No. 5 seed Madison Keys was pushed to the limit by No. 12 seed Diana Shnaider in a Brisbane International third-round thriller, coming from a set and 4-2 down to squeak through 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 7-6(5) in 2 hours and 59 minutes.
The result was just the 12th triple-tiebreak scoreline on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz this decade, and the first time either Keys or Shnaider had played a match comprising three tiebreaks. Both players received medical timeouts during the contest — Keys was treated off court after winning the second set, while Shnaider received treatment on her left wrist trailing 3-2 in the decider. Keys finished with 38 winners, including nine aces, to Shnaider’s 17.
Keys’ victory sets up a quarterfinal matchup against No. 1 seed Aryna Sabalenka — a rematch of last year’s Australian Open final, which the American edged 6-3, 2-6, 7-5. Sabalenka leads the overall head-to-head 5-2, including a 6-0, 6-1 revenge in the Indian Wells semifinals.
“That had a little bit of everything,” Keys remarked in her on-court interview. “It’s good to start the year off with a little bit of drama — so glad we got that out of the way. Diana played such a great match, I had to come back and figure out how to get myself back into that match.
“It was trying to stay in every single point, and I knew if I could give myself an opportunity, if I had the chance, then momentum switches so quickly. Really trying to keep the score as close as possible and give myself the best opportunity, then when that opportunity finally came round, to take advantage of that.”
Shnaider, who had the edge the longer the pair’s baseline battles went on, broke first in each set — only for Keys to strike back and force a tiebreak. Though Shnaider was too solid in the first set, by the end of the second set the American had cleaned up her more errors and begun to land some forehand blows of her own.
In the third set, showing a greater willingness to approach the net, Keys won the longest consecutive streak of games in the match as she won three in a row to lead 3-1. From that point on, the dynamic switched, and it was the reigning Australian Open champion who had to hold off her opponent’s fightback. Down 5-4, Shnaider saved the first two match points against her with service winners, but Keys’ volleying prowess proved key in snatching victory in the tiebreak.
Keys improved to 3-0 overall against Shnaider, having also won in the 2024 Miami second round and 2025 Queen’s quarterfinals.
Keys was followed on Show Court 1 by compatriot Jessica Pegula, who notched yet another three-set victory as she came from 2-0 down in the third set to defeat Dayana Yastremska 5-7, 6-2, 6-3. Thirteen of Pegula’s last 15 matches, including both her 2026 outings, have gone the distance; she has won 10 of those.
Yastremska’s form oscillated throughout — the Ukrainian fired 20 winners in the first set, but just four in the second and 12 in the third while tallying 61 unforced errors overall. Pegula remained steady, resetting after dropping the first set from 5-3 up, and found 18 winners to 26 unforced errors. The former US Open finalist also saved her best for the home stretch, stealing some crucial points from Yastremska with anticipation.
Afterward, Pegula joked about having to wait for Keys to finish her marathon victory.
“At least I didn’t go that long,” she said while glancing at the 2-hour, 16-minute time on her match clock. “When she won the second set I was like, uh … But I guess if I’m gonna wait for somebody, I guess it’s OK that she won the second set!”
All of this decade’s triple-tiebreak WTA matches
2020 Lyon SF, Sofia Kenin d. Alison Van Uytvanck 7-6(5), 6-7(2), 7-6(2)
2021 Birmingham R1, Ajla Tomljanovic d. Elise Mertens 7-6(5), 6-7(5), 7-6(4)
2021 Gdynia QF, Kristina Kucova d. Ekaterine Gorgodze 6-7(4), 7-6(7), 7-6(3)
2021 US Open R1, Rebeka Masarova d. Ana Bogdan 6-7(9), 7-6(2), 7-6(9)
2021 Luxembourg R1, Greet Minnen d. Nuria Parrizas Diaz 7-6(4), 6-7(1), 7-6(2)
2022 Strasbourg F, Angelique Kerber d. Kaja Juvan 7-6(5), 6-7(0), 7-6(5)
2023 Austin R1, Peyton Stearns d. Katie Boulter 7-6(5), 6-7(2), 7-6(5)
2023 Miami R1, Camila Giorgi d. Kaia Kanepi 7-6(4), 6-7(4), 7-6(4)
2023 Wimbledon R2, Ekaterina Alexandrova d. Madison Brengle 6-7(4), 7-6(5), 7-6[7]
2023 Guadalajara R1, Caroline Dolehide d. Peyton Stearns 6-7(1), 7-6(5), 7-6(2)
2025 Washington SF, Leylah Fernandez d. Elena Rybakina 6-7(2), 7-6(3), 7-6(3)
2026 Brisbane R3, Madison Keys d. Diana Shnaider 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 7-6(5)
