"Serena Williams would run over broken glass to get the ball" - Tennis legend's childhood coach on her "GOAT qualities" as a kid

Serena Williams' childhood coach Rick Macci recently showered praise on the tennis legend, highlighting the determination his former ward had from a young age.

Rick Macci coached both Serena and Venus Williams in their teenage years. He boasts a strong overall resume as well, having coached many World No. 1s, including Jennifer Capriati, Maria Sharapova, and Andy Roddick, along with the Williams sisters.

Macci mentioned that even as a kid, Williams had a lot of determination, and she was willing to walk on "broken glass" to get to the ball, calling this a "GOAT quality."

"Serena had so much raging determination she would run over broken glass to get the ball. But even better she would run even faster back over it to get the next one. GOAT qualities in the oven as a kid!" Rick Macci posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

The head-to-head record between Serena Williams and Venus Williams

Venus and Serena Williams pictures at the Miami Grand Prix

The Williams sisters faced each other 31 times between 1998 and 2020, with Serena leading the head-to-head 19-12. The duo also locked horns nine times in Grand Slam finals, with Serena dominating, winning seven of those matches.

They first squared off in the second round of the 1998 Australian Open, with Venus getting an early lead in the rivalry. She would go on to win the first three matches against her sister.

Serena won her first match against Venus in the 1999 Grand Slam Cup final. The latter then won in the 2000 Wimbledon semifinal and 2001 US Open final to get a healthy 5-1 lead against her younger sister.

Between 2002 and 2005, they faced each other eight times, with Serena winning six of those matches to level the H2H at 7-7. Some notable results were Serena winning the 2002 French Open, 2002 Wimbledon, 2002 US Open, 2003 Australian Open, and 2003 Wimbledon, all after defeating her elder sister in the finals.

In 2008 and 2009, they met nine times, with Serena winning the lion's share of the meetings with six victories. Venus bagged the Wimbledon in 2008 while Serena avenged her loss by winning the 2009 Wimbledon, along with the WTA Finals, by defeating her sister. Serena built a 13-10 lead with that.

The 2017 Australian Open saw the last Grand Slam final meeting between the Williams sisters, with Serena coming on top yet again. With this, the younger sister had taken a 17-11 lead.

They met three more times with Serena winning two and Venus one. The Williams sisters ended the rivalry at 19-12 in 2020 at the Top Seed Open.