Inside Pitch: Tennis Sisters Venus & Serena Williams and the Pursuit of Greatness in “King Richard”

 Grace White is a college senior who plays first base for Union University, a DII school in Jackson, Tennessee, and is majoring in Journalism. She is the Sports Editor for the Cardinal & Cream, the school’s student publication, and has a younger sister who plays in the Virginia Unity club organization.

In today’s Inside Pitch, Grace gives her thoughts on the movie King Richard currently showing on HBO Max, which features the story of the legendary tennis-playing Williams sisters and how they became all-time greats in great part thanks to the driving force that is their father, Richard Williams.

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“Now, I haven’t been no great daddy, but I’ve never done nothing but try to protect you,”

That what Richard Williams, father of tennis legends Venus and Serena Williams, says in the award-winning film King Richard.

This movie focuses on the journey of Richard Williams, played by Will Smith, as he tries to help his girls reach their full potential as tennis players while also allowing them to have a childhood.

Obviously, this is a story told through the sport of tennis, but the themes that stuck out to me can be applied to any sport and, honestly, anything that someone wants to be great at—from acting to music to practicing medicine.

It takes a lot of effort to be great.

Richard had a 78-page plan for Venus and Serena’s journey to stardom. Multiple times, he had them out practicing on the local tennis court in the rain. He went from tennis coach to tennis coach, trying to find someone who would train his girls for free because they couldn’t afford it.

Richard grew up in an environment where hardly anyone respected him. He was a young black living in a time when even touching a white person could result in a beating. Listening to his story, it didn’t seem like he had much of a chance, but he didn’t want his story to be his girls’ story, either.

He and his wife spent hours working with Venus and Serena on their tennis skills and also building a family environment where working hard on school studies and also having time to just be a kid were expected.

Not everyone understood why Richard pushed his girls so hard. In fact, the neighbor across the street called the police on the family because she believed that the girls were being abused.

I think this misunderstanding is felt by many families who are trying to help their kids reach their dreams. To be great, you can’t just practice a couple of times a week and make it where you want to go. It takes commitment and time spent every day perfecting your craft.

I believe this is one reason why there are only a small percentage of college athletes and professional athletes in the world. They are the ones who want it so bad that they are willing to do whatever it takes to get there, even if it means practicing in the rain.

The rest of the world may not be able to comprehend why someone would want to do that to themselves. For the most part, they are content with where they are, which is fine. The life taken on by that small percentage of athletes and their families isn’t for everyone. It takes much patience, diligence, and time.

I think there is even a difference between many Division II and Division I athletes… and I’ve seen this in my own life with me and my sister Esther.

I’m a Division II athlete, and I’m not saying that it didn’t take sacrifice and dedication to get to this level. Playing at any collegiate level is a feat; however, the sacrifices I’ve made are nothing compared to those Esther has made to be a Georgia commit and those my dad has made to help her.

I might hit three times a week, but Esther consistently hits five to seven times a week. The majority of her week is spent working out, practicing, and doing schoolwork. She also plays high school basketball, so she has to work that into her schedule.

Before she committed, when she was still going to camps in the winter, she would have to miss basketball practices and games to pursue her first love and to chase the dream she had been hanging onto since she was little.

My dad has taken her to pretty much every single tournament and, if he can’t go, he makes sure she has a way to get there. I can’t imagine how much the expenses have been, or what it’s like to be gone pretty much all summer except for maybe three or four weekends.

I think other people that see what they’re doing feel the same way. I’m not sure they completely understand why my dad and Esther have such a strong commitment to softball, and sometimes neither do I.

There are times during the summer when I wish they would just come home, so that we could go on family vacations to the beach or go to a Braves game. However, I don’t want to take Esther’s dream from her.

I think that being misunderstood is one of the costs of striving to be great. In some form or fashion, all of us probably have that next-door neighbor that doesn’t get it. I know not all are going to accuse you of abuse, but there are probably people that are going to question why you’re gone all the time or why you can’t do various things with them.

It’s just the price you have to pay to be great, and it’s up to each family and each athlete to decide if it’s worth it, just like Richard Williams did.

The film King Richard is streaming now on HBO Max.

— Grace White, Extra Inning Correspondent