Maria Sharapova was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame on Saturday evening, and Serena Williams made a surprise appearance to introduce her.
The Williams–Sharapova rivalry is one of the most known in women's tennis history. Although Williams won 20 out of their 22 meetings, Sharapova continued to be a dominant opponent for her. It always seemed like these two legends despised each other off the court as much as they appeared to on the court, but that couldn't be further from the truth it appears.
"I know I'm probably the last person you would be expecting to see here tonight," Williams said when she arrived on Saturday night. "Honestly, a few years ago, I probably would have said the same thing."
Williams went on to give a really touching and emotional speech to her now "forever friend" Sharapova. It brought tears to Sharapova's eyes, and surely to tennis fans everywhere. Here's a snippet of Williams's sweet speech, in which Williams calls her longtime rival like a "sister" to her.
“She actually reminds me a lot of Venus, and the more I get to know her the more I think the things we share and can share in the future," Williams said. "... If I didn't know her better, I think she could have been my sister. The yin to my yang, the calm to my storm. So, don't be surprised when I'm calling her with all the dramas in my life because that's what sisters do.
"So, what started as a rivalry turned into an enormous amount of respect, and what grew from respect has turned to friendship."
Sharapova got emotional during Serena’s speech.
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) August 24, 2025
“She actually reminds me a lot of Venus. The more I know her the more I think the things we share and can share in the future (…) I think she could have been my sister”. pic.twitter.com/6p9HnwxZEx
The two tennis legends shared a long hug on stage before Sharapova spoke.
Like Williams said, who would've seen this coming? It's special to see such a strong bond between two icons of the game.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Serena Williams Gave Former Rival Maria Sharapova a Touching Speech at HOF Ceremony.
