Defending Champion Keys Rallies Into AO Round Two, Fernandez Falls to Tjen
By Richard Pagliaro | Monday, January 19, 2026
Photo credit: Australian Open Facebook
Madison Keys’ inspired run to her maiden major title at the 2025 Australian Open moved some of her most devoted fans to tears.
Launching her AO title defense on Rod Laver Arena today, a skittish Keys quickly found herself down 0-4.
Refusing to throw a pity party, Keys channeled her champions’ resolve.
Keys saved two set points in the opening tiebreaker rallying for a 7-6(6), 6-1 victory over Ukrainian Oleksandra Oliynykova to reach the AO second round for the 11th time in 12 appearances.
It wasn’t easy at the outset and wasn’t always pretty—Keys surrendered her opening two service games and littered errors falling behind 0-4 in the tiebreaker—but the ninth-seeded American found her forehand when she needed it most. Ultimately, Keys overcame a whimpering start with willful finished celebrated her 50th career major main draw appearance with her eighth straight AO victory.
Keys overcome the nerves and a hard-hitting opponent to seize an opening set that looked out of reach at times.
“I have been thinking of that moment for basically a year,” Keys told Chanda Rubin in her on-court interview. “It was incredible to walk out for the first time since walking off the court a year ago. So happy to be back in Melbourne, obviously very nervous at the start. Just so happy to be back.
“I love playing here. I was talking to Lindsay Davenport yesterday and she reminded me that not many people get to be a defending champion at a Grand Slam. So just trying to embrace it and enjoy it and as a nervous as I was at the start, I’m really glad to be back and that I got through that match.”
The 30-year-old Keys said a primary goal for the season is finding comfort in uncomfortable situations on court. In that respect, she accomplished her mission in today’s Melbourne Park return.
“One of my big goals this year is to kind of force myself to be a little bit uncomfortable on court and try to actually implement some of the things we’re working on, as uncomfortable as those are in those big moments,” Keys said. “I’m really trying to push myself to kind of evolve and add more things to my game.
“That’s really just been my goal all off-season, is trying to learn new things. Then now the hard part of actually putting them in matches.”
In her Tour-level debut today, Oliynykova was an unsettling opponent for one set.
World No. 92 Oliynykova broke to open and battled through a six-deuce hold backing up the break for 2-0.
A jittery Keys was struggling to control her powerful groundstrokes as she surrendered serve in the third game.
Across the net, Oliynykova exploited the break holding for a 4-0 lead after 25 minutes of play.
“I think my mind was actually more clear. I think when I was 4-Love up, I started to think more,” Oliynykova said. “It’s normal when you don’t have experience and it’s so many people and you hear someone screaming my name, someone screaming her name. And then it’s nice atmosphere, but sometimes you start to think too much.
“When I started my game, I was feeling everything perfectly. Then I think in one moment — I mean, it’s
about my opponent, because her game is amazing, but also, in some moments I think I overplayed myself, because I had an advantage. If I would be more experienced, I don’t know if I would be able to win, but I’m sure I would be able to use it better.”
Oliynykova opened a 40-15 lead in the sixth game and earned four game points to go up 5-1, but Keys dug in and denied each one. Keys came through a tense nine-minute game scoring her first break for 2-4.
Keys began to find her range and take charge of baseline exchanges with her heavy topspin forehand. Keys cruised through eight of 11 points taking her fifth straight game for a 5-4 lead.
Deadlocked at 5-all, Keys was up 30-15 when she sprayed three consecutive unforced errors gifting Oliynykova the break and a 6-5 lead.
Serving for the set, Oliynykova fell into triple break point hole and a resurgent Keys broke back to force the tiebreaker.
In a scratchy start to the tiebreaker, Keys littered the Laver Arena court with errors falling behind 0-4.
In those moments, you’d like to see Keys reign in her targets a bit and not play so close to the lines. Keys hits so big she doesn’t need to really touch lines to torment opponents.
Despite the deep tiebreak deficit, Keys kept firing away.
Oliynykova held two set points—at 6-4 and 6-5—but credit Keys for catching fire on her favored forehand.
Scalding four straight winners, Keys snatched away the tiebreaker that seemed firmly in the Ukrainian’s hands for a one-set lead.
That one-set lead loosened up Keys’ right arm. Keys, who won nine of 10 first-serve points in the second set, rolled out to a 4-0 second-set lead and never looked back.
The Happy Slam is still Keys’ happy place and she’s grateful to supportive fans who have told her the title run made them shed tears of joy.
“I have a lot of people that come up to me and tell me winning made them cry. I never thought I would have that ability,” Keys said. “I think it’s just really been cool as an athlete to have had that impact on so many people. I’ve always tried to be very open and honest with everything that goes on in the sport, kind of do my part of humanizing this part of the sport.
“I think for me, the biggest thing that I feel like is a huge takeaway is I was able to do that. I don’t think very often in sport you see that you have the ability to make people cry happy tears.”
The defending champion closed in 100 minutes setting up an all-American second-round clash vs. Ashlyn Krueger.
Krueger broke five times in a 6-3, 6-3 sweep of Sara Bejlek. It will be the first meeting between the pair.
While 2017 US Open finalist Keys withstood a bumpy start, the 2021 Flushing Meadows finalist Leylah Fernandez fell at the first hurdle.
In a battle of aggressive 23-year-old baseliners, Janice Tjen rode her heavy topspin forehand to a 6-2, 7-6(1) upset of the 22nd-seeded Fernandez.
It is Fernandez’s first AO opening-round exit since 2022. The left-handed Canadian would have been wise to try to attack the Tjen slice backhand and get to net.
Tjen, a former collegiate standout at Pepperdine, was quick to round around the backhand and hammer her heavy forehand. After failing to serve out the match at 5-4, Tjen lit it up in the tiebreaker.
And inside-out forehand winner and a backhand pass put Tjen up 3-0 in the breaker. Fernandez flipped her fifth double fault to fall behind 1-4.
On match point, Fernandez missed a running backhand and Tjen, who broke serve four times, scored her maiden AO victory.
World No. 59 Tjen, the pride of Indonesia, will play former No. 1 Karolina Pliskova in round two.
Pliskova defeated 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens 7-6(7), 6-2 in a clash of former Top 5 players on the comeback trail.
“This is one of my favorite places to play overall,” Pliskova said. “I was really working hard to come back. I’m here and I won my first round so I’m happy.”
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