Serena and her sister Venus began training at the Rick Macci Tennis Academy in Florida in 1991, but in 1995, their father Richard (who, at the time, had little tennis coaching or playing experience) decided to pull them out of the academy to coach them himself. Serena credits her father for helping her and Venus build their foundation and establish their careers.
"Everyone who in the past may have said my dad wasn't a good coach, obviously the results spoke for themselves between myself and Venus," she said during a press conference in September 2013, later adding, "He's just so innovative, and I think one of the reasons I'm still playing some of the best tennis at 30 is because he built my game and my sister's game."