Madison Keys is part of a new generation of tennis stars, willing to take their personal brand into their own hands.
No longer are they happy to let the ATP or WTA Tours control their narratives, and instead, many are starting to fight back in their own unique ways.
Whether that be appearing on podcasts or creating their own YouTube channels, there is a growing trend amongst the sport’s top players which is offering fans a greater look into the world of tennis than ever before.
Madison Keys’ The Players Box podcast is one shining example of that, and she has been speaking about that and the subsequent reception it has received from her peers.
Madison Keys shares the on-tour reaction she’s got to her new podcast
Chatting at her recent Australian Open press conference, after making it into the third round, one reporter was keen to gauge how the WTA Tour has reacted to Keys’ decision to start a podcast with three of her fellow top-level professionals.
The American was unsurprisingly forthright in explaining just how positive the reception has been from their fellow competitors, noting: “We had talked about it for a really long time, and we just finally decided we might as well do it. I think we kind of spent a lot of time almost trying to make it perfect, but we were finally just saying, Let’s just try it and see if people like it. If it sucks and it bombs, we can always just stop.
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“We wanted to give a little bit of a behind-the-scenes look for players who are still actively playing, and I think it’s been really fun to get a lot of the feedback from fans but also from other players. I feel like it’s a lot of — the other women in the locker room tell us that they listen and they love it.
“I think in that way it’s kind of bonded us all in a little bit of a way, but I think the funny thing that we keep getting from fans is they keep laughing and it’s, like, they’re, Oh, like, you guys are people. I’m, like, yeah. I’m glad that we can show you that.
“I think it’s nice just to kind of — I think it’s humanised us a little bit more, and I think that puts kind of a better context for all of us.”
Keys and Jessica Pegula named their WTA player of the year recently on the podcast, for one example of the discussions they have.
Tennis players are starting to take control of their own stories
Whilst many have lobbied complaints at the ATP and WTA for failing to properly market their biggest stars, it seems some players have started to take this matter into their own hands.
After all, podcasting marks just one genre that affords players full creativity and licence when it comes to taking control of the narrative and telling their own story.
Keys is joined by Pegula on The Player’s Box as well as Jennifer Brady and Desirae Krawczyk, while stars like Sam Querrey, John Isner and Andy Roddick having also transitioned into this medium in their retirement.
YouTube has also become a hugely popular place for players to flex their creative muscles, with Arthur Fils, Ben Shelton, Jannik Sinner and Daria Kasatkina just a handful who have taken this step.
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It’s so refreshing to see, and affords fans an insight into the tennis world that would otherwise go unnoticed.
If the ATP and WTA Tours won’t do it, then why not see what the players can do?
