her way stands five-time Grand Slam winner Iga Swiatek, who sensationally is yet to drop a set at the tournament so far.

The players are in the house and we’ll be getting underway in the next 30 minutes.

An update, of sorts, on Novak Djokovic’s fitness. After a suspected hamstring injury in his quarter-final win over Carlos Alcaraz, he admitted he was ‘concerned’. He was not on site on Wednesday and after being down to practice today at 2pm his name suddenly disappeared off the schedule, raising fears over his fitness.

We have been told he did not practice at Melbourne Park and, while it is possible he has hit off-site somewhere, it is likely he has given his injury two full days of rest.

The Serb is down to practice at 1pm tomorrow before facing Alexander Zverev at 2.30pm.

Djokovic also delivered a surprise offer to British star Jacob Fearnley this week.

Australian Open boss Craig Tiley said in the week that the tournament will have a strong Australia Day presence on Sunday.

The men’s singles finals will take place on Sunday, with Novak Djokovic, Jannik Sinner, Ben Shelton and Alexander Zverev all gunning for a place in the showpiece event.

‘I’m proud of the fact that we are an event that always has been and always will be inclusive, diverse and offer equal opportunity for all,’ he said.

‘You will see the welcoming and the recognition of the Australian of the Year, on-court green and gold, the Australian flag as well.

‘We will have pre-ceremonies and special guests which we are going to announce and the Australian national anthem.

‘Australia Day does this year fall on the final day of the event, and so we anticipate to have a recognition.’

But some have hit out at the plans, including former Australian tennis star Sam Groth, who called for ‘more than just flags and the national anthem.’

Groth, 37, retired in 2018 but now works as the deputy leader of the Victorian Liberal Party.

‘[It] would absolutely be more appropriate to have something more major than just the flags, and…singing the national anthem,’ he said.

‘Yes, we can acknowledge some of the flaws of our country, but give those that want to celebrate, that come on site, the opportunity to.’

In the past, Tennis Australia has removed formal recognition of the national day, amid a push to change its date.

‘We are mindful there are differing views, and at the Australian Open we are inclusive and respectful of all,’ a Tennis Australia spokesperson had previously said.

‘We acknowledge the historical significance and deep spiritual connection our First Peoples have to this land, and recognise this with a Welcome to Country on stadium screens prior to both the day and night session daily.’

Good afternoon and some news just in at Melbourne Park for you.

Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has hit out at any potential plans for protesters to disrupt the men’s singles final at the Australian Open on Sunday afternoon.

It comes as rumours have been circling around the tennis precinct in days that some Australia Day protesters were planning to disrupt proceedings on Sunday, January 26.

Protests have been planned for Melbourne’s CBD, but organisers have claimed there is no plan to make their way to Melbourne Park and will follow the same route that has been used in the past.

Ms Allan, though, branded any attempts to cause trouble at the tennis ‘disgusting’ before adding that a large police presence will be seen around the city and the tennis precinct in order to control crowds.

Approximately 30,000 people are expected to take to the streets on Australia Day amid the protests.

Ms Allan called on all parties to show respect, no matter their stance on Australia Day.

‘I think we can all find space in our hearts to respect that, to understand that,’ the Premier said.

‘Respect also goes both ways. We’ve got to make sure that for those who want to acknowledge the day in their own way have the space to do that.’

Read the full story below…