Mouratoglou Fires Warning Shot to Rivals as Serena Williams Prepares for 24th Major at Australian Open 2021

Published 01/22/2021, 8:00 AM EST

Celebrated tennis mentor and Serena Williams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou has teased a tempting appetizer of what fans can expect from the American player in the upcoming Australian Open.

Taking to Instagram, Mouratoglou, nicknamed ‘The Coach’, shared a moment from Serena’s encounter with Chinese Q Wang at the Australian Open last year, with the message which seemed to be a warning to detractors not to write off her chances of clinching a historic 24th Grand Slam title at the Melbourne Park this year.

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A post shared by THE COACH (@patrickmouratoglou)

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Serena Williams to resume the quest for 24th Grand Slam title at Australian Open

The footage that Mouratoglou has shared is of a glorious 24-shot rally, with the 39-year-old eventually coming out on the winning side of it.

It aptly illustrates the incredible stamina of the 39-year-old American in the way she tries to push the Chinese player back and make her play around the court for 23 shots before striking the knockout punch with a sumptuous forehand cross-court winner.

The post is tagged with a message that says, “Great hustle, @serenawilliams. Count the number of shots and tell me if you are ready for that”.

The match against the Chinese player, however, ended in defeat for the American, but not before she took her opponent to a deciding set after winning the second. The eventual scoreline read 6-4, 6-7, 7-5 in favor of the 34th-ranked Chinese.

Serena bidding to end a three-year trophy drought in Grand Slams at Melbourne Park

Mouratoglou’s professional relationship with Serena, which, incidentally, is into its ninth year, has produced a whopping 10 Grand Slam titles.

However, the American hasn’t succeeded in adding to her Major trophies since lifting the Australian Open following a win over sister Venus Williams in 2017. The championship win that year took her past one-time rival Steffi Graf’s career Grand Slam tally of 22.

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However, she has struggled for that elusive 24th title, which will put her on par with the legendary Margaret Court’s eye-popping haul of 24 Grand Slam trophies, which are the most across the men’s and women’s fields of the game.

The extended trophy-less run in Grand Slams has resulted in a feverish chatter around her future in the game.

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However, the 39-year-old has shown no signs of slowing down and will resume her quest for the elusive 24th title at Melbourne Park this year.

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Priyabrata Chowdhury is a tennis author for EssentiallySports. He has been a print journalist for a decade, producing news pages for leading national dailies such as the Hindustan Times and The New Indian Express. His passion for sports eventually drove him to tennis writing.

Mouratoglou Fires Warning Shot to Rivals as Serena Williams Prepares for 24th Major at Australian Open 2021

Serena Williams to resume the quest for 24th Grand Slam title at Australian Open

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