Madison Keys has been denied entry into a WTA event in the US due to a little known rule.
The Australian Open champion was set to play in Austin at the ATX 250, her first US event since her win in Melbourne, but will miss out due to a rule regarding rankings.
Success Down Under has come at a cost for Keys. The 29-year-old rose up the rankings to world No.7 after a remarkable run at the Australian Open, but it means she is too highly ranked to compete at the ATX Open.
This is the result of the WTA’s top 10 rule for 250 events as regulations state that only one top-10 player can feature at these tournaments.
This is, according to the tour, “to ensure balanced competition across all WTA events held during the same week” and with Jessica Pegula, the world No.6, set to feature, it means Keys has got the cut.
ATX Open tournament director Christo Van Rensburg confirmed the Grand Slam champion’s’ withdrawal in a statement.
“We love Madison and have been anticipating for months the excitement of her playing here in Austin for the first time.
“While we wish the Top 10 rule didn’t apply to our tournament, we respect the rules of the WTA.”
The ATX Open is in the same week as the Merida Open in Mexico, which is a WTA 500 event. The Merida Open is the only other WTA event taking place at the same time as the ATX Open – 24 February to 2 March – and it is highly unlikely that Keys will feature at the Mexican WTA 500 tournament.
According to the 2025 WTA Rulebook: “A WTA 250 Tournament in the same week as a WTA 500 Tournament may accept only one (1) player whose WTA Singles Ranking is 1-10 at the Tournament’s Main Draw entry deadline.”
In good news for Keys, her world No.7 spot is not under threat as players ranked below her cannot win enough points to overtake her, and she will not lose enough points by not playing for her to fall out the top 10.
The 29-year-old’s rise up the rankings comes after her stunning championship run in Melbourne just last week.
Keys went on to equal decade-long records including multiple Serena Williams milestones as she won her maiden Slam.
This includes becoming the first woman since Williams in 2005 to defeat a world No.2 and world No.1 en route to the Australian Open title.
It’s inevitable for a US champion to be paraded in the States, and it was no different for the world No.7, who appeared on Good Morning America recently.
“I feel like I still haven’t quite stopped moving to actually sit there and totally take it in. It’s been a crazy 48 hours. I’m just so happy I finally have one of these,” she said on GMA.
“Looking at the draw that I had, it’s very tough — I just felt like every round there was just more and more confidence, I don’t know what kind of flip switched in my head, but all of a sudden I was like, ‘I can do this.”
