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U.S. OPEN

September 9, 2017

Madison Keys

New York, NY, USA

S. STEPHENS/M. Keys

6-3, 6-0

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Congratulations for making the final.
MADISON KEYS: Thank you.

Q. Despite losing, what have you learned about yourself these past two weeks?
MADISON KEYS: You know, obviously I didn't play my best tennis today. I'm really disappointed. But if you told me as I was getting on a plane to go have my second surgery that I could have a Grand Slam finalist trophy in my hands at the end of the year, I think I'd be really happy.

I think I mostly learned that I'm a fighter. No matter what, I can figure things out. In a couple of days, I will be really happy, but right now still a little bit disappointed.

Q. Why don't you think you played your best today? Was it more emotional, mental, or was there anything physically bothering you?
MADISON KEYS: I think at the end of a Slam, both -- whoever is still on the court is physically going to be feeling something. I definitely think my play today came down to nerves and all of that, and I just don't think I handled the occasion perfectly.

Q. What would you do differently if you could do it over?
MADISON KEYS: Win some more games (smiling).

Q. Can you tell us if the leg, your strapped leg, had any impact on your game today? And if you felt this morning while warming up, that it wasn't going to be a good day for you?
MADISON KEYS: I don't think I was moving perfectly, but at the same time, I'm not going to take anything away from Sloane. I think she played really well. I don't think I played great. I think that's kind of a combination for a disaster for me.

Yeah, I mean, I'm obviously not happy with how things went out there, but I still fought as hard as I could and I did everything that I could and came up short today.

Q. Seems like a pretty special friendship. Can you talk about that moment when she came over to the chair and you guys shared a moment there?
MADISON KEYS: I think, you know, we have known each other for so long and we have been through so much that we wanted to share that moment with each other.

To be able to share my first Slam experience with a really close friend when it's also her first Slam is a really special moment. Again, if there was -- there's no one else in the world that would have meant as much as it did.

Q. How would you describe what Sloane has done this year from the time of her injury, surgery, through this Open championship?
MADISON KEYS: I think what she's done has been absolutely amazing. She's obviously playing some really good tennis right now, and the fact that she had all that time off, to then come and kind of go on this streak that she's gone on is really unbelievable.

But Sloane has always had the talent. I think not being on the tennis court for so long really helped her realize how much she loves the game, so in a lot of ways, I think it was the best thing that happened to her.

Yeah, I'm really happy for her, and, you know, I'm sure -- hopefully, we will have many more Slam finals against each other.

Q. You have been talking about how you have been able to be more open about your nerves and what you were feeling before this match. What were those discussions like with Lindsay? What was she able to tell you and maybe settle things and what you were thinking going into the match?
MADISON KEYS: I mean, I was obviously nervous all morning. Sloane's a tough opponent to play when, you know, you're not making a lot of balls, but then, at the same time, she's not going to miss, either. So it was kind of I didn't totally know what to do once I got on the court which just intensifies those nerves even more.

So I was definitely not feeling 100% good on the court at any point.

Q. On the same kind of theme, do you think her game style absorbs the nerves a little bit better because she keeps getting the ball back and you're looking for that first strike?
MADISON KEYS: I think so, but at the same time, it's the same situation for both of us.

I feel like had I played a bit better, then maybe nerves would have come into play a bit more. At the end of the day, she just outplayed me today.

Q. After the match was over, and you saw Lindsay, what was the first thing she said to you?
MADISON KEYS: I mean, she just said, Tough one. Gave me a hug. That was pretty much it. She's on to her second job right now on Tennis Channel.

Q. I think you watched the end of Sloane's semi match when she won and advanced to the final? Lindsay said you got goosebumps and got excited about it. Were you excited for your friend or you wanted to get there too?
MADISON KEYS: In that moment, it was completely about Sloane and being so happy for her. I think it's really special when, as an athlete, you see another athlete, not even just in tennis, when they do something remarkable and amazing. I think it's a really special, cool thing.

When she, you know, won and put her hands in the air, I just got chills. I was just so happy for her.

Q. Is there any chance you would join her celebration tonight?
MADISON KEYS: Yeah, of course, I would 1000% go. She can buy me drinks, all of the drinks (Laughter).

Q. You said you didn't expect a run to the finals to happen here at the US Open this year. I'm wondering, looking ahead to the rest of the year, do you feel like you can play freer in any way? Because you have already done so much more here than you could have imagined.
MADISON KEYS: I think so. Right now, I haven't even gotten to that part. The thought of being on a plane to go to Asia to play more tournaments is the last thing on my mind (smiling).

But, no, I think in a lot of ways the last couple of weeks for me has shown that when I kind of just relax and take the pressure off of myself good things can happen. So I'll definitely try to replicate that in the future.

Q. Can you articulate kind of how you process the emotions of great week, awesome two weeks, unbelievable what I just did, versus coming off the court and dealing with the loss and disappointment? How hard is it right now? How conflicted does it feel?
MADISON KEYS: It's obviously really conflicting. On top of that, I'm really sad for me, but I'm so happy for her.

Like I said, I think drinks will help me through this tough time (smiling).

I think right now it's not the time to kind of try to sort of through my emotions, because I don't even know where I am.

But I think tomorrow or even the next day, this last couple of weeks for me has been amazing, and I'm going to look back and be really happy, but right now it still really hurts.

Q. You said obviously you two go back a long way and you said she's always had the talent. When you were sort of young coming through with her, did you always think that talent was so exceptional that she was a potential sort of Grand Slam winner to do what she's done today?
MADISON KEYS: I mean, maybe not so much in juniors. I don't think as a 13-year-old you have that will kind of, you know, ability to think that far in the future.

But I have always known -- when she made her semifinal run in Australia, I think we all saw how great she was, and it's always been there. I'm definitely not surprised that she was able to do this.

Q. Did you need this result getting to the final for it to be an arrival moment for you, or did you already feel like you arrived on the tour?
MADISON KEYS: I mean, I think there's different levels of that. I have obviously been in the year-end Championships, made Top 10, so there are a lot of things I have done that kind of were goals of mine and being in a slam final was one of them.

And so I kind of get to check that little box off, but definitely still going for walking out of here with a big smile on my face.

Q. What drink is Sloane going to have to buy you tonight?
MADISON KEYS: We'll see. We might go all over the place tonight (smiling).

Q. With Serena Williams saying she'll be back on tour, perhaps the Australian Open, what do you see in your crystal ball for you, Sloane, Serena, Venus, CoCo, and what do you think lies ahead for the group of you?
MADISON KEYS: Well, firstly, I would need a crystal ball for that, which I do not have, but I think American tennis is in a really good place right now, and I think having Venus and Serena being the greats that they are and kind of, you know, leading the pack, I guess you could say, is really great.

Obviously CoCo had an amazing week, and I think there is lots of good things to come.

Q. Have you actually been invited to the celebrations or is this a hint for her that she should invite you?
MADISON KEYS: No, I was invited. The hint was, like, you should buy me a bag or something tomorrow (smiling).

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