American Madison Keys, 28, had her hands full with 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva playing in her first Wimbledon main draw in their Round of 16 match on Monday.
After Keys got an early break and went up 2-0 in the first set, things changed considerably.
Andreeva found her form quickly and dictated play with Keys committing too many unforced errors.
Keys was down 3-6, 1-4 when she changed her tactics.
From 3-6 1-4 down, Madison Keys earns a 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-2 win over 16-year-old qualifier Mirra Andreeva!
9th Quarterfinal at a major for the American. #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/2stn4jnNja
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) July 10, 2023
Madison Keys won this match pic.twitter.com/b0VxtcLM8f
— 🎾BTG🎾 (@btg_tornos) July 10, 2023
With a concerted effort to move to the net and hit cleaner winners, she slowly got back into the match.
She pushed Andreeva to a second set tiebreaker, and her experience in those tense situations took over.
Andreeva appeared rushed and rattled in the third set and even lost a point near the end of the match as a penalty for throwing her racquet.
In the end, Keys’ net play made the difference which is ironic since she is not usually comfortable coming to the net.
With the exception of a few misplayed overhead shots, Keys played the last set and a half of the match flawlessly.
Keys has been criticized in the past for not being able to change tactics mid-match if her plan is not working.
Perhaps she received some coaching, which is now allowed, from her box during the match from her fiance, former ATP pro Bjorn Fratangelo.
If so, this is a case where coaching helped, but Keys is credited for great nerves and outstanding execution.
She has not made it to the Wimbledon quarterfinals since 2015.
Keys awaits the winner of the Aryna Sabalenka and Ekaterina Alexandrova Round of 16 match.
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