Clay is Her Best Surface

By Erik Gudris | @atntennis | Monday, June 2, 2025
Photo credit: Tony Chang/Chang Photography

Madison Keys battled past a rising American talent to book her place in the Roland Garros quarterfinals.

Next for her: Coco Gauff, the top ranked American woman.

No. 7-seeded Keys defeated Hailey Baptiste 6-3, 7-5 in the fourth round to return to the last eight in Paris for the third time in her career.

Keys, who knocked off Iga Swiatek and No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka to capture her maiden major at the Australian Open in January, is still in the hunt to possibly complete a rare Calendar Grand Slam, should she win the title in Paris.

Keys wins the all-American clash! 💪
🔜 Iinto the #RolandGarros quarters 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/vZ4G2kViRL

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 2, 2025

 

“Definitely still happy to be here. Things were as close as they could have been to being gone as possible,” Keys said afterwards, referring to saving three match points in her previous match with Sofia Kenin. “I think you play a little bit freer when you know that, but also, huge opportunity today to kind of get through that and make another quarterfinal here.”

“So a little bit of both. A little bit thankful that I’m still in the tournament, but also kind of just knowing the opportunity that I had today, wanting to go out and play really solid and make sure that I took advantage of that.”

Keys enjoyed a comfortable first set as her lesser experienced opponent looked to find her form. Baptiste, who has said clay is her favorite surface, quickly found it in the second set. Baptiste enjoyed an early service break, but then played a poor game to drop her serve at love for 2-3.

Later in the set, Baptiste, 23, kept neck and neck with Keys and looked potentially ready to force a decider. Baptiste, showing a potent all court game, served her way to 5-4 in the set after Keys just missed on a forehand return while holding a break point. Keys’ experience then showed through in the next game. After Keys held for 5-all, she brought the pressure back on Baptiste’s serve.

Ripping a 97 MPH forehand winner, Keys quickly found herself at 15-40. She then struck another big down the line forehand winner to secure the break for 6-5. Keys, serving for the match, fended off a break point, before finally sealing the win with a crosscourt forehand winner.

.@Madison_Keys in action under the Paris sun pic.twitter.com/O0sgLHBfQx

— Jimmie48 Photography (@JJlovesTennis) June 2, 2025
 

Up next is a familiar friendly foe in No. 2 seed Coco Gauff.

This will be their sixth career meeting and first since Madrid back in 2024. Keys feels Gauff is at her best on clay.

“I think Coco is obviously pretty dominant on clay. I would say it’s probably her best surface to play on,” Keys told the media in Paris. “It’s obviously a big challenge. I think for me it’s going to be a lot about trying to balance going after things, but knowing with her ability to cover the court, you’re going to have to win the point multiple times before it’s actually over.

“So I think that’s always one of the trickier things when you’re playing someone who moves as well as she does. Then you also have the threat against her of if at any point you kind of lose control of the point, she’s going to be the aggressor.

“So I think the biggest thing is the balance of going for things, but with enough margin that it’s a repeatable ball, shot after shot.”

Having known and played against Gauff, 21, for some time now, Keys, 30, is still impressed how the younger American is able to handle all the pressure and attention she receives.

“I’m always just really impressed with the fact that she handles it so well, because she’s had even more success and more media attention than I had, and I know that it was definitely really hard for me at times to handle it,” Keys said. “I feel like you watch her, and she just takes it all in stride and continues to just be 100% her, and I’m always just really impressed by it.”