Jessica Pegula and Madison Keys couldn’t control their emotions as fellow compatriot Jennifer Brady opened up about her recent injury battles. She had suffered a knee injury during her R16 clash against Gina Feistel at the ITF event in Charlottesville in April. Brady has still not fully recovered from the setback and has confirmed that she won’t be able to return by Wimbledon. Her story marked a red-letter day in the Player Box podcast history as Pegula found the silver lining.

“I shared a couple of episodes ago that I had a knee injury in Charlottesville during my match,” Brady said on the latest episode of the Players Box podcast. “I was hoping to be able to play the French Open and Wimbledon. But unfortunately, I ended up getting a couple of PRP injections and just kind of easing back into it. Yeah, it’s been a grind. Jess (Pegula) one day was giving me a little TED Talk. Just kind of reminded me why I wanted to come back, and the reason is I love playing tennis. Sorry guys.”

As Brady suddenly burst into tears, both Pegula and Keys started consoling her. The latter wished she was there with Brady in person as she wanted to give her a tight hug.

“We would give you a hug if we were with you. Tears are good, tears mean you’re alive, tears mean you care,” Keys stated.

Soon, both Pegula and Keys were also shedding tears as they felt sad seeing their friend struggle to get back on court even after trying her best. As the atmosphere became very emotional, Pegula tried to cheer everyone up with a humorous question.

“Is this our first time crying on the pod? We need to mark this down, June 4th. We all cried together,” Pegula said.

Knee injuries have affected Brady’s career for quite some time now. The 2021 Australian Open finalist had first encountered significant knee and foot problems in August of the same year. As a result, she had to remain on the sidelines for almost two years until July of 2023.

If this wasn’t enough already, Brady would then sustain another serious knee injury in late 2023. This time, the American required surgery to heal from the setback, and she remained out of action for another two years. The former World No. 13 made her long return earlier this year in January with the ITF event in San Diego. These injuries had already led to a layoff of 848 days for Brady.

She soon returned to the WTA tour, participating in both the Indian Wells and Miami Open. However, Brady failed to make it past the first round on both occasions, suffering defeats against Antonia Ruzic and Sloane Stephens, respectively. Her return lasted weeks. In Charlottesville, her knee gave way again. She hasn’t played since April again. Brady peaked in 2021 by reaching a career ranking of number 13. But the injury-enforced layoffs have seen her rank fall to her current rank of 689.

Pegula and Keys showed how close they are with Brady as they too couldn’t help but break down in tears seeing their friend’s continued struggles. Keys especially would have been able to relate with Brady as while she hasn’t had any long layoffs, she has still suffered from multiple injuries in 2026. This has led to her missing several tournaments.

Madison Keys has struggled to remain fit in 2026

Keys had initially suffered fitness problems during her quarterfinal clash against Aryna Sabalenka at the Brisbane International in January. The American lost 6-3, 6-3 and missed all February tournaments due to an Achilles tendon injury.

After making her return, Keys competed at the Sunshine Double and the Charleston Open but then suffered an illness before her first-round clash at the Madrid Masters. As a result, she had to withdraw from the tournament.

After a second-round exit in Rome, Keys decided to feature in the WTA 125 event held in Paris. This was her final preparation for the French Open, and she did put in a solid effort by reaching the final.

However, the 31-year-old was forced to retire from the clash against Diane Parry due to a left thigh injury. Keys led 6-3, 3-3 when she retired. The setback led to her withdrawing from the Strasbourg Open as well before she returned at the Roland Garros.

Despite suffering an injury just days before, Keys went on to have a decent run at the Grand Slam. She made it to the fourth round after securing a hard-fought 6-3, 5-7, 7-5 victory over World No. 9 Victoria Mboko. However, the veteran wouldn’t be able to go any further as Diana Shnaider defeated her 6-3, 3-6, 6-0.

After deciding to not play at the ongoing HSBC Championships, Keys is likely to make her grass-court return at the Berlin Open next week.