Coach Rick Macci says there are only one Serena Williams and Venus Williams but adds that Coco Gauff is “cut from the same cloth” as her idols.
During their prime years, the Williams sisters had the reputation of coming up big when needed the most. Now, their childhood coach sees something similar with the current top-ranked American female tennis player.
On Saturday, Gauff had her back turned against the wall multiple times in the WTA Finals final against Zheng Qinwen. After losing the first set, she was also down by a break in the second set and three games away from losing the Riyadh final in two sets – but she managed to overturn the deficit and force a decider.
The third set was no cakewalk either for the 20-year-old as the Chinese tennis star was twice up by a break. However, Gauff stayed calm once again – didn’t allow Zheng to serve out for the title – and forced a tie-break, which she won to complete a 3-6 6-4 7-6 (2) win.
Coco Gauff© WTA Finals Riyadh/X – Fair Use
After the final, coach Macci was asked if the 2024 WTA Finals champion was “the next Venus or Serena.” He wasn’t willing to declare that but that still didn’t prevent him from dropping a major praise and statement on the 20-year-old’s game.
“Asked if Coco is the next Venus or Serena. There is only one Venus. Only one Serena. But the same thread all 3 share and the most important thread is how the thread stabilizes under pressure and all 3 are cut from the same cloth,” Macci wrote on X.
Asked if Coco is the next Venus or Serena. There is only one Venus. Only one Serena. But the Same Thread all 3 share and the most important Thread is how the Thread stabilizes under pressure and all 3 are cut from the same Cloth. @CocoGauff @Venuseswilliams @serenawilliams
— Rick Macci (@RickMacci) November 12, 2024
Venus Williams recently had some very kind words for Gauff
Since becoming a pro tennis player, the 2023 US Open champion has numerous times spoken extremely highly of the Williams and credited them for her career and success.
Last month, Venus was a guest on the Tamron Hall Show when she was showed the picture of an eight-year-old Coco watching one of her 2012 US Open matches and rooting for her. The seven-time Grand Slam champion absolutely loved it and also revealed that she is rooting for Gauff in “every match.”
“I mean it’s so exciting to see her just like… explode. She is fantastic, and of course, I hope she wins every match,” Williams said.
Over the years, the current world No. 3 mentioned several times that Serena and Venus made her believe she could also be a successful tennis player one day.
“Exactly. And you have to dream. Doesn’t mean that there won’t be turns all the way of the dream or someday there’s gonna be ups and downs but as long as you have your north star…And there’s times when you have to figure out how to do it another way. But all that is a part of… you have to dream big,” Venus added on the show.
Gauff was quick to mention the Williams sisters after her biggest day
When the American tennis star became a Grand Slam champion at the 2023 US Open, she accomplished her goal of doing it in her teenage years. Moments later when addressing the crowd, the then-19-year-old gave a special shout-out to her idols.
“Yes, it’s crazy. I mean, they’re the reason why I have this trophy today, to be honest. They have allowed me to believe in this dream, you know, growing up. You know, there wasn’t too many just Black tennis players dominating the sport. It was literally, at that time when I was younger, it was just them that I can remember. Obviously, more came because of their legacy. So it made the dream more believable,” Gauff said during the on-court trophy presentation.
“But all the things that they had to go through, they made it easier for someone like me to do this. I mean, you look back at the history with Indian Wells, with Serena, all she had to go through, Venus fighting for equal pay. Yeah, it’s just, like, it’s crazy and it’s an honor to be in that kind of lineup as them. And I’m looking at it, and she’s won this a lot of times (laughter).”
Recently, the top-ranked American female tennis star shot a commercial for Baker & Tilly US. While doing so, Gauff paid another major tribute to the Williams sisters by saying that seeing two Black players make it in tennis and become so successful was a big reason why she thought the same was possible for her.