"I had a crush on Marat Safin" - Madison Keys reveals 'embarrassing' encounter with Russian after shock confession to his sister Dinara

Madison Keys revealed she had a 'massive crush' on Marat Safin and opened up about how Dinara Safina may have exposed it. Dinara and Marat are both former World No. 1s who won several titles in the 2000s.

During a recent episode of The Player's Box Podcast, co-hosted by Keys, Jessica Pegula, Desirae Krawczyk, and Jennifer Brady, the American WTA stars began discussing coaching changes. They touched upon how players they watched growing up are now taking up the coaching mantle.

Marat Safin was one of the names mentioned during the discussion. Krawczyk talked about how it was "fun to see" Marat back on tour before Keys revealed her shocking confession to the Russian's sister Dinara (from 34:30):

"Someone asked me one time who I would want to play mixed doubles with. And growing up, I had a massive crush on Marat. I mean, obviously, I think all of us did, but I was like, “Marat Safin.” And then I saw his sister at an event. She was like, “Do you want me to tell Marat?” And I was like, “No, don’t. So embarrassing.”"

However, Keys believes Dinara did not keep the secret well as the American was teased by the former ATP World No. 1 in Madrid.

"And then I’m convinced she told him or something, because when I saw him in Madrid, he kept teasing me, and I was like, “No, stop, please,”" Madison Keys added.

The WTA stars burst into laughter at the story, and Pegula then went on to share how warm and entertaining Safin has become as a presence on tour.

Jessica Pegula also shared about Marat Safin's 'entertaining' presence on tour

Jessica Pegula shared during the same podcast episode that Marat Safin has become a surprisingly entertaining and humorous presence since returning to the tour.

"He has been like a funny person who has come back on tour, but he has been so entertaining," Pegula began (from 35:10).

She noted that he truly doesn’t care about formalities, yet remains incredibly funny and engaging with everyone around him.

"When you watched him when you were younger and all of a sudden he is just there and joking around and being really outgoing. It’s just an interesting, weird thing to me," she added.

Marat and his sister Dinara have both reached the World No. 1 ranking. Safin, known for his power and flair, won two Grand Slam titles, the 2000 US Open and the 2005 Australian Open. Meanwhile, Safina reached three Grand Slam finals and captured 12 WTA singles titles.

Edited by Aliasgar Ayaz