Serena Williams Was 'No Longer Able to Keep Up' With WTA Progress Says Swiatek's Former Coach

| by Alex Waite

Iga Swiatek's former coach, Piotr Sierzputowski, believes the quality of the WTA has developed rapidly since Serena Williams first started her career in 1995.

Sierzputowski worked with WTA world number one Swiatek for a successful six-year spell before the duo split in 2022. During their partnership, Swiatek won several high-profile titles, including the French Open, and Sierzputowski also won WTA Coach of the Year in 2020 for his support of the Polish player.

Sierzputowski has been involved in the women's game since 2016 and is now coaching another WTA player, Shelby Rogers. However, when speaking to the Polish news outlet Sport.pl, the coach said he has seen significant differences in the quality of WTA players today compared to 30-40 years ago.

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"Recently I watched a video from the 80s, a match of stars from that time. Well, damn, after all, the ball flew in exchanges so that they had time to think about five options for the next play. The balls were different then, the rackets were different, the courts were different, they moved differently."

Piotr Sierzputowski told Sport.pl

After starting her career in 1995, Serena Williams became one of the most coveted WTA stars ever, winning 14 career Grand Slams before she eventually retired at the 2022 US Open.

As part of his observations on the change in women's tennis, Sierzputowski praised the way Williams adapted her game to remain competitive for so long. But he also believes the former world number one eventually declined in the context of stronger, more advanced modern players.

"Twenty years ago, the intensity level was much lower than it is today. Serena Williams played no worse at 35 than she did at 20. She even developed in tennis, but over the years she was no longer able to keep up with the new, strong girls. The level has really gone up."

"Because our knowledge has gone up. Coaches, physical preparation specialists and all people working in tennis players' staffs. Look at men's tennis: there's Djokovic, there's Alcaraz. They two are the best. But behind them are 30 guys on a very similar level,"

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