‘She Felt Richard Needed to Improve’- Venus and Serena Williams’ Mother Oracene’s Forgotten Efforts Highlighted by Legendary Tennis Coach

Serena Williams once said that her mother is like a “spine” in a human body and her support was critical to their early careers. If you followed the Williams sisters on the court over the years, you would often find a calm and nearly stoic face in the stands of Oracene Price, their mother. While their father, Richard is often credited credit for the development, he would have had a hard time molding his daughters into accomplished tennis stars, if it was not for the watchful eye of Price.

Serena and Venus Williams’ careers were shaped by their parents. While Venus was guided by her father, Price played a bigger role in Serena’s development as a tennis icon. The Williams sisters began playing tennis at Compton at a young age, but the family relocated to West Palm Beach so that the young siblings could attend popular coach Rick Macci’s academy. It was there the former pro made some keen observations and recently highlighted Price’s impact on their careers.

Oracene worked in the background, offering stability emotional support, and even financial support, while Richard was the public face of the Williams sisters’ tennis journey. Richard has often been associated closely with the success of the sisters, even getting a movie made carrying his name, but their mother’s role is no less. She took an interest in their training and helped to coach them in their formative years.

Macci took to X on September 28 and shed light on her efforts, writing, “Oracene took a deep dive in almost every practice and helped so much in the Molding the Education the Teaching and the overall Coaching that she felt Richard needed to improve!”

Richard was the coach for the sisters, but Price was the one who helped them navigate challenges off the court and supported the family when his husband just wanted to focus on the coaching aspect. In a 2021 episode of Red Table Talk, ahead of the release of King Richard, Serena revealed how her mother stepped up when Richard quit his job.

The tennis icon said, “My dad at one point was working and then, he stopped. He’s like, ‘This is what we’re going to do. I’m not going to have a job. I’m gonna go with Venus and Serena, and train them every day.’ …she had to support seven people, as a family of seven. To have that faith and to have that back end support, we wouldn’t have survived without that.”

Price wasn’t the one to back down from sharing her opinion about the coaching methods of her husband and according to Macci would always be there in the shadows and come out whenever there was a dispute and handled matters better than Richard. In a tweet in Macci, the coach wrote, “

Venus and Serena Williams’ mental toughness was greatly influenced by Oracene Price. Oracene lost her first husband, Yusef Rasheed, to a heart attack in 1979. This experience left her with an unwavering resilience that shaped her kids’ upbringing. They learned how to handle pressure from her poise and capacity to overcome personal obstacles, which helped them in life and on the court.

Back in 2022, Macci in an interview with the New York Times also gave an insight into how Price’s way of dealing with her kids was different compared to Richard’s and how it helped them out. He mentioned while Richard “always had his foot on the gas,” Price was the “calming force.”

“I think her personality — she’s very, very calm, very low-key. She was amazing with the girls. She wanted to make sure they were kids. She wanted to make sure that they had a teenage life and she did everything possible to make that just as important.” Macci said. But she wasn’t only taking care of things behind the scenes. Her work as a coach and mentor to her daughters was valuable as pointed out by Serena during the 2001 Indiana Wells.

Before her quarterfinal match against Lindsay Davenport, Serena reached out to her mother, despite her father being her coach. The 23-time Grand Slam winner said, “I called her. I said, ‘Mom, what do I need to do?’ just before my match. Apparently, she gave me some good advice. My dad is here. He’s helping us practicing. I’m like, ‘Mom, what do you think?’ She’s our coach. That’s why she travels with us.”

She further revealed the advice her mother shared, noting, “She’s the one who told me, ‘You know, Serena, you know your game. You know how to play. You know what to do. All you need to do is go out there and focus for every point and want every point.’ That’s why I was okay.” Serena won the match and would go on to capture the title.

In the same presser, Serena also mentioned the role of her mother in the success the Williams sisters would have. “Well, she’s a disciplinary (smiling). No, my mom, if you take a human being, you have a body, she would be the spine, where you can’t move without it, you can’t do anything. I would say that’s her. She was there in the beginning of our career, and she really supported us the way your spine would, help you stand straight. She was there the whole time,” she added.

Serena’s admiration for her mother is understandable when you consider how she chose to believe in her when Richard thought she was tough to handle.

Price backed Serena when her father put his hands up

For Richard, the elder daughter Venus was the focus and he devoted most of his time to coaching her. This made Serena feel left behind, but her mother came to the rescue. In a 2021 documentary, Price narrated, “Venus was her dad’s court. Serena was on mine. He claimed he couldn’t handle Serena, she crazy. I told her a little different, I made her believe in herself. I made her think that she can get to any ball.”

Not only Price would handle Serena but she helped her develop into one of the most successful tennis players of all time. Notably, Venus Williams captured 7 Grand Slam titles, but Serena would surpass her with 23 Grand Slam wins to her name. Still, there was one common element in their success and it was the support and backing of their parents.

Richard deserves credit for transforming his daughters into world-class athletes, but the underlying efforts of Oracene merits recognition as well.