NEW YORK—Madison Keys never wanted to come to the US Open as a fan.
“I had the opportunity to go to New York when I was 14,” Keys recalled last week. “I said, ‘No, I don’t want to be at the US Open until I’m playing in it.’”
Keys got her wish a year later. By 16, she was dreaming even bigger after a main-draw debut saw her nearly beat a seed on Louis Armstrong Stadium.
“I’d already won a main draw match against Jill Craybas on the old Grandstand, which, RIP Old Grandstand,” Keys told me, going on a brief tangent to mourn the original structure that housed both Armstrong and Grandstand courts until 2016. “And then I had such a close match against Lucie [Safarova] in the next round. I think she was seeded in something like the 30s or low 20s, I left the court feeling like, ‘I had a lot of opportunities.’ That was a big point for me where I felt like I could actually do this and make an impact.”
Keys made the ultimate impact when, after a decade and a half on tour, she capturing her first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open. Long a contender for major glory, she revamped her game over the off-season, changing her racquet and tweaking her serve to clinch a triumphant two weeks with back-to-back victories over No. 2 Iga Swiatek and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.
One can never quite anticipate the effect of finally landing that personal or professional white whale. Some can feel a certain level of disappointment, that the chase gave a greater high than the conquering. Not Keys.
“Yeah, it was pretty great, I would recommend it for anyone who can do it!” she laughed. “It’s definitely a unique experience and it’s one of those things where, when you’re setting all these goals, obviously you want to achieve them, but when you’re setting the goals you’re not thinking of what happens after you check them off the list.
“So, for me, this has been on my goal list for so many years that, to finally be able to be like, ‘Oh I did it!’ and now I have to add something else? It’s like, ‘Wait, I did the one thing that’s always been on my list…’ So, that took a little bit of getting used to where I had to process the fact that, ‘I did the thing that I’ve always wanted to do.’”
Keys maintained a high level as she processed her career pinnacle, reaching the semifinals of the BNP Paribas Open and three more quarterfinals at the Mutua Madrid Open, Roland Garros, and Omnium Banque Nationale.
“I think I kind of lucked out by winning Australia and then having a little bit of time to kind of regroup. I’m also glad I took that time to take it all in so I could reset and get back on the court, create new goals to go after.”
An improved sleep schedule proved essential in aiding that reset, Keys partnering with Breathe Right nasal strips after getting hooked on the product with husband-coach Bjorn Fratangelo.
“At first, it was more something I would use if I felt like I had allergies or if I was coming down with a cold,” said Keys. “In the last five years, it’s become a routine part of my night. I’m very much a sleep princess, so there’s a whole routine and it has very quickly become an important step of that routine.”
“Bjorn will wear them to go work out. He walks around like, ‘I can see in color!’ He’s very dramatic,” she added, continuing her pitch. “You should try it. You’ll put it on and feel like, ‘Wow, I can breathe so much better.’”