Serena Williams watched the premiere of Challengers, and she thinks the balls they used were “definitely” not tennis balls. Zendaya starred in the film and revealed what Serena thought of her tennis skills.
The 27-year-old actress didn’t know much about tennis except for the Williams sisters and Roger Federer and trained harder to play like a pro player. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight , Zendaya said that though Venus Williams has not yet given her review, Serena approved of her skills because it was her first time playing the game.
She was like, 'I know there definitely weren't real [tennis] balls. She knows. She's the best of the best. She did say that it was great considering that I had never, never touched a tennis ball before. Zendaya told Entertainment Tonight
Challengers, directed by ‘Call Me By Your Name’ director Luca Guadagnino will hit the theaters on April 26th this year in the United States. In the film, Zendaya is Tashi Donaldson, involved in a twisty love triangle with her husband Art Donaldson (Mike Faist) and Patrick (Josh O’Connor).
Zendaya’s Vogue look inspired by the Williams sisters melts Venus Williams’s heart
Zendaya has embarked on a promotional press tour for Challengers and is making some fashion statements. She paid tribute to Serena Williams and Venus Williams by recreating their iconic 1998 Vogue look photographed by Annie Leibovitz. The actress donned Carolina Herrera’s black-and-white gown, wearing Kim Kimble’s wig, and posed exactly the way the Williams sisters did while sitting on a sofa.
Law Roach, Zendaya’s stylist, shared the picture on Instagram which the actor later reposted. Venus, who watched the premiere took to her Instagram story, giving her reaction to the picture.
My heart melted at this one. Iconic. Venus Williams wrote
Check the post here:
However, Zendaya did not pay tribute to a tennis great for the first time. The ‘Dune’ actress uploaded pictures of her in a sleeveless miniskirt, paying tribute to Althea Gibson, the first Black athlete to win a Grand Slam title in 1956.
Recently, during an interview with Vogue, Zendaya also commended the Williams sisters for playing under immense pressure and reaching where they are, despite being black female tennis players.
While 23-time Grand Slam champion Serena no longer graces the tennis courts, except as a spectator, Venus has not yet hung up her racket. She recently participated at the Miami Open, but couldn’t advance into the Round of 64 after losing to Diana Shnaider. Serena retired after playing a US Open match in 2022.
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