LONDON -- She's only 21 years old, but it feels like Madison Keys has been bearing the sometimes unbearable weight of expectation for years.
Or is that wait?
Keys has already been to the semifinals of the Australian Open, in 2015, the same year she reached the quarters here at Wimbledon. She played her first WTA match at the age of 14 and was the seventh-youngest player to win a WTA main-draw match, the youngest since Martina Hingis 15 years earlier. In 2014, Keys was the second-youngest player to win a WTA title, on the grass at Eastbourne.
And a week ago, another milestone was achieved in England. After winning the title at Birmingham (again, on grass), Keys quietly slipped up the rankings ladder and into the top 10 for the first time.
The momentum continued Monday, as the ninth-seeded Keys ruined Laura Siegemund 6-3, 6-1 in a speedy 63 minutes. In doing so, Keys, one of 18 American women in the draw, qualified for one of the United States' four singles spots at the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Keys is the first American to debut in the WTA's top 10 since Serena Williams did it 17 years ago. In terms of tennis -- or just about anything -- that is a long, long time. When Keys saw that statistic after the semifinals in Birmingham, she was surprised.
"I didn't know that it had been so many years since an American woman did that," Keys said in her postmatch news conference. "I was really excited for about three minutes, and then I was like, 'I have to focus on the final tomorrow.'"
The trajectory -- despite those who might feel Keys hasn't progressed quickly enough -- feels just about right for her age and stage.
So, what goes through her mind when people say and write she can be the world's No. 1-ranked player?
"It's nice to hear, obviously," Keys said. "It's confidence-boosting, people think that about me."
Does she think she can become the No. 1 player?
"I think I can," Keys said. "I'm obviously out here working for that every day. I don't think it's going to come easy, and I don't think just because people are saying that, it's going to happen.
"That's why whenever I hear that, I kind of just want to get out on a practice court and keep getting better."
Listed at 5-foot-10, Keys has spectacular physical tools. Last year, she was tied with Venus Williams for the fifth-fastest serve, at 124 mph. Keys is among the WTA leaders this year in percentage of service points won (62.9) and percentage of service games won (78.8). And her flat groundstrokes can be lethal.
At last year's French Open, her forehand was clocked at 78 mph, the fastest of any woman -- or man. Novak Djokovic came in a 77 mph, but to be fair, that number doesn't account for his topspin, which makes it feel like a heavier shot.
The biggest reason for Keys' recent improvement is fitness trainer Scott Byrnes. After working with Ana Ivanovic, Maria Sharapova and Eugenie Bouchard, Byrnes joined the Keys team a year ago and the results are just beginning to emerge, especially in two of his favorite categories, footwork and movement.
In the yin/yang world of athletics, the physical and the mental are usually intertwined. Keys' biggest issue was inconsistency; her power was not always harnessed and under control. This was often a product of poor shot selection. Under Byrnes, she is far fitter, which makes her a bit faster on the court. That allows her to get into better position for each of her groundstrokes. And when you are in position earlier and less rushed, it's easier to make good shot decisions.
So, being better physically buys her a little more time to think clearly. She has also been helped by the presence of Thomas Hogstedt, who followed Lindsay Davenport -- a mother of four and an analyst for Tennis Channel -- who couldn't commit to the time-consuming role of a full-time coach.
Monday's victory wasn't a particularly efficient match for Keys -- there were 23 unforced errors to offset 20 winners -- but she remains one of the hottest players on the planet. This was Keys' sixth straight win on grass, and she has won 14 of her past 16 matches. In the second round, Keys will play Kirsten Flipkens, who beat American Nicole Gibbs.
Going forward, that weight of expectation will become even greater.
The bookmakers are already on to Keys. According to Ladbrokes, Serena Williams (6/4) is the favorite, followed by Garbine Muguruza (9/2) and Keys (10/1), who is rated ahead of two-time champion Petra Kvitova (12/1).
Indeed, the slippery, skid-inducing grass makes this the Slam most likely to become Keys'. It's quite possible that soon it will be the 22-year-old Muguruza and Keys, along with Simona Halep (24), who are battling for that No. 1 ranking. Keys, it should be noted, defeated Muguruza on her way to the Rome final before losing there to Serena.
The thing she needs to work on most, according to Keys, is just being more consistent and confident on the court, not having those ups and downs.
"I don't think there is one thing in my game that I say is absolutely perfect and doesn't have to get any better," she said.