American star Madison Keys has shared her perspective on a bittersweet end to her 2025 season, one in which she achieved a long-term goal only to see it come to a disappointing conclusion.
After fighting all year to qualify for the prestigious season-ending WTA Finals, her journey was cut short by tough losses and an untimely illness.
Madison Keys Reflects on Ending Her 2025 WTA Finals Journey
The World No. 7’s run at the WTA Finals came to an abrupt end in the group stage. Following defeats to Polish sensation Iga Świątek and fellow American Amanda Anisimova, her chances of advancing were eliminated. Keys then had to withdraw from her third and final scheduled match against Elena Rybakina due to illness.
In a recent message to her supporters, the winner of ten WTA singles titles acknowledged the tough conclusion. While the season did not finish the way she had hoped, Keys emphasized that she still accomplished her primary goal: qualifying for the WTA Finals. She expressed pride in her team’s hard work and dedication throughout the 2025 campaign, despite the final result.
She added, “Not how I wanted the story to end but at the beginning of the year I had the goal of making year end finals again and for that I’m so proud of all of the work my team and I put in to make that goal happen. Thank you for all the support 🫶🏼”
Not how I wanted the story to end but at the beginning of the year I had the goal of making year end finals again and for that I’m so proud of all of the work my team and I put in to make that goal happen. Thank you for all the support 🫶🏽 pic.twitter.com/PADNK2zP8O
— Madison Keys (@Madison_Keys) November 7, 2025
This year marked her second appearance at the WTA Finals, held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from Nov. 1 to 8, 2025. Her only previous appearance came in 2016 in Singapore, where she was also eliminated in the group stage. The long road back to the top-tier event was not lost on her.
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Reflecting on her last appearance, she mentioned, “That was obviously an amazing experience. It was all of the people that, growing up, were always at the top of the game. So just to be associated with all of them was a huge honor. After that I always wanted to make it back, so being here again, on the flip side of things, is really cool.”
Before competing in Riyadh, Keys’ journey through the 2025 season included appearances at the US Open in both women’s singles and mixed doubles. Her singles run ended with a first-round loss to Renata Zarazúa. In mixed doubles, she and her partner, Frances Tiafoe, were defeated in the round of 16 by Świątek and Casper Ruud.