Coach Rick Macci Recalls King Richard’s Unique Way of Coaching Venus and Serena Williams

Serena Williams and Venus Williams are arguably two of the greatest players in the history of tennis. Over the years, the Williams sisters have dominated the game like no other player. However, the legendary status that Serena and Venus enjoy now didn’t come that easy. The two started playing tennis at a very early age, with their father, Richard Williams, being their coach along with Rick Macci.
Recently, star coach Rick Macci recalled one of the stories of Serena and Venus’s coaching days. The story was another addition to the many tales told by Rick Macci in the series titled ‘Tales from the Training Court’. The title of this story was ‘The Scissors.’

Macci has never shied away from appreciating Richard William’s style of coaching. The seven-time USPTA national coach of the year has always regarded Richard as a teacher of life lessons. He is often spotted going all heart for the unique coaching methods of Richard Williams. This time was no different.

Venus and Serena learn how to bend

He started by giving a brief about the situation saying, “It was a Saturday, and the girls just weren’t bending to Richard’s satisfaction. Okay, I thought it was okay. But when he wanted low, he wanted the knee on the ground. So, they weren’t maybe bending as much as they should be.” 

Clearing the situation further, Rick explained that, not liking the Williams sister’s bend, Richard called off the practice and asked Rick to visit home after his training session.

Taking the story forward, Rick next told what happened at the Willaims’ home. Entering the home, he just saw Richard. Not seeing Venus and Serena, he asked Richard about the sisters, to which Richard asked Rick to accompany him to the front yard. Even though Rick had known Richard for his unique style of teaching, he still was amused to see Serena and Venus. Explaining the scenario, Rick said, “This is like one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen. They’re on their hands and knees with a pair of scissors. And they’re cutting the grass. They’re actually cutting the grass with a pair of scissors.”

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Even though Rick was amused by seeing the sisters cut grass with Scissors, he knew the intention behind the act. Once again, being moved by Richard’s way of teaching, Rick addressed Richard as someone who is all about life lessons. He said, “He just wanted to send a message. Because Richard Williams is all about life lessons. This is how you bend your knees.

Venus and Serena Williams debut

41-year-old Venus Williams made a debut in 1994 at the WTA Bank of the West Classic, now known as the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic. Then 14-year-old Venus received a wildcard entry into the tournament, setting a first-round clash with fellow American Shaun Strafford. Playing the first professional tournament of her life, Venus entered the court with nothing to lose. However, that wasn’t the case once she gained momentum. Playing like a professional, Venus maintained her high game, winning her first professional match 6-3,6-4. However, she was beaten in the second round by the top-seeded Spaniard Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario.
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On the other hand, Serena Williams made her professional circuit debut in 1995 at the WTA Quebec City Open. Unlike sister Venus, Serena had to play the qualifying round to enter the main draw. Lacking experience of the professional circuit, Serena lost in the opening round of the qualifying round. After multiple qualifying round losses, Serena finally played her first main draw match in 1997, at the WTA Moscow Open, suffering a first-round loss.