“Coaches thought they were clumsy”

Serena Williams and Venus Williams are widely considered to have revolutionized the game of tennis. Recently, their childhood coach Rick Macci shared a story about a unique trait the sisters showed when they were training as kids.

Of the two, Venus rose to fame first after reaching the finals at the 1997 US Open. Serena proved her mettle soon enough, as she claimed her maiden Grand Slam singles title at the 1999 US Open. Together, the sibling duo dominated much of the women’s singles game for the next two decades.

Recently, Serena and Venus’ childhood coach Rick Macci recalled a tale of how the two sisters used to be determined to get the ball no matter what. He explained that this often led to them falling on the court, writing on X:

Nobody fell on the court as much as VW and MEEK. Coaches watching thought they were off balance or clumsy. These 2 little warriors tried so hard to get that ball when low that lunging and falling down was part of that Compton DNA playbook. RAGE!

Rick Macci recalls the important lessons Venus and Serena Williams’ parents taught them

Rick Macci is a largely successful coach, having trained five World No.1 tennis players, including Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Andy Roddick, Maria Sharapova, and Jennifer Capriati.

Macci often speaks about his time training the Williams sisters and recently shared that the duo’s parents taught them to never make excuses. He wrote on X:

“They (Serena and Venus) never made excuses. Excuses were illegal in the Williams family. The life lessons Richard and Oracene taught daily are on the parents Mt. Rushmore. Even more so the two little warriors that heard every word but even more importantly, listened.”

In a separate post, the 70-year-old explained that the two sisters were always grateful too. He wrote:

“Every single night Richard Williams said THANK YOU. More importantly, so did Venus and Serena. Always remember what you have instead of what you do not have. Both World class players but even better, a world class family.”

Serena Williams and Venus Williams led extraordinary careers in tennis. The former won 23 Grand Slam women’s singles titles, while the latter won seven major singles titles. The sisters enjoyed success as a women’s doubles pairing as well, winning 14 Grand Slam titles together.