Keys, Stephens overcame injuries to reach final
NEW YORK — It was past midnight Friday when Madison Keys, still floating after her steamrolling semifinal win over CoCo Vandeweghe, mused on her U.S. Open title matchup with Sloane Stephens.
“I was actually just laughing and thinking who would have thought in Australia that Sloane and I would be the finalists at the U.S. Open?” Keys said. “Neither one of us were playing at the time, both just having surgeries.”
Exactly no one could have foreseen this conclusion to the women’s championship, and that includes Keys and Stephens.
Stephens suffered a left-foot injury at the Rio Olympics, needed surgery and was hobbling around on crutches during the winter. Keys had leftwrist surgery in November, returned to the game in March, and then needed further surgery in June. Both missed the Australian Open, Keys played two matches at the French and two at Wimbledon. Stephens returned at Wimbledon, losing in the first round.
Yet through sheer effort, and a healthy dose of talent, Keys, 22, and Stephens, 24, are the first Americans to meet in the Open final since Venus and Serena Williams in 2002.
Keys has played at a consistently high level throughout the tournament, especially on her serve. She leads the Open with 34 aces and has had only 13 double faults. Her second serve has been very effective, especially in the later rounds and against Vandeweghe.
“Madison played an unbelievable match,” said Vandeweghe, who lost in two quick sets. “I didn’t really have much to do with anything out there.”
Surprisingly, it’s been Stephens’ feet that have served her well here, considering that the left foot had been a major problem. In her win against Venus Williams in the semifinals, she was running down everything and seemed to get to every ball in the deciding and dramatic third set.
Saturday’s match will be the first Grand Slam final for both players. Oddly, it will be only the second match they have ever played against each other. Stephens won the first one two years ago.
They are good friends, coming up through the ranks together, playing Fed Cup together, and enjoying time off the court.
“So it’s really amazing, and I have known Sloane for a long time, and she’s a close friend of mine,” Keys said. “So to be able to play her in both of our first finals is a really special moment, especially with everything that we have gone through this year.”
What also has been shown is the strength of American women’s tennis, with four Americans in the semifinals for the first time since 1981.