Serena Williams, Duchess Meghan
The tennis star opens up about her close friendship with the duchess
THEY ARE TWO OF THE WORLD’S most famous women, but speaking with The Sunday Project on Sept. 23, tennis ace Serena Williams revealed she and long-time friend Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, were closer than ever despite the pressures of fame. Asked by journalist Lisa Wilkinson whether she and the duchess, 37, regularly give each other advice, the tennis star, 36 – who recently lost the US Open final to Naomi Osaka, 20, after a total of three violations, including one for smashing her racket and another for verbally abusing the umpire – replied, “We were actually just texting each other this morning.” She continued, “We have known each other for a long time, but we really are relying on each other a lot recently.”
In the interview, said to be filmed just days after the US Open controversy on Sept. 10, Williams also opened up about attending Meghan’s wedding to Prince Harry, 34, on May 19 with her tech-entrepreneur husband, Alexis Ohanian, 35, with whom she shares a 1-year-old daughter, Alexis Olympia. “I felt like we were literally watching history,” she said. “I feel like in a few years, when I look back at that moment, it’s just going to be so historic ... something people never forget.”
She added seeing her close friend – who faced her own media storm after her estranged father Thomas Markle and half-sister Samantha Markle gave a string of paid interviews – was the highlight of the occasion. “The whole service was really wonderful and most of all, I just wanted to see my friend be happy, and I think that’s what happened,” she added. •