The 2012 French Open proved to be a disastrous campaign for Serena Williams. Seeded fifth, the American legend lost in the opening round of the tournament against Virginie Razzano. It was Serena’s maiden first-round exit at a Grand Slam tournament in her career.

The former World Number 1 wore a dejected look in the aftermath of her shock exit. Serena realized that she needed to shake things up to challenge for the Wimbledon title that year. Subsequently, she went to Patrick Mouratoglou’s academy to train. Serena struck an instant bond with the French coach, who later went on to join Serena’s coaching staff. The 40-year-old revealed how Patrick’s coaching methods were similar to her father, Richard Williams.

Serena Williams compares her father to her former coach

During a post-match press conference at the Australian Open, the 23-time Grand Slam champion revealed how Patrick’s coaching methods were similar to her father’s methods. Talking about this, she said, “When I met Patrick, I wasn’t looking for a new coach, I was just looking for some advice and I loved what he said and he had a very similar coaching style to my dad and he didn’t try to change my game.”

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Further, she went on to add, “He just enhanced things that already knew and that I just wasn’t doing and sometimes you have to hear from a different individual, things that you may have heard a million times and sometimes just clicks differently.”

Serena and Mouratoglou end their partnership

Earlier this year, Mouratoglou ended his successful coaching stint with the American legend. Subsequently, he joined Simona Halep’s team. The latter is back to her best with the guidance from Mouratoglou, reaching the semifinals of the ongoing Wimbledon Championships.

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Meanwhile, Serena lost in the opening round of the grass-court Grand Slam tournament against France’s Harmony Tan. It was Serena’s first singles match after a year.