Australian Open 2026: Jessica Pegula ends Madison Keys’ title defense and wins apple pie bet

Keys had previously insisted that she would refuse to eat the delicacy, but she admitted defeat and said she would accept the terms of the bet.

“A bet is a bet, so I’ll do it,” Keys said in her post-match press conference. “I hope it’s less risky than I think, but we’ll find out I guess.”

Had the ninth seed won her fourth-round match and gone on to defend the title, Keys’ side of the bet would have included Pegula — whose billionaire parents own the NFL’s Buffalo Bills — wearing a Kansas City Chiefs jersey.

“She wanted me to dress up [Travis] “Kelsey lowered her Taylor Swift Chiefs jersey. Honestly, I had a lot of motivation today not to wear that,” Pegula said.

The 2024 US Open finalist wrote “No Chiefs shirt today” on the courtside camera lens after her win and the pair were seen talking and laughing in the locker room immediately after the match.

Keys, who beat Sabalenka in last year’s final at Melbourne Park, said she was “still proud of herself” despite her exit.

“Coming back and defending the title and dealing with all the extra pressure and nerves – I’m really proud of myself with the way I handled it,” she said.

Anisimova, seeded fourth, awaits Pegula in the quarterfinals after she defeated Wang 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals for the first time at the Australian Open.

The 24-year-old is yet to drop a set at Melbourne Park, as she bids for her first major title after finishing second at Wimbledon and the US Open last year.

With fellow Americans Coco Gauff and Iva Jovic having already reached the quarterfinals, this is the first time that four players from the United States have reached the women’s singles quarterfinals at the Australian Open since 2001.