No. 2 seed Sabalenka crossed the net against Keyes, overcoming a 2-4, 0-40 deficit in the second set to win the next 12 points, eventually beating Keyes 6-2 and 6-4 to advance to the Wimbledon Final Four for the second time, extending her perfect 6-0 record in the Grand Slam quarterfinals and leaving herself just one victory away from knocking Swiatek out of the world No. 1 position.
With Swiatek eliminated by Svitolina in the round of eight, Sabalenka, who had performed well this year, would become the new world number one as long as he reached the final. So far in these two weeks, she has largely accepted the challenge, losing just one set before the quarter-final against Keyes, her best result since 2015 at Wimbledon. Sabalenka will face Abdul-Jabbar, who had avenging success last year, in the semifinals.
At the start of the match, Sabalenka took the lead and led 5-1 with an excellent serve, and after a short break in a shower of rain, he saved a break point to end the first set with a serve, 6-2.
However, in the second set, Keith was clearly unaffected by the first-set loss, and she began to find rhythm in her own serve and put pressure on Sabalenka's serve. In the marathon-style sixth inning, the No. 25 seed cashed in on the first break of the match to take a 4-2 lead. But Sabalenka then regained his composure and played a masterful performance in the final 10 minutes, winning four straight sets to secure his reach to the final four.
Sabalenka has become the best player to perform in the Grand Slams this season, reaching at least the last four of the year's top three Grand Slams, winning the Australian Open, the French Open semifinals, can she be happy with Wimbledon?