Serena Williams has words of comfort for close pal Meghan Markle

MEGHAN MARKLE’s good chum Serena Williams has served up a shoulder to cry on after explaining how her own dad pulled out of her wedding at the 11th hour.

The tennis superstar, who is expected to be there tomorrow when Meghan weds Prince Harry, revealed she couldn’t be upset with her dad Richard when nerves got the better of him ahead of her wedding in New Orleans last year.

‘He was in New Orleans, he had a suit, and I know he was really excited,’ said the former world No.1 following the news that Meghan’s dad Thomas can’t give her away because of a heart op.

‘But then he wrote me and said, “Serena, I don’t want you to be mad at me but I just can’t walk you down the aisle. I’m not myself any more. I’m just too nervous”.’

Serena, who married Reddit mogul Alexis Ohanian, 35, told him: ‘Daddy, it’s okay, if you don’t want to come to the wedding at all, that’s okay too. I’m not going to be upset with you about it, so I don’t want you to be upset.’

The 36-year-old added: ‘If he doesn’t want to be up there in front of a lot of people, I completely understand.

‘When we first came on the scene, there were a lot of people who didn’t get him. I don’t think a lot of them wanted to get him.

‘Our family knows what we have. We just want each other to be happy. That’s what matters. I don’t think anything could ever change that.’

Serena is expected to attend tomorrow’s ceremony in Windsor after pulling out from a set of tournaments. She and Meghan struck up a close bond after meeting at the Super Bowl eight years ago.

Since then Serena has been advising the Suits actress how to handle the spotlight, revealing: ‘I told her, “You’ve got to be who you are, Meghan. You can’t hide”.’

Author: Andrei Harmsworth