Serena Williams has resisted speaking publicly about her retirement from tennis and the finality it brings, but she has another reason to stay away from the sport in the near future.
On Monday night, during the costume-themed Met Gala glitz, Williams announced both on the red carpet and on social media that she’s pregnant with her second child.
She attended the event alongside her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. said in an Instagram post “I was so excited when Anna Wintour invited the three of us to the Met Gala,” she said.
On the red carpet prior to the event, Ohanian placed his hand on his wife’s belly in a gesture indicative of her pregnancy.
Williams wasn’t the only pregnant celebrity at the gala. In a white Valentino gown on Monday night, singer Rihanna announced her pregnancy during her halftime performance at the Super Bowl in February.
Williams and Ohanian welcomed their first child, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr., in 2017.
She returned to tennis, reaching four more Grand Slam finals in 2018 and 2019, but not adding to her total of 23 Grand Slam singles titles.
In August, Williams announced she would be leaving tennis after the US Open. she said “not retired” And it’s “very likely” that she’ll be back at some point. on retirement list.
in a vogue essay In her retirement, she wrote: If I had the chance, I might be more of a Tom Brady. NFL star Brady, his quarterback, played until age 45 and announced his retirement in February.
Williams, 41, has won 23 Grand Slam singles events since 1999 when she was 17. 7 Australian Open, 3 French Open, 7 Wimbledon, 6 US Open. In total, he’s one short of his record of 24 set by Margaret his court, but about half of the court’s wins are in his pre-1968 amateur days.