Rick Macci: Serena Williams Is ‘In It To Win’ At Wimbledon 2026, Not To Silence Critics

Rick Macci, who coached Serena Williams from the age of 10 between 1991 and 1995, has offered a detailed assessment of what is driving the American’s return to singles competition at Wimbledon 2026, telling Tennis365 that Williams is “in there for one reason” — victory.

Williams, now 44, will step onto a singles court for the first time since the 2022 US Open on Tuesday, when she meets world No. 87 Maya Joint in the first round at Wimbledon. The All England Club has handed the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion a main draw wildcard at a tournament she has won seven times, with titles spanning from 2002 to 2016. Her most recent Wimbledon singles win came in 2016 — seven years before this week’s return.

Prior to the singles draw, Williams eased back into competitive play by contesting doubles at two grass-court WTA 500 events — at Queen’s Club and in Berlin earlier this month. She will also partner her sister Venus in the women’s doubles at Wimbledon. Together, the Williams sisters have claimed seven Wimbledon doubles titles.

“She’s not trying to prove anybody wrong — she doesn’t have to do anything! She doesn’t have anything to prove,” Macci told Tennis365. “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.”

Macci, 71, was emphatic that doubters and sceptics are not a factor in Williams’ calculations. Instead, he pointed to her competitive instincts as the quality that will define her performances. “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.”

On the grass surface at Wimbledon specifically, Macci highlighted Williams’ serve as a potential weapon that remains intact. “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.”

Williams stands one Grand Slam title short of Margaret Court’s all-time women’s singles record of 24 major titles. However, Macci suggested that milestone is not the primary motivation at this stage. “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,” he said. “But right now, she’s curious about how Serena’s gonna play.”

Macci also addressed the psychological demands of singles competition after a prolonged absence, noting that match-play pressure differs sharply from practice environments. “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.”

When asked about Williams’ movement — a natural concern given her age and the length of her absence — Macci was measured but optimistic. “The movement won’t be better, 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.”

Looking at the broader competitive picture, Macci argued that Williams’ firepower and the psychological weight she carries into any match make her a legitimate threat. “Simply because she’s gonna win points and games easier with her firepower, I think she can hang in there with anybody. 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.”

Macci concluded by reaffirming that Williams’ intentions are unambiguous. “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. Never, ever count out the heart of a champion, because this young lady is a very different animal.”