Amidst the echoes of King Richard’s legacy, Serena Williams‘ father has found himself ensnared by the shadows of illness and health struggles. He has subtly faded from the public eye over the last few years as he deals with the physical consequences of getting older. Every day is a new obstacle, a new reminder of the unrelenting march of mortality.

However, the most recent chapter in this saga unveils a darker narrative—a battle against an illness that threatens to eclipse the vibrant spirit that once propelled him to greatness. Richard Williams had a stroke when he was 74, and he was reportedly experiencing memory loss at that time.

Since then, his everyday life has been greatly affected making it impossible for him to remember some memories. Subsequently, till today, the 23-time Grand Slam Champion’s father has suffered three strokes, among which the first one came when Serena won Wimbledon in 2016 and equated Steffi Graf’s Grand Slam tally.

Following that, when the popular documentary was released on King Richard, Will Smith – who starred in the film – revealed how Richard was suffering from irreparable “brain damage” and “dementia.” However, in the same year, the divorce battle with his wife, Lakeisha Williams, was going on. His daughter, Sabrina, accused her father of lying about his health condition, as the court documents claimed that he was totally incapable of giving his own testimony.

She said in an interview with The Sun, “Wow, that doesn’t sound like someone who’s had two strokes come on, he doesn’t even have dementia! I’m done with playing like that. He needs to stop playing all the time.” In addition, the 84-year-old had a secret ‘brain surgery’ in Miami in between all the chaos of fighting for his Florida house with his wife, where Serena and Venus grew up.

Moreover, just before undergoing the brain surgery, he was in a coma, making his health condition even more critical. But the surgery, at the same time, rescued him and became a life-saving procedure. Subsequently, last year, Richard Williams himself talked about his condition and how he was not able to even walk around after all the health fiasco.

Serena Williams’ father speaks about his health 

The former tennis coach, who has struggled with communication during his recuperation, spoke with The Sun last year about his ongoing health issues. After having major strokes, he mentioned how he is barely able to do anything.

He stated, “I tried to ride the bicycle, I couldn’t drive a car, I couldn’t drive a golf cart. I had to go and do riding. I had to do everything. I had to [learn] to walk correctly, run correctly, hit the golf ball correctly. But if [use] your mind, you have to hope a great deal.” However, while his health is stable now, every now and then, his eldest daughter takes time out to spend time with his ailing father.