Jennifer Brady’s inspiring comeback continues in primetime Wednesday when she meets No.7 Madison Keys in a second-round match at the Mubadala DC Citi Open.

Brady returned to the WTA Tour this week after a nearly two-year absence while rehabbing from chronic foot injuries and knee surgery. The 28-year-old American had gone 713 days between WTA matches before returning Tuesday afternoon and defeating World No.28 Anhelina Kalinina 6-2, 6-1 in 68 minutes on John Harris Court.

“I’m pretty happy with the way I came out, handled my emotions, stayed true to my game plan and was able to come out with a win,” Brady said. “Tennis is a part of who I am, and I hope I never lose that. I’m happy just to be here competing with the best.”

Brady is embracing her long-awaited return and the inevitable reunions with familiar faces and rituals. Still, the former World No.13 concedes there is much work to be done.

“I’m obviously very happy to be back playing again, but it’s going to take a lot of time,” to regain her old form, she said.

Prior to her lengthy absence, Brady was arguably playing the best tennis of her career, complete with a semifinal run at the 2020 US Open and a finals appearance at the 2021 Australian Open.

She returns to the Tour ranked No.1056.

“I’m going to have to be pretty patient with myself knowing that I’m not just going to come back to this level and pick up where I left off. It’s been so long since I really played a high level of tennis and competed with the best players in the world. I have expectations for myself, but I also need some patience.”

Patience was a virtue during Brady’s nearly two-year layoff, with setbacks sprinkled throughout. This past spring, she targeted a return at the French Open having booked her travel and hotel only to reinjure her foot in a practice session just a week before her scheduled departure.

“Earlier this year it seemed almost impossible that I was going to be able to compete at a high level and play tournaments week to week, so if you had asked me back then how I’d feel today, I would have been extremely grateful and happy,” she said this week in Rock Creek Park.

“But I didn’t get to where I am by being complacent. I’m always going to have bigger goals and dream big, but at the end of the day, I’m happy to be back doing what I love to do and what I should be doing.”

Shortly after her setback in May, Brady shifted her focus to a possible return for the summer hardcourt season. She entered a 100K ITF event last week in Granby, Quebec and now has a familiar looking summer itinerary with stops in Washington, Montreal, Cincinnati and at the US Open.

“I would love to peak at around the time of the US Open and hopefully by then I will have played a lot of matches,” she said. “Feeling nerves, the big moments in a match, having to close out a match, seeing what’s that like again. This is all part of it. Obviously, I’d like to peak and play my best tennis for the US Open. It would be really nice if in a month or so, I’m playing really well.”