Australian Open champion Madison Keys was denied entry to a small WTA tournament. What happened?
Australian Open winner Madison Keys was denied participation in the ATX 250 WTA tournament in the United States due to an unusual regulation.
Details. The Australian Open champion was barred from competing in the ATX 250 WTA tournament in Austin, Texas, due to a ranking-based rule.
According to the 2025 WTA rulebook, a WTA 250 tournament held in the same week as a WTA 500 event can only accept one player ranked in the WTA top 10 in singles at the time of entry into the main draw.
Since world No. 6 Jessica Pegula was set to participate in the tournament, Keys was excluded from the competition.
Quote. "We love Madison and have been eagerly anticipating her debut here in Austin for months.
While we wish the top-10 rule didn’t apply to our tournament, we respect the WTA’s regulations," said ATX Open tournament director Christo van Rensburg in an official statement.
Reminder. The ATX Open takes place in the same week as the Merida Open in Mexico, a WTA 500 event.
In the Australian Open final, Madison Keys beat world number one Aryna Sobolenko to win Grand Slam for the first time in her career.
Liam Carter
Dailysports's expert
Translated by the editors
