“Something in me refused to give up,” Serena Williams reminisced about the time she clinched her career’s 20th Grand Slam in 2015! At 33, the world’s tennis queen had just conquered the Australian Open, but the red clay of Paris presented a different, more formidable challenge. Yet, she rose to meet it, rewriting the script of human possibility. Her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, a maestro of the game, watched in awe as Williams transformed the unthinkable into a masterpiece of athleticism and willpower. “I think it defines Serena.”

In a clip of Williams’ “In the Arena, Serena Williams,” docuseries’ fifth episode, the 23 Grand Slam champion and her ex-coach, Mouratoglou, talked about the incredible victory of Williams during the French Open of 2015. The former French tennis coach, proud of Williams’ tenacity and resilience, said, “What she did in 2015 Roland Garros, I’m gonna say it, I think it’s the greatest achievement in sport ever. I’ve never seen something like this in my life. I think it defines Serena. When you see what she is capable of doing in that tournament. She makes things impossible become possible. That’s why she is who she is.”

For context. Nine years ago, Williams was struggling with the flu before her French Open final match. So much so that she was almost ready to withdraw from the final clash at the tournament. “When you have the flu, your whole body aches,” she had confessed later on. Moreover, Williams knew that her opponent, Lucie Safarova, a first-time finalist at the event, would not cut her some slack during the match. However, Williams did not want to leave without giving a fight. As a result, she decided to go all in and fight a three-set match. 

Mouratoglou, who coached her from 2012–2022, was present at the stand, observing how Williams won the first set comfortably and was heading for a second set victory too. But the Czech player put forward her best game after that, which led to a second-set tiebreak that Safarova won. But the best was yet to come!

When Safarova was 2-0 in the third and deciding set, Williams’ supremacy and power on clay became palpable. She quickly made a comeback by winning six successive games, ultimately winning her third and last singles French Open title! What followed was a celebratory moment on-court.

Wherein Williams, throwing her hands up in the air, cherished the moment she never thought she could have that year. She rushed to her coach, who kept on clapping and showed her a “20,” sign with his hands, indicating her grand slam count. As Mouratoglou said, her triumph from the brink of defeat was indeed unparalleled. Later on, even Williams herself admitted the intensity of the match and reflected on the whole experience.

Williams sheds light on her “dramatic” showdown at the 2015 French Open

The tension thickened in every moment during that match. Williams found it hard to keep her usual calm and was not even warned by the chair umpire for losing her temperament on-court. But success came rushing by at the end, which made all the hardships worth it for the WTA player as she earned her victory at the French Open after two years (last in 2013).

“When I was a little girl, in California, my father and my mother wanted me to play tennis. And now I’m here, with 20 Grand Slam titles,” she said. Continuing her statement, she added, “This is by far the most dramatic [major title I’ve won]. I didn’t even train yesterday, I’ve had the flu … it’s just been a nightmare. This is very special for me. I haven’t always played very well here, but I’m really happy to win the 20th here.”

With Serena Williams’ retirement in August 2022, the tennis world still feels a lingering void. But one thing is certain: she might have left tennis, but her mark in the sport is there to stay for eternity!