The tennis season has wrapped up, leaving players with plenty to reflect on—whether it’s the thrill of victory or the sting of missed opportunities. For Alycia Parks, it’s been a rollercoaster year, filled with highs and some tough lows. The talented star recently opened up about how one pivotal loss impacted her focus and momentum for the rest of the season. And in a surprising twist, this crucial match has a Coco Gauff connection that’s turning heads!

The American sensation is fresh off a victory from a challenger event at Angers where she proved her mettle immensely. However, her season had been quite troublesome with a win-loss ratio of 37-31. Now, as she looks back at her season, she believes that her year was “a bit rocky,” and her struggles started to begin ever since she lost to Coco Gauff at the Australian Open. 

Speaking in an interview with Clay Magazine, Parks said, “I think I did well at the Australian Open; I lost in the third round against Coco Gauff, but then I fell into a pattern of many consecutive defeats, mainly due to distractions.” Continuing further, she highlighted that she had to start from scratch and seek help from her father. “Again, I had to look back and retrieve what I had done before, keeping things simpler and calling my father back to coach me. The reality is that I needed to have him closer to me,” she added. Her statements, meanwhile, cannot be ignored completely. 

While Alycia Parks did clinch some remarkable victories in Challenger tournaments, she failed to prove her mettle at bigger stages. She was whisked out in the qualifier rounds of several important tournaments like the French Open, US Open, and the Wuhan Open. In other tournaments where she managed to enter the main draw, she could not continue her momentum and lost in the initial rounds like in the first round of Wimbledon. She also made some changes to her team but it did not help her much. 

Remember, Parks reached out to Sascha Bajin, former coach of Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka in March this year aspiring to regain her form. However, it lasted for only a couple of tournaments. Later, Bajin explained that they didn’t share similar perspectives. “She’s a super sweet girl off court, but we couldn’t have the same vision when it comes to work,” said the coach. But amidst the challenging times, there was one person who continued to support Parks and it’s none other than Serena Williams. 

“Helps me a lot” – Alycia Parks reveals true sentiments for Serena Williams

During difficult situations, everything an athlete desires is some support and guidance. The situation for Alycia Parks was no different. And interestingly, she found the guidance of tennis great Serena Williams who shared some remarkable advice, helping the player realize her potential and guiding her to return to her dominant form. 

Speaking about this in the same interview, Parks said, “Serena is a big inspiration, she helps me a lot. I talk to her here and there. When I have a question I ask her and she always gives me a good answer.” Detailing the bond further, Parks added, “I think the biggest thing she told me was ‘go back to what you were doing when you were winning’ and then she was saying obviously your parents know you better than anyone else and then she told me to go back to my dad, so that’s what I did.”

Now, as she gears up for the next season, it would be interesting to see if this advice would help her overcome the challenges and if Alycia Parks manages to prove her mettle yet again.