No frills for Serena! Tennis star and her ‘superhero’ catsuit
REMEMBER when one of the big talking points in women’s tennis was the little white dresses and ridiculous frilly knickers? How times change.
New mother Serena Williams appeared on court yesterday in an all-in-one black Nike catsuit with a vivid red belt.
It may have been unusual but it helped her beat her first round opponent at the French Open – her first Grand Slam match since giving birth to daughter Alexis in September.
Miss Williams, 6, was involved in the design of her outfit, saying: ‘It’s my way of being a superhero.’
But it is also practical for the player, who has spoken about having a difficult birth and suffering other pregnancy complications.
She said the catsuit helped her avoid blood clots by improving her circulation and was also symbolic for ‘all the moms out there who had a tough recovery from pregnancy’.
Serena Williams strode out for her Grand slam return dressed like a speed skater, but that was no indication of how she was to move on the historic arena of Court Philippe Chatrier.
Understandably, in what was her first singles match on clay in two years, she did not exactly glide around in her catsuit when tackling Kristyna Pliskova.
The movement will take time to reboot but the champion’s mentality remains intact. Whatever the technical issues, she had the resolve to battle through, winning 7-6, 6-4.
afterwards, there was a lot to catch up on, such as her attendance at the royal wedding.
it is hard to recall her fielding questions with such enthusiasm, or her beaming with such self-confidence.
above all, the hottest topic was her black, figure-hugging outfit with a red band around the waist. she was heavily involved in its design, with the intention for it to be practical and symbolic. With echoes of the recent movie
Black Panther, there was also the practical dimension for someone who has dealt with numerous blood clots and went through a difficult birth before her daughter alexis Olympia finally arrived on september 1.
‘We designed it way before the movie, but still it kind of reminds me of that,’ said the 36-year-old. ‘i feel like a warrior in it, from Wakanda (the fictional setting for the film) maybe. i’m always living in a fantasy world. i always wanted to be a superhero and it’s my way of being a superhero.
‘it was comfortable. i hadn’t tried it on in a long time, over a month, so i was just winging it.
‘i’ve had a lot of problems with blood clots, so there is definitely a little functionality to it. i have been wearing pants in general a lot when i play, so i can keep the blood circulation going. it’s a fun suit, but it’s also so i can play without any problems.’
Williams’ previous high-profile appearance was at the wedding of Prince Harry and meghan markle, where she wore an elegant pink dress.
While playing down suggestions that she had been involved in the drinking game beer pong at the reception, she was clear about the most profound pleasure she had taken from the event.
‘it was really exciting to see so much african-american culture in the wedding and i was really happy that meghan wanted to incorporate that into it,’ she said.
‘it was just a whole cultural shift and change. it was seeing how far african-americans have come.
‘i thought it was an incredibly inspiring and beautiful and really motivating thing. i was so proud of her and so happy for her.’ it seemed almost mundane when she addressed the playing return of a 23-time Grand slam winner, following an absence of 18 months from the big tournaments.
On this evidence, she is unlikely to be lifting the trophy a week on saturday. Clay was always going to be the toughest surface for her to come back on.
she got aced 15 times by the world no 70, the less celebrated of the Pliskova twins, and her movement was often cumbersome.
most telling, however, was her ability to dig in when needed, coming back from 3-0 down in the tiebreak with a run of six points that saw her take it 7-4.
she wobbled when trying to serve out the match, but saved break points when it mattered.
‘i can improve on everything, that’s the great thing,’ said Williams. ‘my speed on my serve isn’t as fast as i normally hit it, but also i didn’t try to hit it that much. i was going more for placement.’
Williams was quicker to perform her post-match duties than used to be the case and she was happy to explain that one as well.
‘i’m semi on time today, two minutes late, because i want to get home and see Olympia, because i have been here all day,’ she said.
‘i breastfed for a really, really long time, so i just had this real connection with my daughter.
‘That is the biggest difference. i’m concerned how that’s going to work out for me, because normally in Grand slams, i do spend a lot of time at the site.
‘she’s so young that i don’t really bring her. This is definitely going to be interesting.’