Madison Keys says she's ready to make up for lost time after the American 11th seed raced into the second round of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Monday.
As the WTA Tour continues to experience a truncated calendar as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, Keys has missed even more events than most. The 2017 US Open finalist tested positive for Covid-19 in January and was forced to miss the Australian Open and other tournaments Down Under.
It meant last week's Qatar Open – where Keys lost in the second round – was her first event since last September at the French Open. But there were few signs of rust when she began her Dubai campaign as the world No 19 outclassed qualifier Liang En-shuo 6-1, 6-1 in just 64 minutes.
“It’s been tough. I definitely feel a little bit behind everyone else and trying to catch up, but I know that if I keep working on what I’ve been practicing and trying to implement that in matches then more matches will come,” Keys, 26, said.
Keys laid the foundations for her emphatic win by claiming a 3-0 lead in the first set before breaking again in the sixth game and holding serve to seal the opener.
The American did need to fend off a couple of break points at the start of the second set but after doing so, she won six straight games to claim a routine win.
Assessing her performance against Liang, Keys said: "I feel good about today. I played a really clean first set, and in the second set I had some break points against me but I thought I handled them pretty well and kept the momentum."
Keys, who is making her Dubai debut, will face Anastasia Potapova in the second round after the Russian world No 88 defeated Germany's Laura Siegemund 6-3, 6-2.
Keys and Potapova have met once previously, with Keys earning a straight-sets win at the 2019 Australian Open.
Their second round match will be first on Court 1 on Tuesday.
