Madison makes America proud again
SINGAPORE: Madison Keys is the first American outside of Serena and Venus Williams to earn a berth at the year-end WTA Finals in more than a decade.
The last American other than a Williams to play at the season-ending tournament was Lindsay Davenport, a former coach to Madison, who last appeared in the 2005 Finals.
Madison debuts in the WTA Finals, being held this coming week in Singapore, came courtesy of her winning a second career title in Birmingham, England, and reaching finals at Rome and Montreal.
She also played in the Olympic semi-finals, just missing out to Petra Kvitova for the bronze medal.
“It’s always been a big goal of mine to make the Finals, so being here is a huge accomplishment for me,”
during the draw ceremony prior to the WTA Finals at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore on Friday. Madison said. “I definitely want to do well here, and prove that I’ve worked really hard to get here and I’m here for a reason.”
The 21-year-old Madison, who joined the top 10 rankings at No 7 earlier this month, is also the first American to debut in the top 10 since Serena in 1999.
“I think it was definitely really surprising that I was the first American to break into the top 10 for that long,” Madison said. “There have been a lot of great American players who I thought had made it, but obviously not.
She added, “I just look at it as a great accomplishment and a huge opportunity to go out and play tennis, and have fun and maybe inspire some more young American girls to pick up some racquets.” AP