Career Timeline of Madison Keys: Major Achievements and Milestones

How Madison Keys built a successful career. Explore key moments that defined the journey.

Madison Keys is an accomplished American professional tennis player, achieving a career-high ranking of world No. 5. She has secured ten WTA Tour-level singles titles, with her most significant victory being the 2025 Australian Open where she defeated Aryna Sabalenka. Keys was also a US Open finalist in 2017.

Sections (3)

Full Timeline Career & Achievements Success & Recognition

1979: Four Americans in Semifinals

At the 2017 US Open, Keys's advancement to the semifinals marked the first time four Americans had made the semifinals at a major since the US Open in 1979.

1985: Four Americans in Semifinals

At the 2017 US Open, Keys's advancement to the semifinals marked the first time four Americans had made the semifinals at a major since Wimbledon in 1985.

1994: Youngest Player Since Hingis

In February 2009, at age 14, Madison Keys became the youngest player to win a WTA Tour-level match since Martina Hingis achieved the same feat in 1994.

1998: Last American US Open Champion Before Williams Sisters

At the 2017 US Open, Keys aimed to become the first American US Open champion other than the Williams sisters since Lindsay Davenport in 1998 but lost in the final to Sloane Stephens.

1999: First American Woman in Top Ten Since Serena Williams

In 2016, Madison Keys became the first American woman to move into the top ten since Serena Williams in 1999, after her victory at the Birmingham Classic.

2005: First American in Major Final Since Davenport

In 2017, Keys and Stephens became the first Americans other than the Williams sisters to reach a women's major tournament final since Keys's coach Lindsay Davenport in 2005.

2006: Youngest American Titlist Since Vania King

In 2014, Madison Keys won her first career title at the Eastbourne International, making her the youngest American titlist since Vania King in 2006.

2007: Outstanding performance in girls 12s matches

In 2007, at age 12, Madison Keys had a 23-2 record in girls 12s matches, including a perfect 19-0. Her most notable title was a victory at the 12-and-under Junior Orange Bowl.

January 2009: Wins Copa del Café

In January 2009, Madison Keys won the Copa del Café, a Grade 1 tournament in Costa Rica, becoming the first American winner of the girls' event in its 26-year history.

February 2009: Keys turns professional

In February 2009, Madison Keys turned professional on her 14th birthday. She later made her WTA Tour debut a few months later at the Ponte Vedra Beach Championships, defeating world No. 81, Alla Kudryavtseva, in straight sets. Keys became the seventh-youngest player ever to win a WTA Tour-level match and the youngest since Martina Hingis in 1994.

2009: First Teenage Titlist Since Wozniacki

In 2014, Keys's title at the Eastbourne International made her the first teenage titlist since Caroline Wozniacki in 2009.

March 2011: Miami Open wild card entry

In March 2011, Madison Keys was awarded a wild card into the Miami Open, marking another opportunity to play on the WTA Tour. She was defeated by No. 41, Patty Schnyder, in the first round.

2011: Switch to Adam Peterson as coach in 2011

In 2011, after six years at the Evert Tennis Academy, Madison Keys switched coaches to Adam Peterson, who was assigned to work with her through the USTA.

2012: Australian Open debut

In 2012, Madison Keys won an invitational playoff to compete at the Australian Open but was unable to get past the first round.

2012: Second-fastest average forehand and backhand speeds

The Game Insight Group analyzed Australian Open data over a five-year period from 2012 to 2016 and found that Keys had the second-fastest average forehand and backhand speeds of all players.

2014: Fastest Groundstroke Speed at 2014 French Open

At the 2014 French Open, Madison Keys had the fastest average groundstroke speed of any player at 78.9 miles per hour (127.0 km/h).

2014: Serve speed of 126 mph in 2014

In 2014, Madison Keys could serve at more than 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) when she was 14, and was clocked at up to 126 miles per hour (203 km/h) on the road to her first WTA Tour title.

2014: Earliest Exit from US Open Since 2014

In 2014, Madison Keys had her earliest exit from the US Open, snapping a streak of five consecutive runs to the second week.

2014: First WTA Title

In 2014, Madison Keys won her first WTA title at the Eastbourne International against Angelique Kerber.

2015: Lindsay Davenport joins coaching team in 2015

Before the start of the 2015 season, Lindsay Davenport and her husband Jon Leach joined Madison Keys's coaching team. During this year, Keys also worked with doubles legend Lisa Raymond. Despite a breakthrough season, Keys left all three at the end of the year.

2015: Keys wins against Venus at Australian Open

In 2015, Madison Keys won against Venus Williams in the quarterfinal match in three sets at the Australian Open, overcoming a lower back injury in the second set.

2015: Fifth fastest serve at the US Open in 2015

In 2015, WTA recorded Madison Keys serving at 124 miles per hour (200 km/h) at the US Open, which was good for the fifth fastest serve.

2016: WTA Finals

In 2016, Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep defeated Madison Keys in the round robin stage of the WTA Finals to prevent her from advancing to the semifinals.

2016: Co-hosted Fearlessly Girl summit in 2016

In 2016, Madison Keys co-hosted the first summit for Fearlessly Girl with founder Kate Whitfield in Rock Island.

2016: First match against Osaka at the 2016 US Open

In 2016, Madison Keys faced Naomi Osaka at the US Open. Despite being down 1–5 in the third set, Keys won the next five games and eventually won the tie-break to progress to the fourth round.

2016: Ranked third for service game dominance in 2016

In 2016, Madison Keys finished third in percentage of points won on serve. That same year, she also hit the third-most aces with 300.

2016: Coaching changes and debut at WTA Finals in 2016

In 2016, Madison Keys hired Jesse Levine as her coach, later replacing him with Thomas Högstedt. This partnership led to her debut at the WTA Finals. However, they split after the season.

2016: Highest Ranking Since 2016

In 2022, Madison Keys finished the year ranked No. 11, her highest finish since 2016.

2016: Second-fastest average forehand and backhand speeds

The Game Insight Group analyzed Australian Open data over a five-year period from 2012 to 2016 and found that Keys had the second-fastest average forehand and backhand speeds of all players.

2017: Compatriots followed suit

After Keys moved to top 10 in 2016, compatriots CoCo Vandeweghe and Sloane Stephens followed suit with their own top ten debuts in 2017 and 2018 respectively.

2017: Reunion with Davenport and collaboration with Dieter Kindlmann in 2017

At the beginning of 2017, Madison Keys reunited with Lindsay Davenport and started to work with Dieter Kindlmann. Davenport helped lead Keys to a third title and her first major final at the US Open later in the year.

2017: Assessment of game by Sloane Stephens and Karolína Plíšková.

In 2017, Madison Key's playing style was evaluated. Former world No. 1 Karolína Plíšková, and 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens both stated that Keys has the best forehand in the game.

2017: US Open Final

In 2017, Madison Keys and Sloane Stephens met again at the US Open final. Stephens defeated Keys in straight sets, winning her first career major singles title.

2017: Match against Osaka at the 2017 BNP Paribas Open

In 2017, Madison Keys won in straight sets against Naomi Osaka at the BNP Paribas Open.

2017: Helped launch Wilson Ultra line of rackets in 2017

In the middle of 2017, Madison Keys helped launch the Wilson Ultra line of rackets and specifically used the Ultra Tour model.

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2017: Three Matches Against Vandeweghe

In the summer of 2017, Madison Keys and Coco Vandeweghe faced off three times in a little more than a month. Keys won the final at the Stanford Classic, they played each other in the first round of the Cincinnati Open, Keys won again and then they met in the semifinals of the US Open.

May 2018: End of Partnership with Dieter Kindlmann in May 2018

In May 2018, Madison Keys ended her partnership with Dieter Kindlmann.

2018: Compatriots followed suit

After Keys moved to top 10 in 2016, compatriots CoCo Vandeweghe and Sloane Stephens followed suit with their own top ten debuts in 2017 and 2018 respectively.

2018: Matches against Osaka at the 2018 French Open and US Open

In 2018, Madison Keys defeated Naomi Osaka in straight sets at the French Open. However, later in 2018, Osaka defeated Keys at the US Open semifinal.

2018: Snapped Losing Streak Against Kerber

In 2018, Madison Keys snapped her five-match losing streak to Angelique Kerber in the third round of the Cincinnati Open.

2018: Fifth Career Major Semifinal

In 2022, Madison Keys reached her fifth career major semifinal (and her first since the 2018 US Open).

August 2019: Returned to Top Ten

Following her success at the United Cup, in August 2019, Madison Keys returned to world No. 10 in the rankings.

August 2019: First Title Since August 2019

In August 2019, Madison Keys hadn't won a title since then, until her win at the 2022 Adelaide International 2.

2019: Ended Losing Streak Against Halep

In 2019, Madison Keys ended her losing streak to Simona Halep in the third round of the Cincinnati Open, winning in three sets en route to winning her first Premier 5 title.

2019: First Victory Against Stephens

In 2019, Madison Keys finally recorded her first victory against Sloane Stephens in the quarterfinals at the Volvo Car Open, winning in three sets on the way to her first career clay-court title.

2019: WTA 1000 Quarterfinal

In 2019, Madison Keys made it to her first WTA 1000 quarterfinal since her 2019 Cincinnati title.

2019: Victory at the 2019 Charleston Open

In 2019, Madison Keys won a title on clay at the Charleston Open.

2019: Keys wins at Cincinnati Open

In 2019, Madison Keys won against Venus Williams at the Cincinnati Open.

2019: Return to Juan Todero and Clay Court Title in 2019

In early 2019, after a short stint with Jim Madrigal, Madison Keys went back to her former coach Juan Todero and won her first clay court title in their first tournament since his return.

2020: Defeated 2020 Australian Open champion

During the 2022 Australian Open, Madison Keys defeated 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin.

August 2021: Returned to Top 30

In August 2021, Madison Keys had not been ranked in the top 30, until she reached the semifinals of the 2022 Australian Open, her first time since August 2021.

January 2022: Coached by Georgi Rumenov Payakov since January 2022

Since January 2022, Madison Keys has been coached by Georgi Rumenov Payakov.

June 6, 2022: Reached Top 100 in Doubles

On June 6, 2022, Madison Keys reached the top 100 in doubles at world No. 98, after reaching the semifinals of the French Open in doubles.

2022: First Major Semifinal Since 2022 Australian Open

In 2022, Madison Keys reached her first major semifinal since the 2022 Australian Open and third at the US Open, defeating Jessica Pegula and Marketa Vondrousova.

2022: Semifinalist at the Australian Open

In 2022, Madison Keys reached the semifinals of the Australian Open, defeating Sofia Kenin, Paula Badosa, and Barbora Krejčíková along the way, before losing to Ashleigh Barty. She also won her first title since August 2019 at the 2022 Adelaide International 2.