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Legendary tennis coach Rick Macci has given a glowing appraisal of Emma Raducanu’s game and shared his verdict on the Brit’s hopes of challenging for Grand Slam titles again.

Raducanu was ranked 60th in the world in March before she kickstarted her season with a run to the quarter-finals at the Miami Open.

Since the start of Miami, where she began working with Mark Petchey, Raducanu has amassed a 20-10 record.

The 22-year-old is currently ranked 39th, having been as high as 33rd place last month — her best ranking since the points from her 2021 US Open title win dropped in September 2022.

Raducanu started her North American summer hard-court swing by reaching the semi-finals at the WTA 500 event in Washington last month. She then made the third round in Montreal, and will look to continue her positive form at the Cincinnati Open.

In an exclusive interview with Tennis365, Macci was definitive when asked if Raducanu could become a top 10 player again.

“Absolutely, absolutely. And I’ve been saying this for a long, long time,” said the USPTA Hall of Fame coach.

“People… listen, everybody can have an opinion. Here’s what happens, you don’t lose the talent, you don’t lose the mechanics. She’s been pretty fundamentally sound on the forehand and backhand, there’s no real issue, there’s no real flaw.

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“Like, maybe you might see a little speedbump on Coco [Gauff]’s forehand. Raducanu is rock solid off both sides and, listen, she not only qualified and won the US Open, she didn’t drop a set. That wasn’t like, smoke and mirrors. You don’t lose the talent.

“Everything around her changed, but it’s still a ball, a court and a racket. Now, I’m not in that circle, so I don’t know all the details. I’m just glad that she’s still working hard, she has that in her back pocket.

“It’s not where you start, it’s where you finish. One thousand percent, she is a top ten talent. And let’s face it, there’s a fine line between winning and losing. There’s a fine line with that confidence.

“And as she gets more confident and she starts beating the top players, not only can she be in the top 10, she can definitely contend for a Grand Slam, because she has enough game, because she’s done it before. Okay, she’s done it before. So, 100%.

“As long as she has the passion, the belief is getting stronger and stronger because you don’t lose the talent, you just lose the confidence and then maybe a little fitness along the way, but you can always get that back.”

Macci has coached a host of tennis stars during their formative years, including five players who went on to become world No 1: Serena Williams, Venus Williams, Maria Sharapova, Jennifer Capriati and Andy Roddick. He also worked with Mary Pierce, Anastasia Myskina and Sofia Kenin, who won Grand Slam titles.

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Naomi Osaka’s former coach Brad Gilbert has become the latest voice to criticise the Japanese player after she did not mention Victoria Mboko in her loser’s speech.

Osaka said just 45 words, none of which were ‘Victoria Mboko’, in her post-match speech after she lost 6-2, 4-6, 1-6 in the Canadian Open final.

Failure to congratulate her opponent has led many to criticise Osaka, a player Mboko has previously said was one of her role models, and the two-time Slam winner took to social media to apologise to her opponent.

“Thanks, Montreal, it’s been a really great run,” wrote the 27-year-old.

“I also want to say sorry and congratulations to Victoria. You played a great match and have an amazing career ahead! I realise I didn’t congratulate you on the court.

“Honestly, I was in a daze and I was so focused on not having the same speech as IW 2018 finals or the Jenny/Jennifer situation that I tried to make my speech as short as possible. Thanks everyone for the week, see you in NY.”

But her former coach Gilbert said the 27-year-old should have congratulated her opponent on the court, bringing up Osaka’s “struggles with social anxiety” and suggesting she “let the last few games go.”

“After losing 7/6 in 3rd, I know Osaka struggles with social anxiety, but gosh congratulate your opponent,” he said on Twitter.

“Especially one that looked up to you, not to mention you just let the last few games go in a final.”

A rare voice of support for Osaka has been Andy Roddick who suggested it is only in tennis where losing players are expected to speak to the media so soon after defeat.

“She didn’t really want to expand a lot in the post-match speeches,” he said on his Served podcast.

“I see people are saying ‘she should’ve said…’, I don’t know, we’re the only sport that is forced to talk after we lose.

“Obviously, we’re not our best selves in that situation, and if people are, great, if they’re not, they’re not.

“I would rather her be friendly with Vicky Mboko all the time than at Grandstand in front of a microphone.

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“I don’t know if either is true, but Naomi [Osaka] is generally well-liked, polite, everyone likes her, and she doesn’t give a lot sometimes when she’s not ready to give a lot, and that’s fine.

“If Michael Jordan did that, they’d be like ‘He’s such a competitor, he can’t get over it’.

“I used to actually use that example with Serena [Williams] all the time; she would go to press sometimes and be really salty.

“I’m like, if that’s Jordan, everyone is celebrating his saltiness, but when it’s Serena, everyone’s writing articles about how salty she is, I don’t know.. It’s fine.”

Read next: Carlos Alcaraz predicts ‘years ahead’ of Jannik Sinner rivalry in build up to US Open

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Carlos Alcaraz has predicted he and Jannik Sinner have “years ahead” of their rivalry with the two penned to dominate men’s tennis for the foreseeable future.

The last seven Grand Slams have been shared by the two players with many foreseeing a men’s game dominated by the pair for years to come.

So far, Alcaraz has the edge with five Slams to Sinner’s four but it was the Italian who triumphed the last time the pair met in the Wimbledon final.

Now, as both prepare for the final Slam of the year the US Open, Alcaraz has agreed that the rivalry could be one that lasts for a long time.

“We’ve both achieved very important things in a very short time,” he said. “I’m very happy to see the rivalry we’re forging, and I think we have years ahead of us to continue doing so.

“We have to let people talk about us; I don’t think about that too much. We’ll see how far we go.”

Having withdrawn from the Canadian Open, Alcaraz returns to action this week in Cincinnati, playing for the first time since losing in SW19. The 22-year-old said it only took him “a few hours” to get over the defeat, acknowledging that it was part of the game.

“It was a new situation for me to lose a Grand Slam final, but you have to be prepared for that,” he said.

“Obviously, I never wanted it to happen, but I left the court proud and happy, smiling thinking that at some point it had to happen because it has happened to all tennis players in history. It took me a few hours to get over the defeat, knowing that I have many things to improve.

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“I could only feel grateful for having experienced a Wimbledon final, I left proud of what I did.”

Away from Wimbledon, 2025 has been a great season so far for Alcaraz who won the French Open as part of a 24-match win streak.

Reflecting on the year so far, Alcaraz said he was pleased but his goal is to regain the No.1 spot.

“I’m very satisfied with how I’m doing and I want to continue like this. There are several improvements I’d like to make to my tennis, but right now the most important thing is to maintain the joy on the court and be happy off it, enjoying the most important tournaments in the world.

“My goal between now and the end of the season is to regain the world number 1 ranking.”

Read next: Aryna Sabalenka says ‘painful’ Roland Garros outburst makes ‘everyone completely forget who you are’

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Aryna Sabalenka said it is “painful” to only be remembered for her Roland Garros outburst and that “everyone judges you” for a comment made in the heat of the moment.

Even two months and a whole other Grand Slam on from the event, Sabalenka feels she is still making up for her comments regarding Coco Gauff following her loss in the French Open final.

The backlash was fierce, prompting an apology from Sabalenka to Gauff, and the World No.1 has apologised plenty of times since the interview but even as she turns her attention to the Cincinnati Open, Sabalenka said she was still being judged for that moment.

“There are people who don’t understand the intensity we bring to competition,” she said. “I went to the press very angry with myself and frustrated with the result. It’s painful to see how, in the moment when you say something without thinking clearly, everyone judges you and completely forgets who you are and what you’ve done before.

“I was overexcited and made a complete mistake. It was hard to explain, but I’ve learned a lot from what happened; I think people can understand me better now. I’d like to think people realise that on the court I can scream and be very focused on achieving my goals, but that I’m also a fun, friendly, and easy-going girl who enjoys other things in life.”

After losing in the Wimbledon semi-finals, Sabalenka opted to skip the National Bank Open in Montreal meaning the upcoming Cincinnati tournament will be her first on the hard court ahead of the US Open.

Speaking of the break, Sabalenka said she felt she needed it to mentally refresh.

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“The season has been really intense; it’s impossible to be at my best every week. I realised after Wimbledon that I needed a break, and it’s been great to do so,” the 27-year-old said. “Now I feel much fresher physically and mentally.

“I decided not to play in Canada because I consider it very important to manage the available energy as best as possible. The season is long and exhausting and now a key stretch for me arrives.

“I am defending the title in New York and I love approaching a Grand Slam in that way. I just hope that all the lessons I have learned from the last few Grand Slam tournaments will help me reach my maximum level.”

Read next: Prize money and points earned by Victoria Mboko and Naomi Osaka in Montreal

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Emma Raducanu kicks off her Cincinnati Open with a match against Olga Danilovic but who is the player currently ranked No.43 in the world?

Having most recently reached the third round of the National Bank Open, Raducanu’s 2025 season continues this week as she competes in the Cincinnati Open for the first time.

Entering at the Round of 64, she will face Serbian Olga Danilovic first up.

Who is Olga Danilovic?

In a snapshot, Olga Danilovic is a Serbian tennis player who is currently ranked No.43 in the world.

She was born in Belgrade, where she continues to reside, in January 2001, making her 24 years old. She is left handed and 5′11½ tall.

To date, she has earned $2,482,789 in prize money and has a singles record of 218 wins to 129 defeats. Her best grand slam performance is the fourth round which she reached at the French Open last year and the Australian Open earlier this year.

Meanwhile she has reached the second round of both Wimbledon and the US Open.

She is coached by Alejandro García Cenzano and mentored by Pepo Clavet.

What was Olga Danilovic’s early career like?

Danilovic was a name on everyone’s lips a few years ago after she won her first WTA title in Moscow in 2018 as a 17-year-old, beating fellow teen Anastasia Potapova in the final to become the first woman born in the 21st century to win a WTA tournament.

That came after a stellar junior career which saw her win three junior doubles Grand Slam titles – at the French Open in 2016, and Wimbledon and the US Open in 2017.

Her career stalled after that though with plenty of tough moments and setbacks since winning the title in Moscow.

She lost in Grand Slam qualifying in her first six attempts to reach a major main draw, before finally breaking her duck at the 2021 Australian Open – ultimately progressing to the second round.

But consistently reaching major main draws remained a challenge for her, with just four Grand Slam main draw appearances by the end of 2023.

It also took her some time to come close to matching her Moscow run, with her second WTA final coming at the Swiss Open in July 2022 – where she lost to Petra Martic in the final.

In 2024, she tasted success again with a title at the 2024 Guangzhou Open.

What about her background?

Danilovic is no stranger to the sporting world.

Her father, Sasha Danilovic, was a huge basketball star during his career and was widely considered one of the best European basketballers of the 1990s.

He was part of the Yugoslavian team that claimed a silver medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, while he also played for the Miami Heat for two years.

Meanwhile, her mum, Svetlana, is a high-profile sports reporter back in Serbia.

Olga Danilovic is a Novak Djokovic superfan

Given she is from Serbia, it is no surprise that Novak Djokovic is Danilovic’s tennis hero.

Speaking to OK Tennis in 2017, she said: “I was watching Novak Djokovic on TV, I don’t remember if it was during Roland Garros or Wimbledon but it was during the beginning of summertime. I felt that could be a nice sport so I tried it.

“He was my idol and will be my idol forever. I love him for his game, his attitude, his life, his achievements, everything. I think everyone should have the passion he always shows. I can’t say anything else apart from that he’s the best.”

The pair have since played in doubles tournaments together and will do so again at the upcoming US Open.

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What titles has Olga Danilovic won?

Still at the early stages of her tennis career, Danilovic does not have a huge amount of silverware just yet.

She has won two WTA titles including the 2024 Guangzhou Open and the 2018 Moscow River Cup.

Like Raducanu, she has never played at the Cincinnati Open before this year. Danilovic began her tournament with a straight sets win over Katie Boulter.

Emma Raducanu v Olga Danilovic Head-to-Head

Raducanu and Danilovic have never before played each other meaning the Cincinnati game will be the first time they have met across the court.

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Ben Shelton continues to make a name for himself on the tennis court and after claiming his first ATP Masters 1000 title, the American looks set to be a Grand Slam contender for years to come.

The 22-year-old registerd 16 aces as he beat Karen Khachanov 6-7, 6-4, 7-6 in the Canadian Open final and landed the biggest trophy of his career to date but who raised the rising US star?

Who are Ben Shelton’s parents?

Shelton was born on October 9, 2002 in Atlanta, Georgia to mother Lisa Witsken Shelton and father Bryan Shelton.

He comes from a tennis family with his father Bryan a former professional player. His career highlights include reaching the doubles final of the 1992 French Open and his best singles appearance was the fourth round of Wimbledon in 1994.

Shelton achieved a career-high rank of No. 55 in March 1992 and played over 200 professional singles matches in his career.

After his playing career, he served as the head coach of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets women’s tennis team who won the NCAA Women’s Tennis Championship in 2007. Shelton was in this role when Ben was born.

He then took the coaching job of the Florida Gators men’s tennis team of the University of Florida and in 2021, the team he coached won the NCAA Championship.

Shelton remains the only head coach to have won a national championship in both men’s and women’s NCAA Division I Tennis.

In 2023, Shelton retired from college tennis to coach his son Ben.

As for his mother Lisa, she too was a good tennis player who had a successful junior career, although ultimately did not pursue the career professionally.

Ben is also the nephew of Todd Witsken who was a professional player, reaching a career high rank of No. 43 in November 1989.

In 1988, Witsken made it to the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, losing to Ivan Lendl, and made the fourth round of the US Open in 1996.

At Wimbledon, Witsken made history with the longest men’s singles match when his second-round tie against Greg Holmes lasted 5 hours 28 minutes. That record stood for 21 years until it was broken by John Isner and Nicolas Mahut in 2010.

Shelton’s sister Emma also played tennis at the college level.

What has Ben Shelton said of his parents?

Shelton has often been glowing in his praise of his dad, saying he owed his career to him.

“We are definitely competitive in a lot of things, but I definitely have to owe my success to him,” Shelton said in January, after reaching the Australian Open quarter finals.

“He’s been coaching me since I picked up a racquet, he’s the guy that’s kept my head screwed on when I get a little out of line.

“He’s just been a great role model for me in the tennis world so it’s been amazing for me to have a tennis parent who has been through all the hardships and experiences of being a pro on tour.”

Shelton also praised his dad for his honesty, saying after his Canadian Open victory that his father “doesn’t sugarcoat things.”

“He knows me really well. He doesn’t sugarcoat things, he’s honest. I think I take things well from him because I respect the career he had as a player, I respect him as a coach, obviously, and I respect him as my dad. He respects me in the same way.”

Shelton also praised his mother Lisa, sister Emma and girlfriend Trinity in his speech.

“My whole extended family, especially my mom, my sister, and my girlfriend, they’ve been with me every single day, even though they haven’t been here in Canada. And I’m just really blessed to have the people I have in my life.”

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What was Ben Shelton’s junior career like?

Shelton actually did not start life as a tennis player but instead in American football. Playing as a quarterback, Shelton did not start tennis properly until he was 11 and put the decision to switch sports down to a lack of a growth spurt.

“I saw that my dad was a college coach and knew a lot about the game,” he told the New York Times in 2022. “My chances of going far in the sport and having that resource was definitely going to be helpful.

“The other thing was I grew kind of late. So going into the end of middle school, there was a lot of huge kids in football, and I hadn’t really hit my growth spurt yet. I was maybe a little tired of getting bashed up all the time.”

Having swapped the pigskin for the racket, Shelton won the 2019 USTA Boys 16s Doubles Clay Court tournament before reaching the final of the 2020 USTA Boys 18s Singles Winter Nationals.

At college, he played for the Florida Gators, the team his father used to coach, and helped them win the Southeastern Conference and the 2021 NCAA Championship.

His career progressed well with more titles, including the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-American Championships which he won without dropping a set and his record was 37-5 in his second year of college.

In 2022, he became the NCAA Singles Champion and ended the season as the nation’s top-ranked collegiate player, earning both SEC Player of the Year and National (ITA) Player of the Year honours. That same year, he entered his first ATP event, the Atlanta Open.

He defeated Ramkumar Ramanathan for his first ATP win before losing to John Isner in the second round.

In August, he confirmed he would not be returning to college and instead turned professional, signing with a member of Roger Federer’s TEAM8 management firm.

Read next: How much prize money and how many points did Ben Shelton and Karen Khachanov earn at Canadian Open?

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Victoria Mobko has confirmed her injury status ahead of her title run at the Canadian Open, admitting that it is important to take care of her wrist ahead of the US Open.

The 18-year-old enjoyed a sensational fortnight in Montreal as she became the second-youngest player in the Open Era to defeat four women’s Grand Slam champions in a single tournament, as she beat 2020 Australian Open winner Sofia Kenin, two-time Grand Slam champion Coco Gauff and 2022 Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina to reach the final.

In the showpiece match, she beat former world No 1 and four-time major champion Naomi Osaka 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 to win her maiden WTA Tour singles trophy in front of her home fans.

But there was a moment where Mboko feared that she might not be able to face Osaka in the final as she struggled with a wrist injury after she took a tumble during her semi-final victory over Rybakina.

“Today was such an eventful day actually,” the Canadian said. “I woke up this morning, and I actually had my wrist a little bit swollen from yesterday’s fall, and we quickly went to the hospital actually to do an MRI and an X-ray before I came to the courts to practice today.

“So once we got the green light that nothing too serious was going on in the wrist, I came here and practiced real fast and prepared for my match. So I think today regarding all the events that I did, it feels a lot sweeter (smiling).”

Mboko added: “I was pretty nervous, I could say, especially when I woke up this morning. It was pretty swollen, and it was really stiff and hard to move. So we decided to go to do an MRI and an X-ray just to make sure that nothing too serious was happening, that I could have the possibility of playing.

“When I got the green light, I just had to make sure I saw the physios, and we taped it up properly before the match and a very solid tape job. Yeah, I just did as much as I could to prepare for the match.”

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The Cincinnati Open is next on the calendar with the WTA 1000 event already underway in Ohio in the United States and Mboko and Osaka had been handed performance byes into the second round following their Canada final.

She is due to face 14th seed Diana Schainder Diana Shnaider in her opener, but when asked to clarify her status for the Cincy tournament, Mboko replied: “Yeah, I’m not planning on playing Cincinnati at the moment. I just want to take care of my wrist a little bit right now, and I think it’s just very close and sudden for me to go there and play again I think in, like, two days.

“I think I’m just going to sit out on that one and prepare for the upcoming tournaments.”

If she doesn’t play in Cincinnati, then her next top-level event will be the 2025 US Open where she will be seeded following her surge to No 24 in the WTA Rankings, although she could still accept a late wildcard entry into the Tennis in the Land or Monterrey Open the week before the final Grand Slam of the year.

The post Victoria Mboko gives huge injury and Cincinnati Open update after fairytale Canadian Open run appeared first on Tennis365.

Emma Raducanu says she is ‘excited’ to draw on Francisco Roig’s ‘bank of experience’ as the pair begin their collaboration as player-coach at the upcoming Cincinnati Open.

The pair announced the working relationship after a successful post-Wimbledon trial, with the upcoming Cincinnati Open being their first official event.

Roig had previously worked with 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal from 2005 until the end of 2022, whilst also having helped Matteo Berrettini and Sloane Stephens since leaving the Spaniard.

“First impressions are it’s going really well,” analysed Raducanu, during an interview with the Guardian.

“We did a few days after Wimbledon together and I was really happy with how it went. I’m just so excited to have him on board, so much experience. I’m really looking forward to continuing.

“I think I can definitely improve on a lot of my shots, just the quality of them.

“I think I’ve been good at being creative, scrapping, playing the big points well, but I think the overall quality of my game needs to be better.

“And I see that when I play the really top players where I can’t run and scrap, wait on them to miss. I think that’s where I need to improve.

“And yeah, I’m hoping he can help me with that.”

The Brit had, most recently, been working with Mark Petchey since March – a period marked by a return to the world’s top 35 and a maiden WTA 1000 last eight appearance.

However, Raducanu and Petchey admitted that the former needed a full-time mentor and coach going forward.

Petchey is also a long-time tennis commentator, something which forces him to travel around the world and severely constricts his availability – having been unable to attend all of the British No 1’s tournaments.

“I have some other commitments I can’t get out of,” he said, whilst on the Grand Slam Daily podcast in early July.

“Look, we are very aware she needs a second coach to come in on board, and maybe just one coach, not me as well.

“All I am trying to do here is try to facilitate the best possible environment for Emma to produce the tennis that she can, whether that involves me or doesn’t involve me, it’s really not a question I’m worried about.

“It just means we are trying to find something that is going to be really stable and good for her.”

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Going forward, Raducanu believes that Roig’s deep history with the tennis elite will help her continue to rise in the rankings and collect more consistent results, stating to Sky Sports: “He’s obviously got a bank of experience and I’m very excited to continue working with him and to have him on my side.”

The Brit will face either Serbian No 1 Olga Danilovic or fellow countrywoman Katie Boulter in the second round of the Cincinnati Open, with – potentially – world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka awaiting in the third round.

Raducanu hasn’t participated in the Ohio event since 2022, where she reached the third round and lost to seventh seed Jessica Pegula.

The post Emma Raducanu hoping to draw on new coach’s ‘bank of experience’ after 18-year Rafael Nadal collaboration appeared first on Tennis365.

Few would have predicted a Canadian Open final between Victoria Mboko and Naomi Osaka before this year’s tournament, though it looks set to be a perfect ending to a fascinating tournament.

World No 85 Mboko has set her home tournament alight in 2025, with the 18-year-old surging up the WTA Rankings as a result of her epic run.

The Canadian has beaten three Grand Slam champions during her breakout run, with notable wins over Coco Gauff in round four and then against ninth seed Elena Rybakina in Wednesday’s semi-final.

While Osaka is at a different stage of her career, this run is also important for the Japanese.

The four-time Grand Slam champion is now just one win away from her first tour-level title since the 2021 Australian Open, and is set to leapfrog back into the top 30 of the WTA Rankings after beating Clara Tauson.

Regardless of how Thursday’s final goes, Mboko and Osaka are currently set to immediately head to the US Midwest for the Cincinnati Open.

Action in Ohio is underway on Thursday, and the turnaround will be tight, though both women have now received a key benefit that could aid their quests.

When are Mboko and Osaka first set to play in Cincinnati?

Though Osaka and Mboko will both rise up the WTA Rankings off their back of their Canadian Open success, that does not translate into the Cincinnati draw.

With the two ranked 49th and 85th before the draw, respectively, both stars were unseeded in the event, meaning they would have to play opening-round matches, most likely on Friday.

In contrast, all 32 seeds, which include beaten Canadian Open semi-finalists Rybakina and Tauson, receive an opening-round bye.

However, thanks to reaching the final, the two have now received an extra advantage.

Despite their unseeded status, Osaka and Mboko have received performance byes heading into Cincinnati, meaning they will not compete until the second round of action.

That means that Mboko, on the top half of the draw, may not have to play until Saturday, while Osaka may be able to rest until Sunday due to being on the bottom half.

The special exemptions that both women have received mean that the draw drops from a 96-player event to 94 players, with two fewer players now entering as lucky losers.

Though they have received byes, neither faces an easy draw in Cincinnati.

Mboko is set to take on 14th seed Diana Shnaider, while Osaka will face 20th seed Linda Noskova.

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Will they actually play?

The lengthy and often controversial nature of the extended WTA 1000 events means that players could face playing a huge chunk of matches this summer, ahead of the US Open.

Because of that, it may ultimately come as no surprise to see one or both of Mboko and Osaka pull out of Cincinnati, even with their performances byes.

Mboko addressed the situation earlier this week, admitting that she was unsure if she would play.

“Well, right now, I mean, I’m entered in, but I’m not sure,” she explained.

“I want to see how I’m going to do here first. It’s still up in the air. Maybe, maybe not. I don’t know.”

Osaka has traditionally been very selective when it comes to her schedule, though she may want to strike while the iron’s hot, with her run coming off the back of a challenging season to date.

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Venus Williams’ former coach Rick Macci has revealed the only reason the tennis icon is still playing as he shared his thoughts on her return to the tour.

At the WTA 500 event in Washington last month, Williams stunned Peyton Stearns 6-3, 6-4 in the opening round in what was her first match in 16 months. It was the American’s first victory since she beat Victoria Kudermetova at the 2023 Cincinnati Open almost two years earlier.

At the age of 45, Williams’ win saw her become the second-oldest woman in history to win a match on the WTA Tour after a 47-year-old Martina Navratilova in 2004.

The seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, who was competing as a wildcard, lost 6-2, 6-2 to fifth seed Magdalena Frech in the second round.

The former world No 1 also won a match with partner Hailey Baptiste in the Citi DC Open doubles event before the pair fell to eventual winners Taylor Townsend and Zhang Shuai in the quarter-finals.

Williams, who is ranked 643rd in the world after her triumph over Stearns, has been given a wildcard to play at the 2025 Cincinnati Open. She will face Jessica Bouzas Maneiro in her opening match at the WTA 1000 tournament.

Macci started coaching Venus Williams at his academy in Florida in 1991, when she was 11, and he helped develop her game until 1995. He also coached her sister, Serena.

Speaking exclusively to Tennis365, Macci weighed in on his former student’s remarkable comeback.

“First off, obviously one of my favourite students of all time,” said the American coach.

“Both her and Serena, as you saw from the movie King Richard, both like my daughters. Especially Venus, because she was a little older and I spent more time with her.

“Would I ever have thought, when she didn’t play a tournament for three and a half years and she made that debut in 1994, and beat 57 in the world and almost beat No 1, and she shocked the world by not even playing any junior tournaments or any pro tournament?

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“And then here we are at age 45 and she’s still playing — and she doesn’t even play a tournament for a year! I mean, she kinda went into pro tennis very different and she’s on her way out a little differently.

“Listen, at the end of the day, she just loves to play. I saw the same smile and enthusiasm. She won that match [against Stearns], she’s bouncing up and down like a human pogo stick. The same exact thing I saw at age 14, it was identical.

“But no, it’s great because of one reason: it’s her decision. When people wanna retire or whatever, that’s their decision. And whatever is their decision, in my opinion, is the best decision.

“Even though there are people who are gonna chime in and whatever, at the end of the day, her getting a wildcard and playing… and if you look at it, the fans were in the stands. It’s all about selling tickets and eyeballs. Let’s face it, if [Roger] Federer wanted a wildcard into the Canadian Open after not playing for a while, I think he would have gotten one.”

Asked how long he expects Williams to continue playing, Macci said: “I think as long as she’s enjoying it.

“You gotta understand, she has a different platform. People love Venus, it’s that simple. It’s not even about… she’s not gonna win the tournament and she’s not doing it for any other reason except she loves to compete.

“So, people have been asking me this question for five years and she’s still playing. So, as long as she loves it and she wants to do it, I think it’s great for the game of tennis.”

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