Keys overcomes doubts to finally make breakthrough

Madison Keys was 11 years old when she was first told she could win a grand slam.

- JAMIE BRAIDWOOD

She remembered the excitement she felt, realising the skills and talents she possessed as a junior had the potential to grow into trophies, titles and life-changing success. At 14, Keys played her first professional match. A year later, she won her first tournament on the ITF circuit. Everyone could see the direction Keys was heading in, as if her destiny was written.

Then, at 22, Keys reached her first grand slam final at the US Open. In the biggest match of her life and on the biggest court in tennis, she was blown away by Sloane Stephens in just 61 minutes. The defeat was devastating. For Keys, as time progressed and the years slipped away without a major, the expectation of fulfilling her potential turned into a “burden”. The American became overwhelmed by the fear of failure, of the thought of ending her career with nothing to show for it.

But yesterday, at the age of 29, Keys took the final step on that journey, becoming a grand slam champion for the first time with victory in the Australian Open final, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 over world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka. Keys took the long road, becoming the fourth-oldest first-time grand slam champion in history. Eight years on from the US Open final defeat that could have otherwise defined her, Keys revealed the doubts she had managed to overcome. “I didn’t know if I was going to be able to get back into this position to win a trophy again,” she said.