Serena Williams reveals she wanted to be a professional ballet dancer when she was young

Serena Williams and Roger Federer danced together at numerous Grand Slam champions dinners throughout their trophy-laden tennis careers. So it was somewhat poetic that the pair called time on their sporting careers just a few weeks apart.

It remains to be seen what's next for Federer, but Williams has already invested in more than 60 start-ups through her firm Serena Ventures.

One such project is her first children’s book 'The Adventures of Qai Qai', a story about a little girl with a love of ballet who is helped along the way by her doll – and best friend – Qai Qai.

And, speaking on podcast Black Girls Texting, the legendry 23-time Grand Slam champion revealed she herself wanted to be involved with ballet when she was a youngster.

She said: “I feel like everyone loves ballet, I love ballet, I'm selfish I wanted to do it because I love ballet and I wanted to be a ballet dancer. I remember being young and going to a ballet class and then there were recitals that we got to do in the end and honestly they were some of my greatest and best memories. I didn't get to go pro as a ballerina but it's a good chapter in everyone's life.”

William also detailed the backstory to the naming of the character Qai Qai in her book, and explained it was an unexpected family member who helped her represent the black community.

"My nephew actually named her Qai Qai and I was like its perfect and at the time Olympia was one and she couldn't really speak and she could only make like sounds. It was genius and that's literally how it came about. I really wanted to give her a name that represented Black culture. It's so important for me to have that culture around her," Williams added.