Madison Keys and Aryna Sabalenka clenching their first when they win points – and a memory of Lleyton Hewitt

While watching the 2025 Australian Open women's singles final between Madison Keys and Aryna Sabalenka, which Keys won 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 to claim her first Grand Slam title and prevent women's world number one Sabalenka from winning her third straight Australian Open, I was struck again by how tennis players today clench their fists after almost every point they win. My sense is that Lleyton Hewitt, the Australian who was men's world number one off and on from 2001 to 2003, was the first player to do this all the time – at least I remember often wondering whether his rather intense celebrations of every successful point were a waste of energy. (Andrew Shields, #111words, 25 January 2025)