‘My catsuit not a fashion gimmick’
functional” in a nod to the severe health problems she suffered after giving birth to daughter Alexis Olympia in September.
“I call it like my Wakanda-inspired cat suit. It’s really fun,” she said in reference to the fictional African nation which features in the Marvel comics and was the centrepiece of the Black Panther movie blockbuster. I feel like a warrior princess. I always wanted to be a super hero.”
But having revealed that she suffered from blood clotting, which required life-saving surgery after her daughter’s birth, she says the suit should not be dismissed as just another fashion gimmick. “God, I don’t know how many blood clots I have had in the past 12 months. So the suit has definitely a little functionality to it.
“I have been wearing pants in general a lot when I play so I can keep, you know, the blood circulation going. It’s a fun suit, but it’s also functional so I can be able to play without any problems.”
Williams, bidding to go level with Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 majors, was watched on Court Philippe Chatrier by husband Alexis Ohanian, the Reddit founder.
But Olympia was not present, leaving Serena to admit that the urge to get home to see her daughter was giving her a fresh perspective on a career which has spanned three decades.
Being a tennis-playing mother is also radically different from being a tennis-playing dad on the tour. “Well, first and foremost, you have to get your core back, which is hard, because it literally spreads when you have a baby.
“That’s difficult. And just coming back from the physical impact of having a baby, at my age is never easy. I actually breast fed for a really, really, really long time, and so I just had this real connection with my daughter.”
“But I’m a super hands-on mom. Maybe too much!”
Williams, the 2002, 2013 and 2015 champion in Paris, was on Tuesday playing a claycourt match for the first time since she finished runner-up to Garbine Muguruza in the 2016 final in Paris. “I missed Roland Garros so much, I missed the battle.
“I couldn’t play last year. It’s been two years since I played here. It wasn’t easy but I have been training really hard. I feel good and just so happy to be back here.”