'She can do major damage': Rick Macci touts Sofia Kenin as Wimbledon dark horse

Rick Macci, former coach of Venus and Serena Williams, has chosen his dark-horse pick for the upcoming Wimbledon tournament. The coach selected an American player who, despite not being among the favorites, he believes can cause more than a few surprises in the event.

American women's tennis is enjoying a great moment on Tour, with Keys winning the Australian Open at the beginning of the year and Gauff recently triumphing at Roland Garros. Both defeated world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in their respective finals and will be two names to watch at the All England Club.

Additionally, the high level of Jessica Pegula (No. 4) and the consistency of Emma Navarro (No. 10) must be considered. With four players in the top 10, Americans have consistently had representatives in the final stages of the most important tournaments of the season.

Coach Rick Macci is one who closely knows the development of American tennis players, with a long trajectory as a USTA coach, and considering that his former students include the Williams sisters and Jennifer Capriati, as well as other legends of recent tennis, such as Andy Roddick, Maria Sharapova, and Mary Pierce.

With extensive experience coaching great players, Macci chose one of his former proteges as a name to watch at SW19: "One of my favorite students of all time Sonya Kenin the scariest little creature I ever taught is a rough out on grass," he posted on his X account. "She can do major damage at Wimby as her game and dropper is made for the Lawn. My wildcard is Sonya and if she gets a good draw she goes from pretender to contender."

Kenin currently holds the world No. 29 spot in the WTA rankings and has shown more consistency in major tournaments over the last year. She won a Grand Slam title back in the 2020 Australian Open and later reached the Roland Garros final (losing to Iga Świątek).

The 26-year-old American caused a significant upset at Wimbledon 2023 by defeating 7th seed Coco Gauff in her debut. A year earlier, in 2024, she unfortunately exited in the first round after falling to the then-world No. 1, Iga Swiatek.