ADELAIDE INTERNATIONAL

January 15, 2022

Madison Keys

Press Conference

M. KEYS/A. Riske

6-1, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: 2022 Adelaide International women's singles champion, Madison Keys.

Talk us through the match today.

MADISON KEYS: I'm really happy with how today went. I think I started really well and just had the momentum. There were a couple of opportunities where momentum could have switched, and I think I did a really good job of just regrouping and continuing to focus on my side of the court. Really happy to get a win.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What is the biggest takeaway that you get out of a week like this?

MADISON KEYS: I think the biggest takeaway is that things can switch at any moment. As long as you can continue to have the right mindset and keep going for things and keep working hard, things will get better if they're not going well as long as you just have the right mindset and continue to have a good attitude about it.

I'm just really happy that I've been able to put a lot of good matches together. But the biggest thing that I'm taking away from this week is even after being in positions where I lost the first set or things might not be going my way, just having a really collected mindset of I can figure this out, and if I don't I go back onto the practice court and I figure it out tomorrow. Being really conscious of that on the court.

Q. During the pre-season have you and your team implemented things to your game? A few have remarked they saw more shape on the ball. Are you trying to be more proactive about that?

MADISON KEYS: I think if I look back at some of the times in my career where I've been doing well or had good wins or things like that, been consistently having good results, I had shape on my forehand and I was looking to come forward.

I think for me it's so easy to get suckered into just trying to hit hard, then I get frustrated that I'm not hitting winners or getting people off the court.

It's just been a very conscious effort to get back to trying to hit some shape, looking for forehands, trying to get to the net, really putting all those things together. That is how I play my best tennis. When I can put those things together, it's not only better but it's definitely a safer way to play tennis.

Q. Yesterday you talked about vibes, trying to keep perspective. What are the tricks or habits that you have now that help you to do that?

MADISON KEYS: Just really trying to, like I said, remind myself that things can change at any moment. In one week you can go from losing first round somewhere, then you can be in the finals the next week.

Tennis is one of those sports that as long as you keep going forward with the right mindset and you keep working hard, things can change very easily. I mean, it doesn't really matter what you did the week before.

Obviously it's great to have that confidence under your belt, but it really doesn't matter. It resets every single week, which is the great part and the really terrible part about tennis (smiling). But I really just tried to, you know, go out for a coffee, go out to dinner when I can.

Then the biggest thing honestly is my team is very low stress. That's a big thing for me. Not having that excess stress just within the team helps a lot. Tennis is just a lot of fun. Being on the practice court, working really hard but having fun, just remembering that it is a game and not the end all, be all of life.

Q. Do you allow yourself to celebrate this as a very meaningful title for you or do you lock into Monday and what you have to do in Melbourne in 48 hours?

MADISON KEYS: I'm still trying to figure out what the line is there. I feel like my brain has already so quickly switched off of this and into Melbourne.

I think I'm going to try to make myself enjoy this for a little bit longer and just really absorb what I did this week and really learn from it, then tomorrow morning it will probably be at the very, very back of my brain (smiling).

Q. You're a former No. 7, currently ranked No. 87. You said what you were experiencing last year was the number being attached to your name and that wasn't helpful. Theoretically I'm assuming you would be wanting to get back in the top 10 because you know you're capable of that. Are the goals different now? Being happier is more important and the ranking takes care of itself? I'm trending upwards already... What is your aim in that kind of space?

MADISON KEYS: I think where I'm at currently is if I can enjoy tennis and be collected on the court, just really kind of know where I am in that moment when things aren't going super well and all of that, not just focusing on winning and losing, really sticking to how do I want to play this match, what am I doing well, what am I doing wrong, how do I need to improve, all of that, I think winning and losing takes care of itself.

I think if I can continue not to be too preoccupied with my ranking or winning a match, all of the small things that go into that, defending points, all that, it kind of just takes care of itself. You can continue to get more confidence by winning matches but not having that focus be on winning the match.

At the end of the day just trying to go out and compete at the highest level that I can and at the highest level I know I'm capable of competing at is the end of the day my absolute goal. I think if I can keep my mindset on that, then winning happens on its own.

There's going to be days where it doesn't go well and I lose, and it is what it is. We go back on the practice court and we have a tournament again the next week.

Q. Because tennis is results oriented, is about ranking, is it hard to actively not focus on that and kind of unlearn what you did when you came onto the tour?

MADISON KEYS: I'm not saying I'm perfect at it by any means. I was completely fine, then all of a sudden it was like Tuesday morning at 4 a.m. I woke up and I was like, Oh, my gosh, I have to defend points, fully spiraling, could not fall back asleep. I just had to talk myself off of the ledge of it doesn't really matter. All that really matters is going out the next day and competing the best that you can.

It's definitely something that I'm having to actively almost fight myself against. But I just know for my mental well-being that's what I have to do.

I mean, I'm absolutely going to have days or weeks or tournaments where I get back into a bad habit or those thoughts start creeping in. Just being very open with my team about when those things happen and being able to talk about them, which has not always been my best attribute as a person, I usually like to hold it in.

Just doing all of those things and acknowledging there's going to be days that I'm nervous, days that I'm thinking about it more, but doing whatever I can to focus on all of my performance-based goals instead.

Q. Please celebrate and enjoy this, but I have to ask this question, which is facing Sonia on Monday. I don't know if you know that.

MADISON KEYS: Nope.

Q. Sorry to break that to you. Thoughts on that? What will you do to kind of not let this title change the mindset, expectations, ambitions?

MADISON KEYS: Well, I don't really have an answer for you on Kenin since I found out 35 seconds ago. I was trying to finish and focus on one tournament before I jumped to the next one, so... Thank you for letting me know. I'll start thinking about it.

I think the biggest thing that I'm going to do is just remind myself what I was thinking and what I was focusing on this week, continuing to do that. Obviously that's easier said than done.

Just knowing from what I was thinking about last year and the deep, dark pit of despair that I put myself into because of that, I don't want to go back to that. I don't want to let myself borderline hate being on the tennis court and hate competing. If I let myself think that way, that's where it goes.

Just being really conscious of I went out and I just competed. My coach has said before every single match, There is no need to and there is no have to, we're going out because we want to and we're going to go out and compete and you're going to do your best and that's it. Going to try to keep that going.

Ask me again in six months and give me a lecture if that's not what I'm doing (laughter).

Q. We have a recording of this.

MADISON KEYS: Play it back for me.