SCOTT SIMON, HOST:
And now it's time for sports.
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SIMON: Championship weekend with NFL Conference games and the Aussie Open. It's Howard Bryant of Meadowlark Media joins us. Howard, thanks so much for being with us.
HOWARD BRYANT: Good morning, Scott. How are you?
SIMON: I'm fine, thanks. Big upset at the Australian Open. American Madison Keys won the women's single championship. She, of course, defeated the top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus in three sets. How'd she do it?
BRYANT: Well, she did it by playing the most fearless and error-free tennis of her life. Aryna Sabalenka is a two-time champion coming in, heavy favorite, as well, and Madison Keys has been known. She was the 21st seed and has been known, obviously, as a grand slam talent for years. She made the U.S. Open final and lost to Sloane Stephens back in 2017 and really has been plagued by massive power, massive inconsistency, and really, really terrible fits of nerves...
SIMON: Yeah.
BRYANT: ...And consistency at the biggest moments, but not this week. For this tournament, when she played, she beat the No. 1 and the No. 2 seeds to win this championship. She faced a match point against Iga Swiatek in the semifinal. And then she plays Sabalenka and wins the first set and comes all the way through. What a great championship for her. What a moment. This is the difference between all these great players. It's really not talent. It's how you hold up...
SIMON: Yeah.
BRYANT: ... In the biggest moments. And for really the first time in her career at the top of the mountain, she got through. She crossed the line.
SIMON: Men's final tomorrow. Of course, top-ranked Jannik Sinner of Italy is trying to repeat, but he's got a challenge, doesn't he?
BRYANT: Well, he's got a challenge, but once again, he's facing Alexander Zverev, who has been here before, as well. This is his first Australian Open final. But he, in 2020 at the U.S. Open against Dominic Thiem, had a 2-sets-to-love lead in a best of five. Needed one set to win. Lost 3 sets in a row. Again, at the French Open, he was up 2 sets to 1 against Carlos Alcaraz and couldn't cross the line either. Once again, just like Madison Keys, Alexander Zverev is a huge talent - 6' 6", has got all of what it takes but hasn't quite been able to put it together. As the altitude gets really thin, let's see what he can do against the world No. 1.
SIMON: NFL Conference Championship games tomorrow - winners go to the Super Bowl. First, Philadelphia Eagles host the Washington Commanders. Philly has a dominant defense, punishing running attack. D.C. has a first-year coach and a rookie quarterback, who's been golden so far. What do you foresee?
BRYANT: Well, Jayden Daniels has been spectacular. What a year for Washington. They - finally, you say goodbye to Daniel Snyder in the second year away from the game after the team gets sold, and now you're four quarters away from the Super Bowl. Once again, this - you know, pro football playoffs always come down to two things, Scott - injuries and turnovers. And if you're healthy and you protect the ball, usually the better team wins. Philadelphia's not healthy. We - Jalen Hurts, the quarterback, we're not sure about how he's feeling. Washington has this unbelievable sort of Kardiac Kids thing going on this year. NFC East rivals. Let's see what they do. It's going to be great.
SIMON: And, of course, the choice of any champion, Kansas City Chiefs host the Buffalo Bills. This has become football's greatest rivalry, and I've been practicing something. Ready?
BRYANT: Here we go.
SIMON: Fear the bison.
BRYANT: Fear the bison. That is so bad, Scott.
SIMON: (Laughter).
BRYANT: But they need all the help they can get because who - no one knows if anyone can beat the two-time defending champion Chiefs. We've never seen a three-peat in the Super Bowl era, and - but I think Buffalo's the better team. Can they finally finish? Can anybody beat Patrick Mahomes? It's the same conversation we used to be having about Tom Brady. But Buffalo is the better team, but will they be the last one standing in the AFC?
SIMON: Howard Brant of Meadowlark Media. We look forward to those games. Thank you so much for being with us. Talk to you soon, my friend.
BRYANT: No, my pleasure. Thank you, Scott. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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