Serena Williams sent what seemed to be a coded message of support to heavily pregnant Meghan Markle during her Oscars 2019 speech.
The tennis champion, who counts the Duchess of Sussex as one of her best friends, spoke movingly of making dreams come true as she presented a short clip of the Academy nominated A Star Is Born, starring Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper – who are both up for acting awards.
Best many thought Serena could well have been speaking about a different woman entirely as she talked about Gaga’s character Ali in the film.
“When we are young, we all have dreams of what we can accomplish in life,” Serena told the camera.
“Having the dream is easy. Making it come true is hard. Whether that dream is becoming an actor, a tennis player or a singer, like Ali in A Star Is Born.”
She went on: “In tonight’s nominee for Best Picture, we see through Ali’s eyes the highs and the low on the journey to stardom.
“There’s the rush of fame, the pressure of success – and the heartache that comes with sacrificing love for career… or career for love.”
Serena’s BFF Meghan famously gave up her acting career when her relationship with Prince Harry got serious, quitting her Suits role to be a full-time member of the royal family.
She and Serena have been firm friends for years, and Serena was one of her star guests at the royal wedding last May.
The tennis ace also showed up to Meghan’s New York baby shower last weekend, where she and a handful of other BFFs threw a star-studded party for the duchess, who is due to give birth to her and Harry’s first child in April.