"I tried to change what was helping me win"

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When Alycia Parks finished the 2022 season in the top 75 worldwide, it was impossible not to get excited about what was to come. American, charismatic, powerful to lead, and only 21 years old. Despite needing some seasoning and experience in the elite, she had absolutely everything. However, in 2023, she ended the season ten positions lower, and people frowned. That regressive trend almost repeated itself in 2024, where a title 24 hours ago prevented her from falling out of the top 100.

The title came at the WTA 125K in Angers, a territory she had conquered a couple of seasons ago, reaffirming how well she performs competing indoors. The third trophy of the season (Gaiba, Warsaw, Angers), all three in the same category but each on a different surface. So, why all the criticism of her season? More than of her season, to what happened between her third-round defeat at the Australian Open – her best performance by far – and the following four months. In total, there were 12 consecutive defeats that left the American lost and directionless. But what exactly happened?

"It was a bit of a tough stage; I tried to change what was helping me win, which was obviously a wrong decision," Parks reveals in an interview on the CLAY Magazine portal. "I came across the wrong answers, so I had to go back to basics and try to rebuild my winning streak," adds the American, acknowledging her mistake of changing a style that had been completely defined since she was a child.

"I think I did well at the Australian Open; I lost in the third round against Coco Gauff, but then I fell into a pattern of many consecutive defeats, mainly due to distractions. Again, I had to look back and retrieve what I had done before, keeping things simpler and calling my father back to coach me. The reality is that I needed to have him closer to me," emphasizes the woman who will ultimately finish the season in the #84 position in the women's ranking.

What has not changed is the level of inspiration she always feels whenever she thinks of the greatest, her beloved Serena Williams. She is not only the heroine she tries to emulate; now she is also someone nearby to ask for advice when needed. "Serena is a great inspiration to me; she helps me a lot, she always has. I try to talk to her whenever I can, whenever I have a question, I don't hesitate to turn to her. Fortunately, she always gives me good advice. The best advice she gave me was to go back to what I was doing when I was winning, as well as to reconnect with the person who knows me best: my father," recalls Alycia with emotion.

SOMETHING MORE IMPORTANT THAN TENNIS

In good times and bad, if there's one thing Parks is clear about, it's what the most important factor in her life is, what allows her to get up every morning and head to the court to do what she loves most. Can you imagine it? It may sound strange because there are few tennis players who announce so openly and unapologetically their faith in God, but we come across a tremendously religious woman, someone with the ability to put any sporting result into perspective. In the end, tennis is secondary.

"I always put God before everything; He comes first, because at the end of the day, tennis is just a sport. People forget to thank God every day upon waking up, so for me, tennis is a luxury. Before each match, even when I wake up in the morning, the first thing I do before starting the day is pray," concludes the Atlanta native, whom we will again expect the best from in 2025.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, “Traté de cambiar lo que me estaba ayudando a ganar”