Major champion Keys quietly confident on the clay

“I think the biggest thing that kind of surprised me is that it took a little while to feel comfortable again,” she said on the sidelines of the Madrid Open earlier this month.

“And I was thinking about it the other day because it's a ‘first’ in my career for the first time in a really long time. It's been many, many years since I've had to ever walk into a tournament and feel like there was something different.

“So that took a little bit of getting used to and I definitely felt, through Indian Wells, Miami, Charleston, I just felt a little bit uncertain, or I was pressing a little bit more and just was putting more pressure on myself. It just took a little bit of time to get used to it and resettle and I feel like I've done a good job here so far.

“Just staying way more present and really just focusing on each match.”

Keys has long been considered a dangerous player on tour, who makes a habit of making deep runs at the Slams. She faced a great deal of hype as a young teenager – and again when she made the 2017 US Open final – but, relatively speaking, flew under the radar the last few years.

Her success in Australia this year – which included wins over Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina – put her back in the headlines like never before and she knew she had to take some time to handle all the attention, opting out of competing in February’s Middle East swing before returning to action in March.

“I think the biggest thing was that winning the Australian Open was the greatest but most exhausting thing that I've ever done in my career,” she tells rolandgarros.com.

“I don't think you really appreciate how much of an emotional toll it takes on you, and it was a lot. I got home, and there was so much media and everything, and then to finally just sit there, it was like a week later, and I was like, ‘Man, I am tired.’ So [skipping the Middle East was about] just being really conscious of doing what I want to do.

“And I think the other thing is, there's kind of a spotlight again all of a sudden, and I think for a long time I lived under the radar and just did my thing, and then all of a sudden it was like everyone wanted to talk again, so it was kind of a big shift really quickly.

“I just knew that for me to enjoy myself at this point in my career and really just this period of my life, I just wanted to make sure that I'm doing the things that I want to do.”

Does she miss being under the radar?

“It's funny. I definitely feel like it's 10 years ago all of a sudden again,” she says.

“I used to love it when I'd finish matches and be like, ‘No press? Cool, okay, bye’.

“So it's taking a little bit of getting used to again. I'm a person that could live under the radar for the rest of my life and be happy as a clam, but like you said, obviously when you're doing well, there's more of a spotlight, so it's all good things.”

Keys arrives in Paris ranked No.7 in the world and with a 5-3 record on clay this season. Her best previous result at Roland-Garros came in 2018, when she reached the semi-finals, and she owns two career clay-court titles.

While many would associate Keys’ powerful game with hard courts, her husband and coach Bjorn Fratangelo - a former Roland-Garros junior champion - believes the terre battue is what favours her the most.  

“I think it's her best surface to be honest with you,” Fratangelo told rolandgarros.com in the Spanish capital.

“I think it gives her time to set up a little bit more her forehand. She has a big swing, it takes time for her to produce the shot and I think this surface gives her a little extra second to think and get set with her feet.

“And then also, you know her ball speed is so big that I think [despite] the slow conditions she can still hit through them. I think she's gonna get a little bit extra on the ball, obviously with the new frame and stuff.”

The new frame Fratangelo is referring to is Keys’ new racket. After playing with Wilson her whole life, Keys switched to Yonex ahead of this season and the move paid dividends immediately.

This will be her first Roland-Garros with her new frame and Team Keys is feeling confident, despite any additional pressure she may be facing as a reigning major champion.

Does Keys agree with Fratangelo that clay should be her best surface?

“I definitely think that clay can help a lot of aspects of my game,” she agrees. “I think the biggest thing is actually buying it, and believing what he's saying makes any sort of sense.

“But yeah, I feel pretty comfortable moving on it, and I think the little bit of extra time that it gives me lets me set up for my forehand a little bit more. So I definitely think that he might be on to something.”

This will be Keys’ 13th main draw appearance on Parisian clay. She has reached the fourth round or better at the tournament on four occasions and she feels “there’s a massive opportunity” for her this upcoming fortnight.

The main focus is enjoying herself on court, and not worrying about pressure, ranking, or even wins and losses.

“To be honest, I've never liked to have a ranking goal. It's really been hard for me to not get too obsessed with winning and losing when that's my goal,” she says.  

“The fact that I'm at a career-high [No.5 in Madrid] has kind of already been a bonus for me. It was definitely not something that I thought was going to happen later in life. So I'm kind of really just going with it.

“But at this point, I’m trying to enjoy myself on the court and stay super present and just keep playing really good tennis as everyone keeps calling me a veteran,” she concludes with a chuckle.

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