“Venus and I started out being successful, continued to be successful, and we were also unapologetically ourselves. We were not afraid to wear braids. We weren’t afraid to be Black in tennis. And that was different.”

Although the magazine had a reason, it failed to satisfy many critics.  

Scholar Breea Willingham, tennis player Zina Garrison and journalist Vanessa DeLuca break down why the backlash against Williams for expressing her emotions is not at all surprising.

Heads of the Women’s Tennis Association and U.S. Tennis Association support the star’s critique that a man would not have been punished for expressing emotion during the U.S. Open.

The British tennis tournament is Williams’ first major international tournament after she pulled out of the French Open following an injury.

The upcoming docuseries focuses on the tennis great’s return to the sport after giving birth to her daughter.