Serena Williams: "Spike Lee wants me to play as hard as I can"

Serena Williams is the most successful tennis player outside of her sport. The 23-time Slam champion has contributed a lot to the growth of women's tennis in the new millennium, but her hopes of winning another Major decrease more and more.

Earning almost $29 million in prize money and endorsements, Williams was the highest paid female athlete in 2016. She repeated this feat in 2017 when she was the only woman on Forbes' list of the 100 highest paid athletes with $27 million in prize money and endorsements.

American film director Spike Lee shows up at the US Open every year, he sits in the Arthur Ashe stadium of Flushing Meadows and always cheers for Serena. The two renowned personalities of the USA are good friends they have been in touch with each other for a long-time now.

“I’ve known Spike for many years. We always have dinner. He has a house down the street from mine in Palm Beach,” Serena Williams once said. “I sometimes go over there and we eat dinner. We play tennis together. He’s super intense. He wants me to play as hard as I can. I’m like, Spike, are you sure? I mean, C’mon. He’s such a great person. I love his kids. We all just get along.

He loves debates. Whenever we’re at dinner, he’s looking for a debate. You have to join in and pick aside. I always try to pick the opposite side so it can just be a debate. It’s fun though. I love it. That’s what I wanna do and that’s what I want to be remembered for. It’s not what I do out here, but how I can inspire people off the court" - the former World number 1 added.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2zm2LHn