• Former world No. 1 looking to win her third major of the year.
• American player struggles to control her powerful attacks.
• Madison Keys  loses her serve in decisive second set.

Victoria Azarenka, a former champion, advanced at the Australian Open by defeating Madison Keys despite dropping the opening set, 1-6, 6-2, 6-1.

As Madison Keys came out on fire to defeat Azarenka 6-1, it was a game with an intriguing final score. The American player had 14 winners to just 8 unforced errors to open the game, which was really amazing. Azarenka struggled to control her powerful attacks as she did so. She made far too many errors, including seven unforced errors and three double faults.

When Azarenka quickly led 3-1 in the second set, that situation altered. After breaking, she quickly lost her serve, making the score 3-2. However, she used another break point to make the score 4-2 before cruising to a 6-2 victory. Keys lost all belief in her ability to strike the ball, and the mistakes started to mount swiftly. In the second set, she recorded 14 of them.

Azarenka thrashed her opponent 6-1 in the decisive set. Keys was unable to connect on anything, resulting in 17 unforced mistakes. A superb victory for Azarenka, her 45th in Melbourne Park. She moves on, looking to win her third major of the year.

A 45th match win at Melbourne Park!@vika7 • @wwos • @espn • @eurosport • @wowowtennis • #AusOpen • #AO2023 pic.twitter.com/siCQXpQtVm

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— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 20, 2023

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