Madison Keys after winning. Keys, playing in her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, had to fight against her nerves and a leg injury that surfaced in the second set. Credit Made Nagi/European Pressphoto Agency
MELBOURNE, Australia — In a match that felt like a changing of the guard, Madison Keys, an unseeded teenager from the United States, defeated 34-year-old Venus Williams on Wednesday to reach the semifinals of the Australian Open.
Keys, playing in her first Grand Slam quarterfinal, had to fight against her nerves and a left leg injury that surfaced in the second set. But she found the strength and the big shots she required to finish off her 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 victory.
“I’m very happy I’m into the semifinals, but the moment is definitely sweeter being able to play Venus,” Keys said. “You just have to enjoy the moment, and I did enjoy it, and I get to enjoy another moment next round.”
Venus Williams said after losing, “I definitely didn’t serve as consistently as I wanted to, and I felt just not as aggressive off the ground as I would have liked." Credit Bernat Armangue/Associated Press
