HEALTH SCARE ALMOST KILLED SERENA

SERENA WILLIAMS says she lives in fear of blood clots, a condition that surfaced during a harrowing postnatal ordeal in September when she almost died giving birth to her first child. In an op-ed piece she wrote for CNN yesterday, the tennis legend lifted the lid on

her near-death experience while giving birth to daughter, Olympia, after getting blood clots in her lungs. “I almost died after giving birth to my daughter,” Williams said. The 23time Grand Slam champion Williams said she had to have an emergency Cesarean section surgery after her heart rate plummeted dramatically during contractions. The surgery was successful and before she knew it she was holding the newborn. “But what followed just 24 hours after giving birth were six days of uncertainty. Because of my medical history with this problem I live in fear of this situation,” she said. Williams said it was a complicated experience and despite the agonising ups and downs she “considers herself fortunate”. Partly for surviving the ordeal and also because she can still live out her dream on the tennis court once she returns to competitive form.