Pressure is a privilege.
Billie Jean King's iconic quote greets players as the walk onto Arthur Ashe Stadium. Madison Keys has thrived under the pressure of the Grand Slam stage throughout her career, and that's been the case again as she's advanced to her third New York semifinal—and sixth overall at the majors.
"I think that it's obviously I just kind of find another gear when it comes to Slams. I think part of it is that I put a little bit more pressure on myself, which is a good thing and also a bad thing sometimes," Keys said after her 6-1, 6-4 quarterfinal victory over Marketa Vondrousova. "I have just kind of peaked at the right time."
After a quarterfinal run at Wimbledon, Keys has gone one better this fortnight. How has she managed to handle the spotlight with such success?
"I think sometimes I do it well and sometimes I do it really badly," she said. "But I think it's just kind of reminding yourself that these are the matches that you grow up dreaming of. These are the moments you want to be in.
"So [there is] that pressure of the big stage, but also just the reminder of this is literally what we have all dreamed of. These are the moments that you're practicing for and you're playing for and you're constantly trying to get back to.
"So it's a little bit of pressure, but it's also a little bit of a freeing moment of, I mean, I'm just going to go out and try to do the best that I can."
Keys came closest to her dream of a Grand Slam singles title at the 2017 US Open, when she fell to good friend Sloane Stephens in the final. In order to reach her second major title match, she must defeat Aryna Sabalenka, who will debut at world No. 1 next week.
Both Keys and Sabalenka have been red-hot this fortnight. While Sabalenka has not lost a set in her five wins, Keys has dropped just one—the opener against Liudmila Samsonova in the third round. Keys owns the better serving numbers of the semifinal opponents, with holds in 96% of her service games (46/48), though Sabalenka is not far behind at 86% (36/42).
"I think she's obviously a phenomenal tennis player. There is a reason she's going to be No. 1 on Monday," Keys said of the second seed. "She has a ton of power. She serves really well. To be quite honest, the year that she was able to have with the serving troubles that she had, I think it just shows she's an incredible competitor and fighter. I mean, she's really, really good," she added with a smile.
"I think tomorrow it's definitely going to be a lot of who can get in charge of the point as early as possible, because I feel like both of our games, if you get behind in the point it's a lot harder to get back to neutral and then get back on the aggressive side."
While there may be little to separate two of the WTA's biggest power players, Keys can count on at least one X-factor Thursday evening in Ashe: the New York crowd.
