“Luck favors those who work hard.” But this statement eluded Madison Keys in her Wimbledon run this season. Keys’ tears after retiring mid-match due to an injury on Sunday crushed the hearts of millions. However, her WTA colleagues have her back! Sending their best wishes to the American tennis pro, Sloane Stephens, Laura Robson, and Robin Montgomery are coming forward to support Keys in her tough times.

After she pulled a muscle in her left leg, Madison Keys could not continue her match against Jasmine Paolini in the deciding set (at 5-5). A disheartened Keys, who had to step away from the field in tears, later took to her Instagram to share her emotions, writing, “Well… The ending of yesterday’s match was probably one of my toughest moments ever on court.”

Furthermore, the 29-year-old player added, “Unfortunately during the match, I injured my hamstring. I’ll be getting an MRI soon to see exactly what happened and what the severity of the injury is. I have a lot of mixed emotions that my Wimbledon ended like this and really appreciate all the nice messages I’ve gotten. Time to go home and get better ❤️‍🩹”

Extending their support to Keys, Sloane Stephens wrote in the comments, “We love you so much! Always supporting you! ❤️.” In 2016, Stephens herself was a victim of a foot injury that kept her away from tennis for the most of that season. Therefore, she indeed knows the pain and can relate to Keys’ situation quite well. Apart from her, Robin Montgomery, who is now free from her wrist and hip injuries from the last couple of years, also commented “❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️” on the post.

Adding to the list, Laura Robson, the British tennis pro, echoed Montgomery’s comments and filled the comment section with red heart emojis as well. After all, plagued by wrist and hip injuries, Robson knows how a subtle injury can put a pause on a player’s tennis dreams. “I sat down and cried,” Robson once said after she decided to retire following her injuries. Nevertheless, Keys hopes to carve her own path and recover from the pain soon! And her opponent, Jasmine Paolini, wishes the same!

Jasmine Paolini reveals Madison Keys’ “unbelievable,” performance at Wimbledon 

The closing set of the second set between Jasmine Paolini and Madison Keys shed light on some of their best tennis skills at Wimbledon. With Keys’ forehand strokes and Paolini’s comebacks, the duo’s back game was a “rollercoaster because the level was so high,” as Paolini herself later admitted. Nevertheless, the outcome was not as unexpected, and Paolini knows it too. Like many other WTA players, Paolini shared her thoughts on her opponent’s performance after the match.

“I hope she recovers soon. I think we played a really good match. Of course, is not the easiest thing to end like this…”[The match] was a rollercoaster because I think she’s playing unbelievable. I was doing more mistakes, her level was going up. It’s not easy to play against her because I think she’s one of the best players in the world. Of course, she’s hitting so fast.”

Nevertheless, Paolini is happy to be in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon for the first time. But on the other hand, hopefully, we get to see Madison Keys come back with an extra layer of enthusiasm and fierceness again soon!