Madison Keys and Coco Gauff are both in action at the 2026 Italian Open after being struck by the viral illness that swept through the players at the Madrid Open. Keys shared an update on her health after winning her opening match in Rome, revealing why her difficult recovery from the brutal illness left her feeling envious of Gauff.
Madison Keys Explains the Difference Between Her and Coco Gauff’s Recoveries
Keys was forced to abandon her Madrid Open campaign just hours before her opening match due to a severe stomach illness. However, she appears to have bounced back at the WTA 1000 event in Rome, rallying from a set down to claim a 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 win over Peyton Stearns.
During her post-match press conference, Keys opened up about the “miserable” toll the illness took on her. “It was so bad. Guys, I puked like 20 times in a 15-hour period. Yeah, it was really miserable. Felt terrible for a couple of days. It sucks because as much as the first day obviously sucks, the recovery period of being so tired, you can’t eat, all the things. Took a couple of days. Hopefully it’s behind me.”
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The 31-year-old also shed light on the difficulty of recovering from the illness, which was in contrast to Gauff, who is nine years her junior. The 22-year-old battled the same illness in Madrid and even threw up during one of her matches, yet according to Keys, she still managed to recover more quickly.
“Yeah, I will say I think it was like the first two days were miserable. After that it was okay. It’s just having to get yourself back into training, and eating food again is the hardest part. I saw Coco. She was like, I feel so much better. I was like, Is that youth? I don’t feel better, and I had it before you did,” she said.
Now feeling fully recovered, the world No. 19 revealed that indulging in plenty of gelato helped speed up the process. The tennis community got a glimpse of her enjoying the sweet treat when Keys and her podcast co-hosts, Jessica Pegula and Desirae Krawczyk, organized a gelato-tasting video featuring fellow American stars like Gauff, Ben Shelton, and Frances Tiafoe.
“I feel fine now,” the American added. “Yeah, I’ve had enough time I think at this point to get back to it. I’ve also been eating like a lot of gelato, trying to recoup. I’ve heard that’s really good for you, yeah. You know, fat, calcium is important, dairy. All the important macros.”
On the tennis front, Keys will square off against Nikola Bartůňková in the third round of the Italian Open. Meanwhile, Gauff is set to take on Solana Sierra after beating Tereza Valentová 6-3, 6-4 in her opening match.
