Williams, widely regarded as the best female tennis player ever, likely played her last match earlier this month.
Serena Williams had a perfectly good explanation for why she didn't want her 5-year-old daughter, Olympia, attending her tennis matches. And it was mainly because the GOAT would suddenly transform into mom mode on the court.
In a preview clip of her appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show, the tennis great says bringing her daughter to her tennis matches was an added distraction, but in the sweetest way. Host Drew Barrymore, at first, asks her if it's true she didn't want Olympia to attend matches because she was afraid of losing her killer instinct.
"Well, I just was worried I’d get distracted because I would be like, 'Wait, is she drinking? Is she doing this?' She came to a match once, like super brief, and I was like, ‘Oh my god, is she wearing sun cream?’ It’s nuts. So, I would get stressed out and be like, ‘Wait a minute, oh my goodness, I’ve got to serve. This makes no sense.’ So yeah, I’ve never really had her at matches until this summer actually."
And what an adorable moment it was. Olympia, with her father and Serena's husband, Alexis Ohanian, in tow, cheered from the stands while twinning (again!) with her mom in a matching outfit and a head full of familiar white beads. Tennis fans will recall Williams had the same braided style when she first won the U.S. Open in 1999.
"Apparently she was saying like, ‘Go Momma, I’m so proud of you,’ and I was like, ‘What?’" Williams gushes. "So then she comes back after I had lost in Cincinnati, she came back and she’s like, ‘It’s OK, Momma, you just have to do what you feel,’ and I literally wanted to cry it was like, ‘Do what you feel. Do what your heart tells you.’ It was the sweetest thing ever.
Over the weekend, Williams' sister, Venus, spoke to ET's Deidre Behar about being the "cool aunt."
"I'm happy I get to be a part of it," she said. "And as an aunt we only get to do the fun stuff, so sign me up!"
Earlier this month, Williams lost to Ajla Tomljanović in the third round of the U.S. Open in what likely marked the final match in her illustrious career. After the match, Williams, widely considered the greatest player to ever play tennis, addressed whether she'd return to the sport.
"I mean, I'm literally playing my way into this and getting better," she said. "I don't think so but you never know. I don't know."
As for how she spent her first weekend away from the competitive tennis circuit, Williams revealed she caught up on some much needed sleep.
Watch Williams' full interview on The Drew Barrymore Show, which airs Wednesday on CBS.
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