New York | Serena gives birth to second daughter

Serena Williams gave birth to her second child this week, as she and her husband Alexis Ohanian welcomed a baby daughter to their family, announcing the arrival on social media on Tuesday.

The couple confirmed the news alongside their daughter Olympia in a video posted to her 1.6 million followers on TikTok, in which she took a seat with her partner, before rising to collect their newborn baby.

Announcing her second child to the world, the 41-year-old included the caption: “Welcome my beautiful angel,” alongside the video, while she captioned a post on Instagram: “Adira River Williams.”

It is 5 years since the arrival of Olympia, who was born in September 2017, and almost a year to the day since Serena bowed out at the US Open to enlarge her family.

Ohanian confirmed the news on social media, revealing the newborn’s gender and name.

Writing on X (formerly Twitter), he said: “I’m grateful to report our house is teaming with love: a happy & healthy newborn girl and happy & healthy mama. Feeling grateful. @serenawilliams you’ve now given me another incomparable gift — you’re the GMOAT. Thanks to all the amazing medical staff who took care of my wife & our daughter

“I’ll never forget the moment I introduced @olympiaohanian to her baby sister. Your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea.”

Serena and Alexis have been in a relationship since 2015, and the couple welcomed their first child, Olympia two months before their wedding in November 2017.

They announced that they were expecting their second child in glamorous fashion at the 2023 Met Gala earlier this year, and Serena has chronicled her pregnancy journey on social media, treating fans to a video that documented the joyous moment she and her family discovered they were expecting a baby girl for the second time.

In August 2022, it was announced that Williams had retired from professional tennis following an interview with Vogue, although she later insisted that her career was not yet over, having been left ‘torn’ on the decision.

Speaking to E! magazine, she admitted: “I for sure feel more at peace now. It’s interesting. I think I feel torn because I’m still able to play at a very, very, very high level… With that being said, I always wanted to leave the game playing at a very high level.”

The 23-time Grand Slam champion won her opening two matches against Danka Kovinić and Anett Kontaveit last year in New York before losing to Ajla Tomljanović.

Warm wishes poured in for the 23-time Grand Slam champion from the tennis community and beyond.

Referring to the former World No 1 as a ‘Queen’, Iga Swiatek extended a heartfelt welcome to her newborn daughter, posting: “Congratulations Queen. Welcome baby girl!!”

Coco Gauff also congratulated the 41-year-old on the birth of her second child: “Congrats,” she posted with a heart emoji.

Celebrities such as supermodel Naomi Campbell, pop star Ciara and reality TV star Nene Leakes also conveyed their warm wishes to the American tennis legend.

Alycia Parks also joined in, saying: “Queennn,” with a heart emoji, while Taylor Townsend re-shared the post on her own social media handle, sending her love to the 23-time Grand Slam champion.