Madison Keys had a bumpy start to her title defence at the Australian Open after being given an early scare by Ukraine’s Oleksandra Oliynykova.
The American ninth seed survived a tough opening set before dismissing Oliynykova 7-6(6), 6-1, in less than two hours. During the opener, Keys was forced to recover from 0-4 down and was then again behind with the same score in the tiebreaker. However, she gained momentum as the match progressed by breaking her rival three out of four times during the second frame.
Keys, who hit 26 winners against 37 unforced errors, struggled at times with her rival’s game plan of using various moon balls. A high looping shot with top spin that aimed to push her deep behind the baseline.
“It’s just been a really long time to play someone who plays that style, but she does it so effectively,” Keys commented.
“They’re so high and they’re so deep. It was really hard. I felt like I couldn’t really take a swing volley or kind of like take it off of the bounce just because she hits such a good ball off of that.
“So I felt like I really kind of just had to wait for the right opportunities.
“But I was genuinely impressed with how well she’s able to hit that ball.”
Oliynykova was making her Grand Slam debut at the age of 25. A three-time champion on the WTA 125 circuit last season, she is currently ranked 92nd in the world. Despite being from Ukraine, she had previously also played for Croatia after her family moved to the country when she was a child due to political reasons. They returned to Ukraine after the Revolution of Dignity in 2014, which led to the removal of President Viktor Yanukovych.
“For me it’s the best experience in my career,” Oliynykova said after making her first appearance at a Grand Slam.
“It’s something that I’ll remember until the end of my life.”
Keys, who is five years older than her opponent, is seeking her second Australian Open title in a row to become the 13th woman in the Open Era to have won multiple titles at Melbourne Park. However, since her triumph at the tournament 12 months ago, she has yet to reach another final.
On top of this, there is also the pressure of trying to live up to her status of being the defending champion at a Grand Slam for the first time. A task Keys refuses to take for granted.
“I definitely think that no matter what you think it’s going to be like, how you try to prepare yourself, I think when you do all of that, you at least know that you have done your part to be ready for the occasion.” She spoke about her preparation leading up to her title defense.
“But the moment they say, “Ready, play,” it kind of all hits you in a way that I don’t think you can ever really explain to someone.
“But as nerve-racking and as stressful as that can be, I’m still reminding myself of just how few people get to be in that moment, and being able to walk out today and have the crowd be as welcoming as they were. I’ll take the stress any day.”
Keys, who is playing in her 50th Grand Slam main draw, will face compatriot Ashlyn Krueger in the second round.
