Taylor Townsend has been making big moves at the 2025 US Open. The world No. 1 doubles player has produced some strong singles performances, reaching the fourth round for the first time since 2019. Behind her success stands her coach, John Williams.
Meet John Williams – The Fitness Expert Who Became Taylor Townsend’s Coach
Williams is currently coaching Townsend at the US Open. The 52-year-old coach has been working with Townsend since 2021 and has guided her through two Grand Slam doubles victories – Wimbledon 2024 and Australian Open 2025..
Through his career, Williams has coached over 1,500 athletes, including 12 Olympians and 8 champions. His tennis coaching started with Grace Min, a junior US Open champion. He then worked with Donald Young, traveling to Grand Slams and ATP Masters events in 2015.
What sets Williams apart is his approach. He focuses on psychology and self-mastery in training. He wrote a book called “The Champions Code: 5 Attributes of Winners” that explains his coaching philosophy.
After her third-round match against Mirra Andreeva, Townsend thanked her coach, saying, “I want to dedicate this win to my coach, we’ve been blood, sweat and tears.”
Taylor Townsend after beating Mirra Andreeva at US Open
“God damn this feels good. Welcome to the show… I wanna dedicate this win to my coach.. also to my son. He’ll be here tomorrow. He told his teachers at school ‘I’m going to New York to see my mom”
pic.twitter.com/KOnMGApphO— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 30, 2025
On an episode of Functional Tennis Podcast, Williams praised Townsend’s disciplined work ethic and why he started working with her. He said, “She’ll do anything I ask her to do at pretty much any time. I could call her up at 2:00 in the morning, wake her up from a great night’s sleep and say, ‘We need to go downstairs and do some cardio.’ And she’ll say, ‘Okay, give me 20 minutes,'” calling it the dedication required to be the best version of yourself.
Townsend’s 2025 US Open Campaign
Townsend is having her best US Open in singles since 2019. She beat fifth seed Mirra Andreeva 7-5, 6-2 to reach the fourth round. This was her third career win over a top-10 player.
In doubles, Townsend and partner Kateřina Siniaková are also doing well. As the current world No. 1 in doubles, she became the first mother to reach this ranking in July 2025. Townsend won two major doubles titles in the past year and made history as the 50th woman to claim the doubles No. 1 spot.
Her next singles match is against Barbora Krejčíková on Sunday, August 31, with her son Adyn cheering from the stands. This will be her second meeting with the 2024 Wimbledon Champion- Krejčíková won their only previous match in 2017.
