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WIMBLEDON

June 27, 2016

Madison Keys

London, England

M. KEYS/L. Siegemund
6‑3, 6‑1

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. You won.
MADISON KEYS: I did.

Q. How are you feeling? I know you like grass. You're enjoying it still?
MADISON KEYS: I'm still loving the grass. First round at Wimbledon is always nerve‑wracking, so happy to go out and have a really good solid match.

Q. When the draw came out, obviously you have the confidence from Birmingham, but Laura had good results before. I mean, what were your feelings or emotions or nerves? Did it make you more nervous that you drew someone who had been playing well, even though she wasn't a grass court specialist?
MADISON KEYS: I don't know if that really made me nervous. I think just overall, it's first day, first round of Wimbledon. That kind of nerves, those nerves were definitely there.
I think in a way, it almost was nice knowing how she was going to play. It wasn't going to be a surprise. I kind of knew what was coming at me this time. Obviously I knew it was going to be a really tough match. So I just went out there with the mentality of knowing she was going to keep fighting and going to be pretty crafty.

Q. When people say and write that you could potentially be the No. 1 player in the world, what's your reaction to that?
MADISON KEYS: I think it's nice to hear. Obviously it's confidence boosting, people think that about me. But more than anything, I think it just really makes me want to get out there and keep working and kind of just keep my head down a little bit.

Q. Do you think you can become the No. 1 player?
MADISON KEYS: I think I can. I'm obviously out here working for that every day. I don't think it's going to come easy, and I don't think just because people are saying that, it's going to happen.
That's why whenever I hear that, I kind of just want to get out on a practice court and keep getting better.

Q. What specifically needs to get better?
MADISON KEYS: I mean, I don't think there is one thing in my game that I say is absolutely perfect and doesn't have to get any better.

Q. What are you working on? Footwork and speed, seems like you've really improved?
MADISON KEYS: I have. I have definitely been working a lot on my fitness and movement, but I think my returns can get better. I think coming in more can get better, and I think just being overall more consistent and confident on the court, not having those ups and downs.

Q. When you broke into the top 10, did you know that you were the first American woman to break into the top 10 for the first time since Serena did it all that time before that?
MADISON KEYS: I didn't know that. I knew before the match that if I won, it was going to happen. But I didn't know that it had been so many years since an American woman did that.

Q. What was your reaction when you saw that stat?
MADISON KEYS: It was surprising just because I feel like there has been so many good Americans who have obviously been close to that. So it was surprising.
But it was also tough because I was still in the middle of a tournament. So as happy as I was, I was more focused on having to play the final the next day. So I was really excited for about three minutes, and then I was like, I have to focus on the final tomorrow.

Q. A fashion question. Nike. How did you decide to pick which of the outfits. You went with the skirt instead of the dress. How did you make that choice?
MADISON KEYS: Honestly it was more I have been wearing that outfit all year, it was going to be an easy transition. I haven't played in a dress for years.
So for me, it was just more about it's easy to switch into just a different color instead of switching into a dress.

Q. Were you happy that got to be an option? I think originally you were going to have to wear a dress.
MADISON KEYS: No, they let us know it was always an option. We could wear a skirt and shirt option, as well.
So, yeah. It wasn't a huge thing. They said we have a skirt, we have a dress, pick which one.

Q. How experienced do you feel just around the grounds, around the tournament, compared with earlier years? Are there new things for you still or do you kind of know what to expect in every aspect of life as a player?
MADISON KEYS: I think you get more and more comfortable with it, and I think now it's kind of just second nature. You know what to expect. Nothing really takes you by surprise anymore.
So, yeah. I just feel more comfortable with it.

Q. Do you feel like you've changed over the years, like if you were to go back and, I don't know, talk to your 18‑year‑old self playing on tour, is that person that different from the Madison sitting there, or not really? I mean, what's your sense?
MADISON KEYS: I think in a lot of ways I have changed. But I also think every 18‑year‑old changes a lot from 18 to 21 to 25.
So I think on and off the court, I have changed in a lot of ways. And I think just a big thing is experience‑wise, it's still only my third full year, fourth full year on tour. Obviously there is plenty of experience that I can still have.
But just feeling more comfortable and knowing what to expect and it becoming more of a routine has really helped me. I think the maturity level of being able to handle a lot of what's thrown at me has been a big difference.

Q. Flipkens next. Talk about that matchup.
MADISON KEYS: It will be tough. I played her in Miami. It was a tough match. She's obviously done well on grass before and can be really crafty, is really good with dropshots and slices and mixing it up. That's going to be a tough match. I think I'll have to go in with a similar game plan as I did today.
So definitely going to be working on that tomorrow in practice.

Q. When we saw you at the French you hadn't officially clenched Rio. Now you have.
MADISON KEYS: I have.

Q. How are you feeling about that whole thing?
MADISON KEYS: I'm very, very excited. Being an Olympian is huge, huge honor of mine. I'm really, really excited to get to go and play for my country.

Q. Is there anyone in particular you feel like you really want to meet, any of the other athletes that you'd like to meet at the Olympics?
MADISON KEYS: I don't know if it's just one athlete. I think just the whole experience of kind of feeling like it's all Team USA is going to be really fun and exciting. Obviously something that we don't get to do on that level very often.
We get Fed Cup and those are always fun weeks. So multiply that by like 100, and I feel like that's the Olympics.

Q. Do your sisters know you're playing Wimbledon or do they think you're galavanting somewhere random?
MADISON KEYS: Honestly, I don't even know at this point. I talked with them the other day, but we didn't talk about tennis or where I was in the world or anything like that.
Who knows. Maybe someone will ask them about it, and then they'll call me and wonder where I am. So we'll see.

Q. Maybe the teacher will bring it up in school?
MADISON KEYS: Well, they're not in school right now, so they're probably not going to know.

Q. When you talk about the people back home, Novak was just saying that he saves half of his suitcase for packing towels to take back to family and friends. What is it about the towels that make them so popular? Do you do anything like that?
MADISON KEYS: I don't know what about the towels makes everyone so crazy about them, but I am constantly getting text messages, Can you grab me a towel from like every city? For the most part, you can bring some, but I have had people who wanted me to bring a towel from each week for like a six‑week trip. I'm like, I can't pack 75 towels and take them home. It's not gonna happen. You can pick one tournament. I'll bring you one towel.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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