Madison Keys has recently shared an update on her health after taking a medical timeout during her round-of-16 match against No. 12 seed Diana Shnaider, which she eventually clinched after a long battle. At the Brisbane International, Keys concluded her journey with a quarterfinal loss to Aryna Sabalenka, acknowledging her loss while maintaining a positive mindset for her upcoming matches.
Madison Keys Gives Health Update While Remaining Optimistic for Future Matches
Keys is coming off one of her most notable seasons, where she clinched a Grand Slam, becoming the oldest player to become the Australian champion, and the Adelaide International after defeating her buddy, Jessica Pegula, in the finals. She ended her season by making her second WTA Finals appearance, retiring in the group stage matches due to illness.
During her recent post-match press conference, the American star, who entered as the fifth seed, revealed that she is happy to have claimed two wins in the Australian Swing’s tournament. In her earlier rounds, she defeated McCartney Kessler 6-4, 6-3, and Diana Shnaider 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5), 7-6 (5), a match that lasted 2 hours and 59 minutes, with both players taking medical timeouts.
Apart from this, Keys also dismissed any health concerns when asked if her performance was affected by any physical limitations, and highlighted her positive mindset for her upcoming matches, “Yeah, obviously not the result that I wanted today. I feel like there are some things that I can do a little better and execute a little bit better, but still, lots of time here. Great to get two wins here and to have some good momentum going into Adelaide and hopefully just continue that trend and have a good Australian season.”
She continued, “No, I think it’s just first matches back, obviously played a very long match yesterday, so body is just getting used to all of the tough matches again.”
In their last match before the 2026 season, Keys and Sabalenka battled in the semifinal round of the Dubai Tennis Championship, where the latter dominated the victory with a score of 6-0, 6-1.
Before their Brisbane match, the Minsk native had also shared a competitive message for the American, expressing her anticipation and that she was looking forward to her revenge, citing the Australian Open loss, “But here, specifically in Australia, of course I’d like to get the revenge. If it’s going to be Keys, it’s going to be, as always, a great battle, really aggressive tennis. I’m excited to face her.”
For her upcoming matches, Keys will participate in two events: the Adelaide International, held from Jan. 12 to 17, and the Australian Open, played from Jan. 18 to Feb. 1, at Melbourne Park.
