A major part of any sportsperson’s success hinges on the guidance and mentorship of their coaches. But what could be better than having a coach you’ve known since childhood, and grew up practicing with? This is precisely the situation for American tennis star Danielle Collins, who has recently teamed up with an old friend as her new ‘coach’, Ryan Harrison. 

Ryan is a former professional tennis player who represented America at the ATP Tour Circuit. Born on May 07, 1992, Harrison reached a career-high ranking of 40 in 2017, when he clinched his first ATP title in the Memphis Open. Having debuted in 2007, Harrison’s initial journey was nothing short of exceptional. His 2008 victory against Pablo Cuevas at age 15 made him the youngest player to win a tour-level match since Rafael Nadal in 2002. However, his growth was short-lived.

The American broke through onto the ATP level by the age of 20. However, he fell out of the top 100 for several years. His comeback eventually began in 2016 after a strong second half of the season. This included multiple wins over opponents ranked in the top 20 and his first career appearance in the round of 32 at a Grand Slam, in the US Open. But more than his singles success, Harrison’s achievements linger around his doubles journey.

The now-32-year-old reached a career-high ATP Doubles Ranking of 16 in 2017. It was the same year when he won the Roland Garros doubles title with his Michael Venus. He also qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals with Venus in 2017 and reached the semi-finals in London. Meanwhile, Harrison, who hung up his racquets in January this year, is not new to Danielle Collins. 

The American began playing tennis at age 2 and was coached by his father, Pat Harrison. Interestingly, he had trained with Collins at IMG Academy as a teenager and his father Pat was her coach as well. Both Collins and Harrison have spoken highly of each other in the past. In an interview that featured on ESPN, Harrison revealed the winning spirit of Collins. “Danielle just always had that mentality that she was going to go in and she was going to be one of the best in the nation in college,” he said. Now Collins herself has expressed her joy practicing with her old friend.

Speaking to Tennis Channel, Collins revealed her close association with Harrison. “Ryan and I have known each other forever, um, the Harrisons are basically like family to me. His dad has worked with me since I was 15.” Continuing further, she said,  “It’s nice having a friend travel with me on tour and someone I know very well. Ryan understands how my brain works and I think we’re similar in a lot of ways.”  Meanwhile, Collins reveals an interesting challenge she took with Harrison.

‘Will shave eyebrows..’ Danielle Collins reveals humorous fact about her friendly rivalry with Harrison

Danielle Collins won her first match against Clara Tauson in straight sets 6-3, 7(7)-6(4). Her sensational match once again revealed how fierce of a player she had been, the consequences of which were faced by even Ryan Harrison.

Speaking in the same interview, the WTA star revealed that Harrison once challenged her, that if she beat him, he would shave off his eyebrows. However, the hosts were quick to observe that Harrison still had his eyebrows intact. Responding to this Collins revealed that Harrison pounced back from 9-0 in the game to ultimately win against her. 

This challenge not only highlights the competitive spirit of Harrison but also reveals how helpful he can be to Collins amid her grand slam run. It will be interesting to see if the tennis star can do something exceptional and win her first slam in the last season of her career.