Serena Williams’ legendary former coach Rick Macci has told Tennis365 that the American icon has “nothing to prove” ahead of her singles comeback at Wimbledon 2026.
Williams will play her first singles match since the 2022 US Open on Tuesday when she faces world No 87 Maya Joint in the opening round at Wimbledon.
The 23-time Grand Slam singles champion returned to the tour earlier this month and competed in doubles at the grass-court WTA 500 events at Queen’s Club and in Berlin.
Williams, who is 44 years old, was given a main draw wildcard at Wimbledon — a tournament she has won seven times (between 2002 and 2016).
The former world No 1 will also play in the women’s doubles event with her sister, Venus. The Williams sisters have won seven Wimbledon doubles titles together.
Macci has a unique insight into Williams’ mindset, having coached her from 1991, when she was 10 years old, until 1995.
Speaking exclusively to Tennis365, Macci dismissed the suggestion that Williams will want to prove a point to those who are doubting her ability compete at this age.
“She’s not trying to prove anybody wrong — she doesn’t have to do anything! She doesn’t have anything to prove,” said Macci.
“And when people talk about her age, they’re also talking about the greatest female tennis player who has ever held the racket, and one of the greatest female athletes of all time.
“She’s wired very differently. Listen, every time she got on the court, it’s like a brutal Compton street fight. And that’s gonna be the key — how she competes.
“I think the strokes and everything are gonna be there, but it’s the competitiveness. She’s just wired differently, and people can’t look at the age. They’ve gotta look at the person.
“And this is on grass. She still has the serve. And I’m telling you right now, she can still hit it 122 miles an hour in the corner. And I think everybody agrees on this: she has the best serve ever in women’s tennis.”
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Williams is one Grand Slam title away from tying Margaret Court’s all-time women’s singles record, but Macci insists that winning another major will not be on her mind.
“She’s not thinking about that. If she would flip the script and maybe get to the quarters, then that becomes the number one thing on the menu — no doubt about it,” said the American.
“But right now, she’s curious about how Serena’s gonna play. She’s not even sure, because as an athlete, when you get out there, it’s a very different situation than with hitting partners and practice matches, and playing doubles.
“There’s a lot of mental stuff you gotta absorb, you got 20 seconds to flip it in your mind and get back out there for the next point and feel great. And she hasn’t done that in a while.
“And here’s another thing: even though she hasn’t played in four years — she hasn’t won a match at Wimbledon in seven years.
“So, if she goes back and wins and starts dropping a few people, it just puts more exclamation points behind who is the greatest player of all time.”
Macci did, though, declare that Williams has not returned to tennis for any reason other than trying to win matches, and he backed her to be competitive against whoever she faces.
“At the end of the day, simply because she’s gonna win points and games easier with her firepower, I think she can hang in there with anybody,” said the 71-year-old.
“And the x-factor — when the other person looks on the other side of the net, and all of a sudden, you start to feel a little nervous, a little tight; the whole landscape changes.
“And let’s face it, probably everybody in the crowd is gonna be rooting for Serena. So there’s a lot of mental stuff that surrounds this.
“What she wants to do is compete, but she’s in there for one reason: she wants to win. She’s not doing it for any other reason, or she wouldn’t be doing it. And I know that for a fact.”
On the questions over Williams’ movement, Macci said: “The movement won’t be better [than when Williams stopped playing], but it could be a little more efficient, depending on how she plays, and if she takes the ball early and hits on the rise.
“She wants to do it, she’s all in, and that’s the most important thing. She’s gonna play the whole year. I think that people are gonna be surprised by how well she does.
“And whether that translates into wins, or upsets or whatever, we’ll see. But listen, never, ever count out the heart of a champion, because this young lady is a very different animal.”
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