Madison Keys opens up on life after winning her maiden Grand Slam at the Australian Open - 'More people want to talk to me'

Tennis star Madison Keys won her first Grand Slam title at the 2025 Australian Open, and the American delved into how much her life has changed after etching her name in tennis history.

The Illinois native kicked off her 2025 season with a title at the Adelaide International, before winning the biggest title of her career in Melbourne a few weeks later. Keys is the fifth seed at this week's Rome Open, where she's slated to face Varvara Gracheva in the second round after receiving a first round bye.

Life is still the same after winning a Major, says Keys

During her media day appearance in Rome, the World No.6 was asked if her motivation had changed after winning a Grand Slam singles title.

“I don't think my life has changed that much since winning the Australian Open,” responded Keys. “You know, more people want to talk to me, and, obviously, I have a beautiful trophy in my house, but, life is still kind of the same, and I'm still really happy to, be out on the tennis court and hopefully win some more trophies.
"The support that I got was incredible. And I think everyone that I've ever played against had something nice to say and, all the past coaches and just so many people, it was so, so nice. To feel that level of support was incredible after all these years."

Since her appearance in Rome last year, not only has Keys become a Major champion but she has also gotten married to coach Bjorn Fratangelo. The former player's family has Italian roots, and Keys shared an anecdote where he asked her to change her name to garner more support.

"Bjorn was kind of joking that I should switch my last name this week to be Fratangelo,” said Keys. “I keep telling him I'll do it eventually. But right now I'm busy. There's a lot of paperwork I just don't want to do right now. I'm too lazy. But I've come to learn a little bit about where his family came from."