Watch CBS News

Serena Williams Opens Up To Gayle King About Pregnancy, Engagement & Career

Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Serena Williams opened up about her surprise pregnancy announcement, which didn't go as planned, during an interview at the annual Ted Talk conference.

"Have you thought, 'Am I coming back?' Will I take some time off? What are you thinking?" Gayle King asked her.

"Well, I'm always trying to defy the odds ya know. So, for me, everything is really mental and I definitely plan on coming back, I'm not done yet," she responded.

Even at 35 years old, and with a baby on the way, Williams is confident her time on the tennis court is far from over. But her time as a mother is about to begin.

"This is just a new part of my life and my baby's gonna be in the stands hopefully cheering for me and not crying too much," Williams said.

Williams says she accidentally shared the pregnancy news on Snapchat last week, posting a picture with the caption "20 weeks."

The future Hall-of-Famer found out she was expecting only two days before the Australian Open in January.

"I was nervous. I wasn't sure what to do. Can I play?" she recalled.

Williams played and won, beating her sister Venus. While nearly two months pregnant, she captured the 23rd grand slam title of her career.

Williams also opened up to King about her love life. She's engaged to investor and Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian.

KING: You said, 'I met a guy and he's a nerdy, kinda geeky guy, you won't know who he is.' And I said, 'What's his name?'

WILLIAMS: I remember talking to you about that!

KING: And you said, 'Alexis Ohanian' and I said, 'I know him! He's awesome!'

WILLIAMS:  Yeah, he is.

KING: But I would have never put you with a nerdy geek.

WILLIAMS: Me neither. I'm gonna be honest with you, I didn't either but it's been the best thing for me.

Williams also shared an interesting tidbit about her engagement.

The tennis star was she was actually angry when Ohanian proposed because he did it in the middle of a training session for the Australian Open.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.