‘Very dangerous’ Madison Keys prediction made ahead of Indian Wells return

Oli Dickson Jefford 03 Mar 2025 4:18 PM

Madison Keys and Andrea Petkovic.

Madison Keys has been backed to be “very dangerous” in Indian Wells as she gears up for her first tournament since her Australian Open triumph.

US star Keys memorably lifted her first Grand Slam title inside the Rod Laver Arena in January, beating four top-10 players on her way to the title.

However, the 30-year-old has not played an official WTA match since her stunning 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 victory over two-time defending Australian Open champion and world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Keys withdrew from the WTA 1000 events in Doha and Dubai to prioritise rest, and was then unable to play the ATX Open due to limits on top-10 players at WTA 250 events.

Despite not playing, the American has risen to a new career-high of world No 5 in the WTA Rankings, after returning to her previous best of world No 7 following her victory in Melbourne.

Keys is set to be the fifth seed in Indian Wells and is set for an emotional return to action in front of a home American crowd after winning her long-awaited first Grand Slam.

All eyes will be on how the world No 5 fares in her first tournament back, and, speaking on Tennis Channel, former WTA star Andrea Petkovic has issued an optimistic verdict.

Though she predicted Keys to find things tough early on, Petkovic predicted that the US star could embark on a deep run should she successfully navigate her opening matches.

She said: “I honestly think if she [Keys] gets through the first two rounds, she will be very dangerous.

“I do think for these type of players who hit the ball so hard in Indian Wells, the first two rounds are very difficult.

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“The ball flies, and the thing that we all get wrong, all the professional tennis players in the world, you think you have to then decelerate, because the ball is flying, and you have to accelerate.

“And if she can figure that out in the first two rounds, she will be very dangerous at Indian Wells.”

Mixed Indian Wells record

Keys’ ranking means she will be among the very top contenders to lift the title in the desert, though her Indian Wells record is not encouraging.

The world No 5 holds a rather underwhelming 10-11 record at the WTA 1000 event, winning just 48% of her matches at the tournament.

She has only once made it to the quarter-final stage, losing 6-1, 6-0 to third seed and eventual champion Iga Swiatek back in 2022.

That was one of just two appearances in the second week of the event for Keys – who had previously made the fourth round back in 2017.

Keys made the third round of the event a year ago, beating Hailey Baptiste in a third-set tiebreak in the second round before a straight-sets loss to Yulia Putintseva.

As a seeded player in 2025, she will again receive an opening-round bye and will play her round two match this Friday or Saturday.