Keys had previously insisted she would refuse to eat the delicacy, but she admitted defeat and said she would accept the terms of the bet.
“A bet’s a bet, so I’ll make it. I hope it’s less dirty than I think it will be, but we’ll find out, I guess,” Keys said at her post-match press conference.
Had the ninth seed won the fourth-round match and continued her title defense, Keys’ side of the bet involved Pegula – whose billionaire parents own NFL side Buffalo Bills – wearing a Kansas City Chiefs jersey.
‘She wanted me to have one [Travis] Kelce cuts the Taylor Swift Chiefs jersey,” Pegula said. “Honestly, I had a lot of motivation today not to wear it.”
The 2024 US Open finalist wrote ‘no Chiefs jersey’ on an on-court camera lens after her win and the pair were seen chatting and laughing in the dressing room immediately after the match.
Keys, who defeated Sabalenka in the final at Melbourne Park last year, said she was “still very proud of herself” despite her departure.
“Coming back and being the defending champion, and dealing with all the extra pressure and nerves – I’m really proud of myself for the way I handled it,” she said.
Fourth seed Anisimova awaits Pegula in the quarter-finals after overpowering Wang 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to reach her first quarter-final at the Australian Open.
The 24-year-old is yet to drop a set at Melbourne Park as she bids for a first major title after finishing runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open last year.
With compatriots Coco Gauff and Iva Jovic already in the quarter-finals, it is the first time since 2001 that four players from the US have reached the last eight in the women’s singles at the Australian Open.
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