Serena Williams' ex-coach impressed by ex-Twins pitcher's 'unreal' talent display in slow motion

Serena Williams' former coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, recently shared his admiration for the flexibility of former Minnesota Twins pitcher Thomas Hackimer. The French coach highlighted the importance of such flexibility in tennis, particularly for executing a powerful forehand.

Hackimer, who now plays for Estrellas Orientales in the Dominican Winter League, was part of the Minnesota Twins organization from 2016 to 2021 in Minor League Baseball. Mouratoglou, known for sharing tennis tips on his Instagram account, posted a video on Friday (November 22), connecting Hackimer’s pitching technique to lessons for tennis players.

In the video which was in Slow motion, Patrick Mouratoglou described Thomas Hackimer's shoulder flexibility as "unbelievable." He compared it to the looseness tennis players use for powerful shots and praised Hackimer's fast, whip-like throws.

“Wow, first of all, the flexibility of the shoulder of this guy is just unreal, how far he go backwards? That's unbelievable, how loose he is, that's crazy and that's what we teach, with the forehand, you know? So you need to let the racket, go back, having everything, completely loose, so you generate speed so that you can have this whip effect, he has the ultimate whip effect, I dont know how fast, he throws the ball, but I think it's unbelievable,” he said.

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Serena Williams' ex-coach Patrick Mouratoglou names Novak Djokovic as his GOAT

In Picture,: Patrick Mouratoglou, China Open - Day 7 - (Source: Getty)

In a recent interview with Talking Tennis, Patrick Mouratoglou shared his thoughts on the "greatest tennis player of all time" debate. He chose Novak Djokovic, praising the Serb's longevity, physical fitness, and motivation.

“I think they are all, the three are so unique. Any of the three I would have liked for sure; if I had to pick one I would I pick Novak,” said Mouratoglou.

“They are the three best players of all time, so to work with one of them is something so special, but if I had to pick one, I would pick Novak because I always thought he would become the greatest. First because he would play longer, his body is healthier than the two others’ body. And I feel that his motivation to become the greatest was so huge," he added.

Mouratoglou coached Serena Williams from 2012 to 2022, and together, they won ten Grand Slam titles, as well as the gold medal in the singles category at the London 2012 Olympics.

Apart from coaching Williams, the Frenchman has also worked with Stefanos Tsitsipas, Grigor Dimitrov, Simona Halep, Holger Rune, and recently began coaching four-time Grand Slam champion, Naomi Osaka, in September.