Rock Island’s Madison Keys In U.S. Open Semifinal Match Tonight

Rock Islands' own Madison Keys won her quarterfinal match last night in straight sets over a younger, higher-seeded opponent in the U.S. Open. Tonight she faces the current Australian Open Champion, and the number 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka.

Keys has found new life in her groundstrokes, and is playing the smartest tennis of her career, relying on accuracy, touch and experience to keep her opponents from settling in. She'll need all of those weapons tonight to try and even her lifetime series against the No.2 seed. Keys still has one of the hardest shots in the game, but at 28, is using them only when necessary. She is a pleasure to watch.

Sabalenka doesn't seem to have a weakness at the moment, and is also a champion groundstroke battler. Tonight's match-up is at 7:15 on ESPN, and odds makers have given a slight edge to Sabalenka.

I give the edge and overall toughness to Keys! Here's how most previews of tonight's match see things going, courtesy of Sportskeeda: This match could be a masterclass in first-strike tennis if both of them put their best foot forward. Given how they've played so far, the odds of that happening are quite high. Sabalenka seems to be playing a tad bit better, so she'll be favored to reach her second Major final.

Must see TV!