After Madison Keys’ recent exit from the Australian Open, Andy Roddick had a few interesting things to say about where she stands right now.
It wasn’t an especially remarkable run for Keys, who came into the tournament as defending champion, but there were still positives to take from it.
The loss came against fellow American and good friend Jessica Pegula, which might have made it a bit easier to swallow, but losing early in a major is always tough.
Roddick has since tried to highlight some of the silver linings in her game, despite the early exit. Here’s what he had to say:
Andy Roddick backs Madison Keys to have a strong season
Speaking on his Served with Andy Roddick podcast, the former world number one explained what it’s like to return to a major as the reigning champion.
He drew a comparison between his own experiences and the situation Madison Keys now finds herself in, having moved on from that title defence.
Roddick believes this could end up working in her favour, saying: “This is pure projection, I have not talked to Bjorn or anybody, but there is something that I know when she won it last year, it was like, how do I now perform as a Grand Slam champion? What is next?
“There are some stress mechanisms that come with that. In a weird way, maybe this is the end of last year. There is this level set; her ranking goes down and maybe she’s 15. But when you are 15 or whatever she ends up at, you all of a sudden are attacking the field again as opposed to being the one [being hunted].
“It seemed like she had some levity about it. Maybe more so than we saw at a lot of points last year after she had won. Best-case scenario – this is a hard reset.”
American WTA players shine brightly at Australian Open
Even though the quarter-finals didn’t start well for the American women, their performance throughout the tournament has been quite impressive.
Half of the last eight were from the USA, and with Amanda Anisimova and Pegula set to face each other, it meant at least one American was guaranteed a spot in the semi-finals.
Coco Gauff’s early exit, along with Iva Jovic’s tough loss to Aryna Sabalenka, narrowed those numbers down quickly.
But overall, it still signals a strong future for American tennis. On the men’s side too, Learner Tien continues to impress.
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