Tennis legend Serena Williams mentioned the Duchess in a new video in which she broke down her most famous 22 looks. One of the outfits the 23-time Grand Slams champion commented on was the pink ensemble she donned on May 19 2018 to attend the wedding of Meghan and Prince Harry at St George’s Chapel in Windsor.
Speaking about her style for the day in a video for Vogue, the tennis star called the Duchess her “friend.”
She said: “I love this image, this is at the Royal Wedding, when my friend Meghan married Harry.
“Again another Versace look, and my jewels were from Bulgari, which were just stunning, and I have a fascinator on.
“But what’s so iconic about this is that I was like ‘Royal Wedding? I am definitely wearing braids’.
“So all night, it was two or three girls braiding my hair and I was so tired, I was like I am going to sleep.
“So I lied down and they just kept braiding until the morning, and they finally finished.
“It was a very long process but it was so worth it.”
Sharing this clip on Twitter, Writer Chris Spargo wrote: “Serena Williams confirms she is in fact friends with Meghan Markle.”
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In a second tweet, he added: “Multiple sources told me back in 2017 that Meghan Markle asked her famous friends to downplay their friendship in interviews, which would explain Serena Williams’ response to Vanity Fair.
“Williams would later host Markle’s baby shower, so there is no denying the two were close.”
Mr Spargo’s tweets appear to be referring to claims appeared in Tom Bower’s latest book, titled Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the War Between the Windsors, regarding the real bond between Williams and the Duchess.
Mr Bower reported in his blistering biography of Meghan how Vanity Fair writer Sam Kashner interviewed the Duchess for the magazine’s September issue in 2017.
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After speaking with the writer in her house in Toronto, Meghan, Mr Bower claimed, gave him a list of her friends to contact for his piece, which included the tennis star.
However, Mr Bower claimed, upon being contacted by Mr Kashner Williams denied she was a friend of the Duchess.
Mr Bower wrote in his book: “Over the next few days he called those who Meghan had recommended as her friends.
“Serena Williams denied she was Meghan’s friend but just an acquaintance.
“She gave him an enigmatic quote: ‘You’ve got to be who you are, Meghan. You can’t hide’.”
However, Williams had publicly called Meghan a “friend” prior to 2017.
In a tweet dating back to August 23 2014, the tennis star shared a link to The Tig – Meghan’s now-defunct lifestyle blog – adding: “Check out my article with my friend @meghanmarkle.”
Retweeting this message, Twitter user @kaindeb replied to Mr Spargo’s tweet adding: “Serena Williams was tweeting about her friend Meghan in 2014 before she met Harry.”
On August 8 2015, the tennis star also tweeted a video, now unavailable, adding: “@meghanmarkle so proud of you.”
Williams, who is believed to have co-hosted Meghan’s baby shower in New York in February 2019, also tweeted about the Duchess in a positive light after the Royal Wedding.
Upon the release supported by Meghan of the cookbook Together, which raised more than £500,000 for the Hubb Community Kitchen, Williams tweeted: “I used to call you Meghan (and I still do) but dear Duchess of Sussex your first project ‘Together’ a cookbook bringing women of all cultures together.
“I could not be more excited about it and proud of you.
“It’s beautiful – diversity, inclusivity, coming together in grief or joy.”