“I Was Not in the System”: Serena Williams’ Coach Mouratoglou on Biggest Challenge in Coaching

Serena Williams’ current coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, has earned quite the name for himself in tennis. The French coach runs one of the biggest tennis academies in the world today, the Mouratoglou Academy.

Apart from coaching Serena Williams, Mouratoglou is also the head-coach of rising stars like Stefanos Tsitsipas and Coco Gauff. Patrick has enjoyed unbelievable success with Serena, guiding her to 10 Grand Slam titles. However, his journey to where he is today wasn’t straightforward.

Serena Williams’ coach reveals what has been the biggest challenge for him as a tennis coach

In a recent interview, Serena’s coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, disclosed his biggest challenge as a tennis coach. He highlighted that one of the most difficult tasks for him was to directly train some players, as he had never coached anyone before that.

Serena Williams of the United States with coach Patrick Mouratoglou while practicing on Court Philippe-Chatrier in preparation for the 2021 French Open Tennis Tournament at Roland Garros on May 27th 2021 in Paris, France. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)

“The biggest challenge I had to deal with in tennis was first, that when I started coaching I had never coached in my life and I had never given a tennis lesson in my life, and I was like 30-something years old. That was a big challenge,” said Mouratoglou in the interview.

Secondly, he stated that since he was not a former player and had never been a part of the system, he had to face people’s judgments.

“And the second big challenge is I started straight away doing high level, like working with players who were potential great players. And I was not a former player. I was not ‘in the system’. This was tough because you are very much judged in this world when you haven’t been a professional tennis player,” added the French coach.

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“The fact that I knew nothing made me completely open”- Mouratoglou

In the same interview, Mouratoglou continued and revealed how he transformed his weakness into his strength. He emphasized that since he knew nothing, it actually made him more open to learn.

Coach Patrick Mouratoglou watches Serena Williams of the United States practice. Day nine of the 2021 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on February 16, 2021 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Mackenzie Sweetnam/Getty Images)

“And actually what was a difficulty became my strength. Because the fact that I knew nothing was the best way to start a collaboration because I believe this is how you should start with everyone… And the fact that I knew nothing made me completely open,” concluded the 51-year-old.

As of now, Patrick Mouratoglou is holding regular talks with Serena Williams regarding her future. Will he be able to help the tennis queen to win her 24th Grand Slam title before bidding goodbye to the sport?

Also Read: Serena Williams’ Coach Patrick Mouratoglou Heaps Huge Praise on Carlos Alcaraz

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