Coco Gauff And Madison Keys Battle For Semifinal Spot And HOF Legacy
US player Madison Keys (L) is congratulated by US player Coco Gauff after their women's singles ... More semi-final tennis match at the Rothesay Eastbourne International tennis tournament in Eastbourne, southern England, on June 30, 2023. (Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP) (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)
When Coco Gauff and Madison Keys meet in the quarterfinal of the 2025 French Open, more than a place in the semifinal is on the line. A win puts Keys or Gauff one step closer to separating themselves from a crowded field of one-Slam wonders, players on the WTA Tour who have won one Major title.
Keys leads the head-to-head against Gauff, 3-2 and won their only meeting on clay (2024 Madrid Open). Gauff is playing in her fifth consecutive French Open quarterfinal. Keys will be in the quarterfinal at Roland-Garros for the first time in six years. The victor will play the winner of the Mirra Andreeva vs. Lois Boisson quarterfinal match.
Winning one Major title is a career-defining accomplishment. Many players with long, successful careers never achieve this. But winning two Grand Slam titles puts a player in another category and all but guarantees induction into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
In January 2024, after Aryna Sabalenka won her second Major, she spoke with the WTA about what it meant to no longer be a one-Slam wonder.
"It's very sad that people call "one Grand Slam champions" that way. And of course, it was in my head, I didn't want to be a one-time Grand Slam champion," Sabalenka said. "I'm super happy that I was able to win two Grand Slams. And I really hope that I can keep building my tennis, keep getting better, and then hopefully keep winning."
Currently, ten active players have one Major title: Gauff, Keys, Emma Raducanu, Sofia Kenin, Marketa Vondrousova, Jelena Ostapenko, Bianco Andreescu, Elena Rybakina, Caroline Wozniacki, and Sloane Stephens.
Last year, Barbora Krejcikova emerged from the one-Slam wonder ranks when she defeated Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 to claim her first Wimbledon title. During her Wimbledon press conference, Krejcikova said winning a second Major didn't change how she felt about her career.
"No, I still feel the same. I mean, it's great that I'm a two-time major champion. It's something unbelievable," Krejcikova said.
Krejcikova might not feel differently, but when she won Wimbledon, she stepped over the demarcation, separating one-Slam wonders from future Hall of Famers.
NEWPORT, RI - JULY 22: Tennis Hall of Fame inductees Kim Clijsters of Belgium and Andy Roddick of ... More the United States pose for a photo following the enshrinement ceremonies at the International Tennis Hall of Fame on July 22, 2017 in Newport, Rhode Island. (Photo byfor the International Tennis Hall of Fame)
There are few one-Slam wonders in the tennis HOF. Michael Chang won the 1989 French Open and reached the Australian Open and U.S. Open finals. Andy Roddick won the 2003 U.S. Open and reached the final at Wimbledon three times in the Roger Federer era. Roddick was also the No. 1 player. Gabriela Sabatini, who won the 1990 U.S. Open. However, she reached the final twice and the semifinals or better at 11 Grand Slam tournaments, often losing to Steffi Graf or Monica Seles. Chang, Roddick, and Sabatini are in the Tennis Hall of Fame.
Even with a No. 1 ranking, like Wozniacki and Roddick, or sustainable success like Sabatini, a player with one Major title sits on the Hall of Fame bubble. Anna Ivanovic won the 2008 French Open, reached the final of the 2008 Australian Open, and held the No. 1 ranking. But although nominated twice, Ivanovic has yet to be voted into the Hall of Fame.
Neither Gauff nor Keys has held the No. 1 ranking, so a second Major title is essential for Hall of Fame credentials.
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 09: Sloane Stephens of the United States embraces Madison Keys of the ... More United States after Stephens won the Women's Singles final match on Day Thirteen during the 2017 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 9, 2017 in the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo byfor USTA)
Gauff and Keys traveled similar paths to their first Grand Slam title. They were both teen phenoms with high expectations. Born in Illinois, Keys moved to Florida with her family when she was ten to attend the Evert Tennis Academy.
Gauff was born in Atlanta, but her parents moved to Delray Beach, Florida, to support their daughter's tennis training. Gauff trained at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in France when she was ten.
In her first Grand Slam final, the 2017 US Open, Keys lost in humiliating fashion to friend and fellow American Sloane Stephens 6-3, 6-0. Keys had 30 unforced errors, appeared overwhelmed, and wept after her defeat.
Gauff played poorly in her first Grand Slam final, the 2022 French Open. Iga Swiatek defeated Gauff 6-2, 6-4. Gauff committed 39 unforced errors. After the match, like Keys, Gauff sobbed.
However, Guaff and Keys have contrasting playing styles. Keys brings the power with a big serve and massive forehand. Although she said she likes playing on clay, Keys is less comfortable on the surface than Gauff, who won the 2018 French Open juniors title.
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 25: Madison Keys of the United States makes the winner's speech ... More holding the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup at the Women's Singles Trophy Presentation following the Women's Singles Final against Aryna Sabalenka during day 14 of the 2025 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 25, 2025 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by)
Keys captured her first Slam title by defeating two-time Australian Open champion Sabalenka. In Keys' post-match press conference after winning the Australian Open, she told reporters she had to recalibrate expectations.
"I felt like from a pretty young age, I felt like if I never won a Grand Slam, then I wouldn't have lived up to what people thought I should have been. That was a pretty heavy burden to kind of carry around," Keys said. "I finally got to the point where I was okay if it didn't happen. I didn't need it to feel like I had a good career or that I deserved to be talked about as a great tennis player."
Queens, N.Y.: Coco Gauff holding her trophy after defeating Aryna Sabalenka to win her first grand ... More slam in the the Women's Singles US Open Tennis Championships at Arthur Ashe Stadium at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadow, Queens, New York on Sept. 9, 2023 (Photo by J. Conrad Williams Jr./Newsday RM via Getty Images)
Gauff also defeated Sabalenka to win her first Grand Slam title, the 2023 U.S. Open. Gauff's win trounced the men's final in television viewership. But losing in the 2023 French Open was a wake-up call for Gauff.
"Honestly, I feel like probably this French Open is honestly where it changed. Because I felt pressure to back up the final, and I obviously didn't. So I was, like, Okay, well, I've got to reset," said Gauff in a press conference following her U.S. Open win. "Then Wimbledon happened, and that was a tough, tough loss, because I thought I was playing good tennis leading up to that. "
That was when Gauff made a coaching change. She hired tennis commentator and coach Brad Gilbert. She went on a tear in the hard-court season, winning.
This year, at Roland-Garros, with four-time French Open champion Swiatek and No. 1 ranked Sabalenka on the opposite side of the draw, Keys and Gauff have a good opportunity to make the final.
Last month, before the Italian Open, Keys spoke with reporters about how wide open tournaments are in the post-Serena Williams era.
EASTBOURNE, ENGLAND - JUNE 30: Madison Keys of the United States shakes hands at the net after ... More winning her semi final match against Coco Gauff of the United States on Day Seven of the Rothesay International Eastbourne at Devonshire Park on June 30, 2023 in Eastbourne, England. (Photo by)
'I think part of it is because we've kind of lost some of our legends obviously. Like there's no longer Serena Williams in every draw where you just assume she's going to win,' Keys said.
Gauff and Keys are three match wins from solidifying their legacy as a future Hall of Famer. Even reaching two Grand Slam finals separates them from fluke one-hit wonders. However, winning that second title erases all doubt and ends the one-Slam wonder slander.
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