Madison Keys is living the dream on tour. The American arrives at the Australian Open as the defending champion after lifting the title last year, guided by her coach and husband, former ATP pro Bjorn Fratangelo. It’s been a season filled with highs and lows, but personally, Keys has turned into what she jokes is a marriage expert. Last year, she said, “It’s been good. I’m a pro now. We’ve been married for about two months, so if you need marital advice, just call me.” This year at Rod Laver Arena, she not only celebrates her win over Sabalenka one year ago but also her first year of married life. How has that been?

During her pre-tournament press conference, the American faced the usual questions about her mindset and approach as the defending champion. But one reporter chose to pick on her personal life, asking what she’s learned one year into marriage and life with Fratangelo. Her answer was honest and playful!

“What went well? Well, we got to travel a lot, super fun,” Madison Keys admitted, “And we won a Grand Slam together, also very fun. What we’re trying to change: my husband had threatened that if I try to renovate any more parts of our house, I will be thrown out of our house.”

She laughed before adding, “Which is fair, because for the last two years, I think it’s been 18 months of construction at our house. So, he has asked me to at least take a year break, which I feel like is fair, and I feel like that’s part of marriage, allegedly, it’s compromise. So, we’ll see if that actually happens.”

In case you missed it, Keys and Fratangelo’s story began back in 2017 at a training facility in Boca Raton, Florida. Soon after, they both moved to Orlando and ended up living in the same apartment complex. Tennis bonded them both on and off the court, and over time, their connection deepened. After six years of dating, Fratangelo proposed in March 2023, setting the stage for the next big chapter.

The couple tied the knot in 2024 in a warm, intimate ceremony surrounded by family, friends, and familiar tennis faces, including Jessica Pegula. Since then, they’ve built a life together in Florida. Off the court, Madison Keys has channeled her creative energy into home renovations. What began as minor updates soon turned into a full-blown transformation project.

And this isn’t the first time she’s laughed about Fratangelo’s frustration with all the construction chaos. Before their wedding, in September 2024, she shared on the WTA Insider Podcast just how intense things had gotten at home.

“My GC gets a text message from me every day,” Madison Keys said back then. “‘Hey, are we almost done? Do I have all of my cabinet doors? Are they all in now? Where are they?” She even joked about the messages she sent to her husband:

“‘Hey, Bjorn will actually kill me if we come home and we still don’t have a bathroom.'”

A year later, it seems the message has finally landed. Keys now admits her husband’s patience might have been tested enough. She laughs about it but knows he has a point.

“There’s one more bathroom that I could quickly renovate, though. But yeah, it’s been absolutely amazing getting to travel together, and this life can be so hard, stressful, and isolating, and being able to get to work together, travel together, actually see each other has been a huge blessing.”

Now, coming to the tennis side of things, as she returns to Melbourne Park with her coach and husband by her side, she looks more comfortable than ever. Ready to defend her crown, she’s learned the one rule that keeps her grounded.

Madison Keys speaks about the mental battle of being the defending champion

Before the 2026 season even began, Keys was already looking ahead with a spark in her eye. While in Riyadh for the WTA Finals, she reflected on what it means to return as defending champion and the mindset she plans to take with her. And for the pressure, Madison has learned to handle it her own way.

“I think the biggest thing is getting to the point where it’s not about not feeling the pressure, but knowing how to navigate through it,” Keys told The National during the WTA Finals.

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The American admitted that she hasn’t always faced pressure head-on, “I think I sometimes get in the habit of trying to avoid it and push it away and just say everything is great and fine and it’ll be OK. And then I walk out onto the match court, and because I’ve been avoiding it for the last three weeks or whatever, then it kind of just all hits you, and then you feel unprepared.”

That honesty made her 2025 Australian Open run even more special. As the No. 19 seed, Keys tore through Melbourne, dropping only two sets before stunning a string of top-10 opponents, including Elena Rybakina, Elina Svitolina, and Iga Swiatek in a gripping three-set semifinal. Then came the ultimate triumph: her first Grand Slam title after toppling world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 in a fiercely fought final.

Across seven matches, Keys was unstoppable. She racked up 224 winners, pounding the ball from the baseline and backing it up with fearless serving. Even when momentum swung against her, especially in that tense semifinal comeback against Swiatek, she found another gear and refused to back down.

Now the 29-year-old returns to Melbourne as the ninth seed and reigning champion, set to open her campaign against Oleksandra Oliynykova on Monday, January 19. Can Madison Keys make it back-to-back finals at Rod Laver Arena?  Drop your predictions in the comments below!