In the deciding set of the Australian Open finals on January 25, Illinois-born, Florida-raised Madison Keys, the 19th ranked player, steeled herself against her opponent, Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, the formidable No.

Keys, who rose to world No. 7 after winning her first Grand Slam title, had entered the WTA 250-level ATX Open in Austin, Tex., which begins February 24. The American entered the tournament as world No. 21, with fellow American Jessica Pegula entering as world No. 6.

Days after her first Slam title, the tennis star shares what stoked her confidence, how she tweaked her game, and why representation matters on the court.

Madison Keys says she kept telling herself to be brave down the stretch of a tight third set in the Australian Open final against two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka.

Due to an odd rule preventing more than top 10 player participating in a WTA 250 tournament, the ATX Open announced Tuesday that Keys will no longer be eligible to participate in the event. The Austin-based tournament already has No. 6 Jessica Pegula committed to play.

What is your take on another option on the best-of-five Grand Slam matches for men: best three out of four sets and if the match is tied 2–2 then use the 10-point tiebreaker. Same ending as if it's five sets without having to play a fifth set.

Madison Keys will not be able to compete at next month's ATX Open in Texas because of a WTA rule which states that only one top-10 player can feature in 250-level tournaments