Venus Williams "could be sitting with 15-20 Grand Slams" but for one limiting factor, according to her former childhood coach Rick Macci.
There is no doubt that Venus Williams, who is still playing at 43, is among the best female tennis players in history. She's also a champion off the court, with her unwavering voice advocating for women's rights in sports.
In her long and illustrious career, she reached the final at all four Grand Slams at least once. She has won Wimbledon five times and the US Open on two occasions. She is also one-half of a very successful doubles team, along with her sister Serena Williams.
The pair won 14 Grand Slam doubles titles, which is a monumental feat. The two often credit each other for their success. Serena, who is a year younger than Venus, calls her sister an inspiration and one of the few people who has had a major impact on her career.
While Serena emerged as the more successful sibling, Venus is not envious but motivated, as she has spoken in the past. For the 43-year-old, she has always been inspired to emulate what the 23-time Grand Slam champion has achieved.
And now Rick Macci, who knows the Williams sisters better than anybody in the tennis landscape, claimed in an interview with Sportskeeda that Venus could have won double-digit Grand Slams had it not been for Serena's presence in the tennis picture.
"I love VW [Venus Williams]. Both her and Serena [Williams] were like my own daughters. Serena is definitely the GOAT, but we gotta remember, in 31 matches, Serena won 19 and Venus won 12. No one has beaten the greatest player of all time more than Venus Williams. 100% if there was no Serena, who knows Venus could be sitting there with 15-20 Grand Slams."
Venus remains the only player who has beaten Serena Williams at least 10 or more times on the WTA Tour. The same can be said of Serena attaining the same stat over Venus (the overall head-to-head record is 19-12 in favor of the now-retired Serena).
Macci is often praised for shaping the careers of the two most successful siblings in women's tennis. He lauded Venus's impact on tennis as a whole, including the introduction of a quicker and more athletic style.
"People kind of forget, because she is still playing, how good Venus was. Unbelievable."
"In my opinion, she changed the whole landscape of women's tennis. She brought quicker, stronger, faster, more agile, mobile athlete in tennis. Now you see that it's pretty common. But 100%, she would have won so many more Grand Slams, but you can't look in the rearview mirror."