"Monica Seles was more shy than Steffi Graf even... and very paranoid" - Serena Williams' ex-coach challenges co-host's take on Seles' 'bubbly' nature
Serena Williams' former Rennae Stubbs recently challenged her podcast co-host, journalist Caitlin Thompson's comments about Monica Seles' personality, drawing a comparison to her arch-rival Steffi Graf. Thompson, who is the co-founder of Racquet magazine, clarified that she was referring to Seles' nature before the tragic stabbing incident that derailed her career.
Seles established herself as one of the greatest tennis prodigies between 1990 and 1993, winning eight Grand Slam titles before turning 20. However, her rise was cut short when an obsessive fan of Graf, Gunter Parche, stabbed her between the shoulder blades during her quarterfinal clash at the 1993 Citizen Cup in Hamburg, Germany.
Although the former World No. 1 triumphed at the 1996 Australian Open after spending two years on the sidelines following the attack, she struggled to regain her previous form and ultimately retired with nine Major titles. Caitlin Thompson has expressed her belief that, much like her performance, Seles' personality also underwent a change after the stabbing incident.
During the latest episode of the Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, Thompson discussed her magazine's coverage of Monica Seles, sharing an insight into the former World No. 1's "funny" and "bubbly" personality before she experienced the "worst day of her life."
"Can we just talk about Monica Seles for a second? We published, in this last issue of the magazine, a very glowing remembrance of Monica Seles pre-worst day of her life and pre the time that ended up being what defined her life and career," Thompson said.
"And it was such a fun story because it reminded people that she was not just crushing everyone on court, winning something like seven out of eight Slams, on a tear for a three-year period, but also she was funny, she was bubbly, she was into Madonna, she was on late shows," she added.
However, Rennae Stubbs protested against Thompson's characterization, arguing that Seles was even more shy than Steffi Graf. The Australian highlighted that the nine-time Grand Slam champion would often wear wigs due to her "paranoia" about being out in public.
Stubbs also pointed out the similarities between Seles and Graf, emphasizing that they both disliked the spotlight and the media attention.
"Woah! Woah! Woah! Time out here. I would say Monica was, arguably maybe second to… no, more shy than Steffi even. It was interesting because they were both very similar, like did not like the spotlight, did not like media attention," Stubbs said.
"Monica used to wear a wig when she was younger to go out in public because she didn’t want to be recognised and she was very paranoid about being out in public. So the fact that she went onto those TV shows, probably Steffi did as well, top players usually get on those shows," she added.
"We saw a bubbly version of Monica Seles that was innocent, fun-loving... that was part of her legacy as well" - Caitlin Thompson
Continuing the debate, Caitlin Thompson contended that a "bubbly" and "fun-loving" version of Monica Seles existed and should be remembered as part of her legacy.
"My point is we saw a bubbly version of her (Monica Seles) that was innocent, fun-loving and maybe yes, she was shy," Thompson said.
"I think she was always a little paranoid about stuff," Stubbs responded.
"Maybe but I guess the point I’m trying to make, by the woman who interviewed her 40 times, is that let’s remember that was part of her legacy as well," Caitlin Thompson argued.
Serena Williams' ex-coach Rennae Stubbs conceded the point, recalling how Seles had thrown roses into the crowd before her third-round match against Zina Garrison at the 1989 French Open.
"Oh have you seen anyone else walk out into Roland Garros throwing roses into the crowd? I don’t think so," she said.
After some confusion about whether it was Monica Seles or Martina Hingis who had thrown the flowers, Thompson and Stubbs quickly agreed that it couldn't have been Hingis, joking that the Swiss were more likely to throw her racket into the crowd.
"Hingis would never," Thompson said.
"Hingis would throw a racket into the crowd," Stubbs joked.
Interestingly, Seles was once forced to endure "raucous catcalls and boos" from the crowd during her clash against Hingis in the semifinals of the 2000 Miami Open. Suffering a 6-0, 6-0 loss, Seles described the encounter as the "worst defeat of her career."