Family Circle Cup, Charleston

[CR20] Madison Keys (USA) vs. [CR66] Lauren Davis (USA)

The pressure of playing someone ranked higher is always present, add to that the fact that you are playing someone who hits a heavier ball with much more pace and it can be overwhelming.  That’s what Davis faced today and after starting off by holding serve easily, things quickly unraveled as Keys found the rhythm on her strokes.

How does a player mentally prepare for such a match given their physical limitations?  Often there is not much you can do except focus on playing your game and accurately executing your shots.  Sometimes it may benefit you to change the pace on your strokes to keep your opponent guessing; however, you have to play smart and keep the shots to the weaker side of your opponent.

Davis has beaten Keys twice before; thus, she knows what to do. Unfortunately, today she struggled on second serve and made too many errors off the ground. Perhaps it was because Keys was just a bit more focused today and kept the pressure on in every point, hitting the ball with such ferocity that she constantly pushed Davis back in the court.  The frustration mounted as Davis was overpowered and was unable to elevate her game to offer much resistance. Davis seemed to lack conviction in her game and Keys took advantage of her uncertainty to win easily 6-2, 6-2.