‘TRY NOT TO BREATHE’

Serena Williams Gently Ribs Harry and Meghan at the ESPYs

The tennis star joked that she didn’t want “to be overshadowed by the accusations that you guys are taking up too much oxygen, okay?”

Serena Williams can still serve up a smash. Hosting the 2024 ESPYs on Thursday night, the tennis star delivered an opening monologue in which she recognized some of her closest friends—but didn’t spare them from a little bit of teasing. “It’s—well, actually only pretty often that I get to be in a room with actual royalty, and tonight is no exception,” Williams said. “Prince Harry and Meghan are here. Let’s give it up for them.” As the audience applauded, she continued, “But please, Harry and Meghan, try not to breathe too much tonight. Because this is my night, and I don’t want to be overshadowed by the accusations that you guys are taking up too much oxygen, okay?” The broadcast cut to footage of the couple chuckling in the front row of the theater. Harry was present at the annual ceremony, an ESPN-organized event that celebrates athletic achievement, to receive the 2024 Pat Tillman Award for Service in recognition of his work with the Invictus Games. Williams and Markle have been close friends for more than a decade. The athlete was the first guest on Markle’s now-defunct podcast Archetypes in 2022.