Alycia Parks shares the advice she received from Serena Williams ahead of the Madrid Open

Alycia Parks started her Madrid Open campaign with a strong performance, taking down Elisabetta Cocciaretto in straight sets. It’s another positive result in what’s been a promising start to 2026 for the American.

Having already beaten Alexandra Eala, Maria Sakkari and Diana Schnaider this year, Parks has climbed back into the top 100 of the WTA rankings.

She also made it to the round of 16 in Stuttgart and now has a chance to put together another good run on clay in Madrid. While she’s not always felt at home on the surface, she shared some advice she got from Serena Williams that helped her adjust.

Serena Williams has passed down clay court wisdom to Alycia Parks

Parks has spent some time training with Serena Williams in the US, which has only fuelled more speculation about a possible return for the 23-time Grand Slam winner.

During their sessions, Williams passed along some advice on how to handle clay courts, something Parks said she’s been working into her game.

Speaking after her win over Cocciaretto, Parks shared: “She told me that you just can’t hit everything flat on clay, so that’s what I’ve learned and what I’m putting into my matches now.

“So she’s definitely helping me a lot out there! It’s coming together. You just have to build the point. I have to tell myself that it’s not going to be serve plus one all the time.

“I just tell myself to relax out there, that it’s not going to be three shots. That’s not how you’re going to play on clay, so that’s what I’ve been working on.”

Parks lost in the first round in Linz but picked up three wins in Stuttgart including those from qualifying matches.

“I was struggling a little bit in Linz,” she said. “But I went to Stuttgart and asked myself: ‘How do I put points together on clay?’ So I’ve been watching a lot of tennis on this surface, and it’s been getting me through matches.”

Parks will face Ann Li next as she aims for another strong run at an event where she reached the third round back in 2023 with wins over Victoria Azarenka and Anna Karolína Schmiedlová.

How Alycia Parks has performed in 2026 so far

Parks has put together a decent start to the year, but she’s still working toward the level many have expected from her.

After picking up a win in Madrid, she sits at 14-12 for the season across her first 13 tournaments.

Her best showing of the year came at the Ostrava Open, where she reached the quarter-finals with back-to-back wins.

Parks is yet to string together more than two main draw wins in a single event, so there’s still room for growth as the season goes on.

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