Madison Keys acknowledges the WTA Finals feat she pulled off is one of a kind but also adds that she believes that it is "never too late for anything."
In 2016, a 21-year-old Keys made her maiden WTA Finals appearance. That year – when the season-ending tournament was held in Singapore – the American failed to make it past the group stage after only beating Dominika Cibulkova and losing to Simona Halep and Angelique Kerber.
Nine years later, Keys booked her second trip to the WTA Finals. By doing so, the reigning Australian Open champion became the player with the biggest gap between her first two appearances at the prestigious season-ending tournament. The previous record stood at an eight-year gap.
-6 – Madison Keys is the player with the biggest gap between her first two (2016 and 2025) appearances at the WTA Finals (nine years) surpassing the previous record held by Amy Frazier (eight years, 1992-2000). Countdown.
#WTAFinalsRiyadh | @WTA @WTAFinalsRiyadh pic.twitter.com/kGC3eutDO3— OptaAce (@OptaAce) October 26, 2025
Keys addresses her unique WTA Finals feat: There is always time
“It’s never too late for anything. I don’t think I would have believed that there would be a nine-year gap in the middle of it, but I’m playing some of my best tennis of my career. Sometimes, as you start getting older, you start feeling like you’re running out of time. It’s been a little bit of a perspective change for me, where it’s like, there’s always time," the 30-year-old said.
Truth be told, it has been the best season of Keys' career. When she became a Grand Slam champion at this year's Australian Open, the American had been just three weeks removed from her 30th birthday. Also, the American achieved a career-high ranking of No. 5 in the world this year.
Meanwhile, in her first WTA Finals match in nine years, Keys didn't impress since she got ousted 1-6 2-6 by Iga Swiatek. However, it is worth mentioning that it was the American's first match since the US Open – she was out due to a wrist issue.
Keys will try to clinch her second-ever win at the season-ending tournament when she takes on Amanda Anisimova on Monday.
